Who are you talking to?

Are you more George Michael or Lady Gaga? Maybe Rolling Stones or Blake Shelton? These can be fun questions to answer, but at the end of the day, it doesn’t matter who you are most similar to. It matters who your members most relate to.

Your language and your imagery define your brand. The persona of your credit union needs to be relatable and specific. All too often I hear credit union leaders tell me they want to appeal to everyone they can help. While this approach sounds good in theory, it ultimately waters down your message.

If you don’t know who you are talking to, you can’t connect on a deeper level. Surveys have shown that 77% of millennials would rather receive a message from their dentist than their financial institution. I don’t know about you, but I don’t exactly get excited about scheduling my regular cleaning. So why do people prefer to hear from their dentist? Because unlike the finance-related communication, the dental message is specific to them.

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