No, not the Connie Francis song - I'm talking about where the BUYS are. We know (and we've mentioned before) that we're partial to email marketing. But you're wondering about the profitability of marketing via email and whether or not there's any impact when you're using email to market products. Which emails are sure to get opened?
If you're a credit union marketer, you have a particular challenge when it comes to email marketing, and a particular advantage to answer it. Your problem:
getting members to buy/invest more at the credit union,
According to this chart, financial emails are getting read between 60 and 70 percent of the time. When you send your eStatement reminders every month, your members are going to open them for a look-see. Why not start branding them and adding in links/ads for other services and support from your institution? Push new products and rates, or encourage members to tell a friend and promote your credit union to potential members in the community. Take advantage of the relationship you've already established and a high open rate. That's where the buys are - smart, well-placed ads that tell members and potential members what they need to know.
As Liz Miller of CMO Council says:
“Irrelevant, impersonal communications, be it email or traditional mail, is a waste as it does not engage a receptive recipient...It is no surprise that consumers are opting out of irrelevant emails. However, what is a grave sign for marketers to heed is that customers will disconnect and stop doing business with brands who continue to send messages that demonstrate a lack of intimacy, customer insight and individual understanding.”
Email marketing works best when you can tailor it to the target. If you're interested in getting members. The DigitalMailer Automatic Relationship Builder helps marketers do just that. How? Visit our ARB page or call us today to find out - 866.994.4900 ext. 115 or info@digitalmailer.com for more information.
The awards keep on coming for Shell. It was only a few weeks ago that they were recognized by the Credit Union National Association as the Community Credit Union of the Year (click here to read the press release).
From the release:
"In today's turbulent world, extending a helping hand in the community is a top priority at Shell FCU. The sole purpose of the credit union is to meet the financial needs of their members, provide free financial literacy and volunteer for a stronger community."
Shell FCU's accolades are well deserved. Their iLife program encourages members and non-members to come and participate in events that will benefit others in their community. Whether it's bicycle drives, cell phones for soliders or a basketball tournament, iLife is dedicated to boosting community spirit, community giving, and volunteerism.
Shell is also celebrating a "great loan year" by offering a $15,000 store credit at Pasadena Honda to a lucky borrower in January. Pretty sweet prize, considering many lending institutions and banks are unable/unwilling to lend these days.
While some see red, Old Hickory Credit Union is seeing pink.
by Ron Daly
I'm sure football fans have noticed all the pink surrounding their favorite teams, cheerleaders and even stadium equipment the past few weeks. Sports Illustrated even "went pink" in its most recent issue, all to acknowledge the fight against breast cancer. I saw a great program go across the DigitalMailer production line this week and wanted to share it with everyone.
1. A team of Old Hickory CU employees will be participating in the Nashville Making Strides Against Breast Cancer event on Saturday, Oct. 24. Their goal is to donate $2500 to the American Cancer Society; 2. Old Hickory CU is selling pink umbrellas for $15, with $7 of that going to the American Cancer Society. These umbrellas also come with a set of coupons for credit union services that benefit members; and 3. All branches are offering information on breast cancer awareness, as well as supplemental cancer insurance policies.
When we inquired about the eLert topic Malinda Warchus, Assistant VP of Marketing commented “It might seem like a strange thing for a financial institution to send out an eLert about, but we are committed to improving the lives of our neighbors and making a positive difference in our communities. The outpouring of response from our members tells us that they like joining our cause.”
Not strange at all...and we agree with the members! In fact, I hear our DMI team is in line for any umbrellas that are left once the members are taken care of.
Most of the time, Credit Unions think they can only use member email addresses for eStatement notifications, newsletters or selling a new product or service. Those same email addresses can be used to communicate the difference between a bank and a credit union, as well as raising awareness among CU members the community outreach credit unions are involved in. Old Hickory CU has done just that by tying into a national promotion and using inexpensive methods of communication (email, electronic alerts, and monthly newsletter) and community outreach to reach members and potential members at a fraction of the cost.
Kudos and this effort speaks to the character of Old Hickory CU employees and management. Keep up the great work!
Paul J Lucas, national marketing and branding consultant and frequent CU Journal contributor, wanted to share some thoughts on brand management for credit unions. Visit Paul's website at pauljlucas.com,email at paul@pauljlucas.comor call (202) 320 5759 to learn more.
Hard Knocks - BIG Lessons
Late this summer HBO aired this year's "Hard Knocks" show about the Cincinnati Bengals National Football League training camp. Watching the series it became apparent that the basic building blocks of a winning team are universal - whether you’re on the football field, growing a company or building a successful credit union brand.
David Levitin, a neuroscientist and author of "This is your brain on music" estimates that it requires 10,000 hours of practice to master any craft. Studies of professionals from composers, to NBA players, to ice skaters show that it takes roughly three hours of practice a day, 20 hours a week, for 10 years to achieve the level of expertise we associate with world class. The next time you're tempted to think a top athlete was born lucky think about all the hard work it took to turn luck and talent into success.
Remember the old joke: one man stops another man on the street to ask, "How do you get to Carnegie Hall?" The other man answers, "Practice, practice, practice." As managers it's much easier and a lot more fun to fall in love with hot new ideas than to keep slogging away at the same old basics day after day. The challenge is that those new ideas won't start yielding results until they become those old basics you keep slogging away at.
A successful organization is seldom built on innovation. Watching the Bengals prepare for the upcoming season I identified eight critical elements in their quest to become a winning team:
Leadership - without it numbers 2 through 8 are just exercises in frustration
Preparation
Focus
Execution - especially doing the little things right constantly
Follow-through
Accountability
Getting everyone working off the same strategic plan
Having the right people in the right places
Are you sitting there thinking you could have written that list off the top your head? Bottom line, knowing what needs to be done and making it happen are two very different things. Most successful CEO's I know would willingly mail their annual business plans and strategies to their competitors. Why? Because they know it's what you do every day in the trenches that counts.
So ask yourself:
A) Does your staff consistently up-sell the values and benefits of your credit union?
B) Do you have a brand strategy that everyone clearly understands, right down to knowing how their individual efforts help drive your brand efforts?
C) Can every staff member name the values, benefits and features of your CU?
If they can, keep up the good work.
If they can't, it's time to get in the huddle and make it happen.
A Special Message to Our Clients - There's No Such Thing as "Over-Disclosure"
by Ron Daly
With the Credit CARD Act of 2009 going into effect today, the talk in the industry is all about disclosure. CUNA News Now published this article "21-day rule: CUNA urges CUs 'document everything'" What's the best way to tell your members about the changes in credit card rules and the changes in your policies as a result of the CARD Act?
The Answer: ANY way you can tell clients about the new regulations is a great way to tell clients about new regulations.
The example below is from Belvoir FCU. Click the thumbnail to see the full size image.
For our clients: We want to let you know that we're here to help and that there are several ways we can increase awareness for your members - the way we did for Panhandle Educators (click below to see example)
We can add a notice to your eStatement notification emails, to your Customer Communication Center splash pages, we can load a permanent notice inside the available statement library, or we can even send a special notification through the ARB to your mailing list. The statement needs to be as clear as possible, and the more members see it the better they'll understand the new regulations.
For NON-Clients: We're more than willing to get you set up with a special one-time ARB email for your specific mailing list. Just give us the addresses and we can get the word out for you.
You and your credit union/financial institution are going to need to act fast to spread the word. Take advantage of the many channels you use to communicate already to be as specific as you can about the new regulation.
Special Guest Dan Schoenherr on "Closing the Loop"
Dan Schoenherr is an experienced credit union consultant. He has expertise in strategic planning, process improvement, board governance, and website strategies. He is President/CEO of Schoenherr Consulting and has led several credit unions in their process improvement programs and creating member delight. Most recently he has been helping credit unions with their Net Promoter® Score programs. He may be reached at dan@schoenherrconsulting.com.
Net Promoter® Score, a loyalty measurement, has been adopted by many credit unions. However, many are not "closing the loop." A Net Promoter® Score survey asks the question: "How likely is it that you would recommend (the credit union) to a friend or colleague?" Customers respond on a 0-to-10 point rating scale and are categorized as follows:
Promoters (score 9-10) are loyal enthusiasts who will keep buying and refer others, fueling growth
Passives (score 7-8) are satisfied but unenthusiastic members who are vulnerable to competitive offerings
Detractors (score 0-6) are unhappy members who can damage your brand and impede growth through negative word-of-mouth.
To calculate the credit union's Net Promoter® Score (NPS), take the percentage of members who are Promoters and subtract the percentage who are Detractors.
Closing the Loop
Most NPS surveys ask a second question: What is the primary reason for the score you just gave us? This is the beginning of the feedback process that allows the credit union to improve the member experience. Digital Mailer's eSurvey system will send an email to a designated credit union employee on any survey received with a Detractor score of 0-6. This allows the credit to contact the member (generally within 48 hours), to understand their concerns in greater detail and resolve any issues.
An internal review of the results should be conducted to identify key drivers of loyalty and establish process improvement plans. The last part of the "loop" is informing members what you did with the information provided.
Email Surveying
About one-third of the credit unions sharing their NPS scores on the CU-Processes website do phone surveys. While this approach provides excellent feedback, it is very expensive. The largest majority are doing mail surveys. This approach offers little chance to immediately "close the loop" with the member, or to delve deeper into the core reasons for the member's dissatisfaction.
Email provides fast surveying (especially if event-driven), and the opportunity to immediately "close the loop" with the member. It also allows you a simple way to survey various segments - a specific branch, the contact center, online users, etc.
If you are considering a Net Promoter® Score program, make sure it includes the steps to "close the loop." Otherwise, you have missed the opportunity to truly improve the member's experience with the credit union.
I thought we'd highlight the good works and good reputation of a credit union that has been serving members for the past eighty-four years.
Pyramid Credit Union in Tucson, Arizona has four generations of members and a life-long reputation of helping those who wanted a better financial future. Recently, an article about Pyramid was published in the CU Journal (click here to read "It's a Wonderful Life Really Does Still Exist in Tucson, Ariz." by Paul Lucas). At Pyramid's 80th annual dinner meeting, members celebrated the good works of the credit union and the credit union celebrated its diverse and long-standing membership.
And what a story! At BarCampBank Vegas, friend and colleague Robbie Wright asked why everyone doesn't get their own credit union started. Some might have balked at the idea, but reading about Pyramid's humble beginnings makes the idea seem pretty smart to me. Lend a little, get a little more back, help out your fellow man. And they've kept the basic concept at their core for eighty years now.
Keep up the great work, Pyramid. Here's hoping that everyone in our industry takes a page from your book and works to better their community and the lives of their members.
Does your CU have a great success story? Tell us about it in the comments section.
by Ron Daly It's June, 2009 - do you know where YOUR capital is?
Odds are you've been coping with your minimized budget and your overall losses for these last eight months and you've had to forgo talks of better things - more hiring, membership drives, company functions, employee appreciation, raises, etc. Maybe one of the things you've minimized is your "Green" initiatives. It's easy to move away from an initiative that's mostly voluntary when you have imperative financial issues to tackle.
I think it's time to kill two birds with one stone..not literally, of course. Part of saving the environment is not throwing rocks at birds. I'm talking about using your green initiatives as a means of saving money.
Green-vangelist Andrew Winston wrote on the Harvard Business blog:
Not only should companies not put their green efforts on hold, they should accelerate them in targeted ways to save money quickly and prepare for the future. Those who navigate these tricky waters the best will emerge from the downturn in better shape than their competitors.
And furthermore:
Getting lean, particularly on energy and resources, will save money and reduce carbon impacts (as well as making you more competitive when energy prices inevitably rise again). Thinking through your value chain and getting creative about how you can help your customers manage their environmental impacts and lower their costs will help you grab market share in tough times. And it will likely do much more to address environmental challenges than focusing only on your own environmental impacts. Getting your people engaged around a dual mission — save the company money and preserve our collective bounty and assets — will help boost morale in tough times and keep your company going strong. ("Why This Is the Right Time to Go Green", blogs.harvardbusiness.org, June 2009)
I had this information tucked away in an e-mail and thought I'd share it here on the site. Apparently, trees can be assigned a dollar value based on the amount of carbon dioxide they absorb, the amount of run-off they filter, the amount of oxygen they make, etc. Your average Red Cedar is worth about $120,000/year, considering the price of oxygen it produces (numbers/values from the Kooragang Wetland Rehabilitation institute). That's plenty of money, and that's just one tree.
Planting trees is a great way to drive up member participation and enrollment. Let members contribute a small amount of money from their share accounts and contribute to a tree planting day that you've organized. Or offer it as an incentive for signing up for eStatements, a la "sign up for eStatements today and we'll plant a tree in your name!"
Bottom Line - the economic downturn has tested our structures. If ever there was a time to start changing the game, it's now. Why not implement measures that will save you money overtime, such as optimizing your lighting and power and reducing water flow in your facilities? Why not encourage employee carpooling and create Green-themed giveaways? Make the changes now and enjoy the benefits long after you do.
Shell FCU recently was named business of the year by the Deer Park Chamber of Commerce. DigitalMailer wants to send its congratulations to a credit union that has set down deep roots in its community of members.
Why are they Business of the Year? Something tells us it's a matter of commitment.
To The Environment:
A look at Shell FCU's website shows they're big fans of a natural, eco-friendly look. At the bottom right-hand corner of their page is a logo showing their participation in the Green Business Alliance. On content pages, links to their eStatement enrollment page encourage members to "go green" with DigitalMailer's eStatements (see below).
To The Community:
From Shell FCU's press release:
In addition to time spent at work, employees also volunteer for the credit union’s FCU "Furthering Community Unity" Team. The FCU Team consists of Shell FCU employees, members and local individuals who participate in events such as blood drives, walks, runs, food drives, Habitat for Humanity and other charitable events. In 2008, the FCU team logged over 347 hours and donated more than $8,900 to help others. As of April 2009, approximately 465 hours have already been donated.
Imagine increasing your electronic statement enrollment leaps and bounds with a single e-mail. Sound impossible? Not with DigitalMailer's "One Click" campaign.
After nine years of creating and implementing electronic statements for credit unions across the country, we've seen and heard some great promotional offers to encourage eStatement enrollment. iPod, Camera, Wii and PDA giveaways are pretty standard, as are plant-a-tree promotions and monetary incentives. Folks who sign up are happy with their statements and credit unions are happy with the savings.
Recently, we started a new campaign which lets members sign up for eStatements by clicking on a single button in an e-mail. One click is all it takes to enroll in eStatements and move away from costly paper and printing. We recognized after creating a number of these campaigns that several key steps could be rolled into one. By verifying an email address, sending an email with the legal agreement attached, allowing the member to read through the agreement and sending their "opt-in" agreement to the credit union, we would be cutting out unnecessary steps, thereby saving time and money.
"One of the good things about this campaign is that members don't have to go to an enrollment page, type in personal info such as account number, SSN, email, name, etc. They click the button and we find the info in the CU system. No need to exchange personal info at all." --Traci McNamara, Account Manager, DigitalMailer
Two credit unions that are currently using the "One Click" campaign:
Hudson River FCU decided to use the "One Click" in conjunction with a $100 offer to draw in new eStatement users. Since sending their e-mail in April, they've increased total eStatement use by 15%! Hudson River plans to run the same campaign in May and June, and with similar results month to month they stand to save over $14,000 with eStatements.
Belvoir FCU has offered eStatements for the past seven years. Introducing the "One Click" campaign in the middle of April, they've experienced a total 5% growth, and are running the campaign again in May. Even more interesting, there's no offer attached - people just click to sign up! Belvoir will be running the same "One Click" campaign through june. If they have the same success in June, they will be saving an estimated 50% of their total cost by switching those paper statements to e-mail!
Something to take away from this campaign and its successes :
1) When members know it's easy to get started with eStatements, they'll go for it.
2) Your eStatements can lead to great savings. The more enrollments you have, the more you save on printing and postage.
3) It can work with a special offer or without.
4) You can get the campaign for your CU and get started right away!
There's been a lot of buzz and hum about credit cards recently. And why not? Credit is a sore subject to some, a point of pride for others, and for folks that never had it? Could go either way, really.
So, let's highlight some credit card stories of the past few days:
One of the biggest stories: The Heartland Systems break-in. I wrote a piece for the CU Soapbox on the hack about a week ago (click to read), and new horror stories just keep popping up. Wired Magazine has been keeping tabs on the accounts affected (click here to read) and CreditCards.com say the effects have hit financial institutions on all levels and in many states (click to read).
More and more, banks and credit card companies have been driving up the rates (click to read).
Have anything else to share on credit cards? Our comments section is always open.
That question is one of the most famous examples of up-selling in American history. Today, credit union executives and marketing teams are striving to create the same up-sell message that will increase their service-per-member ratios. The fact of the matter is, credit unions are not really that good at up-selling when they are not face-to-face with the member. Until now...
How do you seal the deal in a wireless world?
Wikipedia defines Up-selling as a sales technique whereby a salesman attempts to have the customer purchase more expensive items, upgrades, or other add-ons in an attempt to make a more profitable sale.
Not too long ago a member had to walk into a branch to join, add a new service they needed or get a loan for a dream that they had. The face-to-face contact made our jobs easier to up-sell additional products or tell them what was new at the credit union.
Not anymore. Members can now join remotely, apply for loans online, make deposits and withdrawals from free ATMs around the world and hit a shared-branch. Have you ever stopped and considered how many members actually walk into your branches? Wonder if some members even know where your branches are? Or quite possibly what a credit union really is?
Sealing the deal in today’s wireless world is challenging credit unions. Experience has shown that credit unions are really not that good at up-selling when they are not face-to-face with the member.
TELL US NOW:Does your credit union still rely on face-to-face up-selling as its main method of moving products to members?
On Greed and Fear: How Credit Unions get the most out of the crisis.
by Ron Daly
Came across an article today written by Warren E. Buffett. Buffett knows money, I think that's safe to say. Read his very good article here.
Anyway, he said something in his op-ed piece that really stuck with me:
"A simple rule dictates my buying: Be fearful when others are greedy, and be greedy when others are fearful."
This was one of those things that, on the first read, was smart sounding. But reading it again gave me a clarity I hadn't expected. It made me think about our industry and how we SHOULD be looking at the opportunity presented. Now, more than ever, attention is placed on the stability of credit unions versus big banks. In the midst of the big earning days of low-rate loans and bum securities, banks were greedy and CUs were fearful...fearful of loaning and mortgaging irrational sums. Naturally, lending money to people who couldn't afford to pay it back turned out to be a bad idea.
So now comes the time where CUs are thriving and banks are scrambling to make up the difference. Is this the time to drop marketing? Is this the time to be weak-willed when it comes to drawing members? Quite the contrary.
Now's when CUs need to:
1) Market Hard 2) Consider their next round of member rewards and incentives 3) Become the "Bull" of finance, not the "Bear".
You are worthy of attention, CUs - you made the right decisions at the right time and you're getting praised for that. Now's your chance to be greedy when the other financial institutions are fearful.
I get this complaint from Credit Unions and other businesses all the time:
"We don't want to start sending e-mail messages and statements to our clients because we're going to get phished".
It's one of those funny statements like "life isn't fair" that's right and wrong all at the same time. The Credit Unions we serve aren't being phished. No one's asking them for crucial information and taking advantage of it. What happens is this: 1) Some crumb-bum (pardon my French) sets up a website/e-mail address and snags a picture of a CU's logo. 2) They start e-mailing people (members or not) and asking for their social security numbers, member numbers, account numbers, names, addresses, mother's maiden name, etc. 3) Here's where we get a split: 3A] The targeted e-mails drop the phish e-mail in their SPAM folder. End of discussion. 3B] The member gets smart and deletes it. End of discussion. 3C] The member ACTUALLY SENDS ALL OF THEIR CRUCIAL PERSONAL INFORMATION TO A COMPLETE STRANGER WITHOUT THINKING!!!!
Sorry, went a little crazy there. But it DRIVES me crazy. People short their members out of essential services in favor of "steering clear of trouble", so they say. Oh really?
I recall the 70s (yes, I was clean-living enough to remember some of it) - people would put boxes in front of ATMs marked *ATM BROKEN, PLACE DEPOSITS HERE*...and people did.
And, of course, we stopped using ATMs altogether.
Then, people started "vishing" - or voice phishing - by calling up people and taking their information or asking for mail-ins.
So naturally, we stopped using the telephone.
Is any of this sinking in? You can't just run away from technology because people start using it for ill. You're cheating the people you serve out of what they need to manage their money and make decisions regarding the use of your business.
Special Report - The deep breath before the plunge: What you need to read, what you want to know
Our regular contributors offer good reads regarding the Financial Meltdown.
from Ron Daly:
"Frankly, there's no better way to put this than CNN did in this explanatory article (Click Here). It shows causes, thoughts, solutions and suggestions that we as homeowners, workers, families and people with credit need to consider. It's 9 pages worth of very sharp, very smart information."
from Greg Crandell
"There are few things right now that concern me more than mortgages...the (Wall Street) Journal just reported one in six homes is "under water" - meaning the mortgage is more than the home is worth now (Click Here)."
:: Credit Union News :: The stability of the CU industry has been a hot topic for many online news sources recently. The stories that follow extol the virtues of credit unions in shaky financial times:
Be Upset...Be Very Upset: Bankers come forward to CNN about predatory lending
by Ron Daly
As the Financial Crisis looms and the bailout comes to life, the amount of damning evidence against finance companies continues to grow. This story, from CNN (click here for print), comes from two bankers who were pressured by Bank of America to drive cardholders deeper and deeper into debt.
Watch the video to see the story, or click the above link to read.
Give It Away: How can we make things easy for you?
By Ron Daly
The Wii. A miracle of modern gaming. It's fun for everyone, it's easy to pick up, and it allows my daughter to have something to do on a rainy day.
Anticipating this year's Holiday Party for our office, I purchased a Wii for my employees. Needless to say, they can't wait for the Holidays.
Yes, the Nintendo Wii is awesome. So much so that nearly 30 million units have been sold. It's a hit with parents who want their kid's gaming to be more mobile or with people who aren't "typical gamers" who are suddenly interested in making it happen. Women and seniors, long considered the outliers in gaming, are getting in on the trend.
Which brings me to the topic of this post (took a while to get here). One of our early promotions involved giving away mp3 players to members who signed up for electronic statements. Credit Unions could order inserts which offered a chance at winning an iPod Nano. We charged a fraction of a cent per flyer ($.00162, on average) and saved the CUs over $25,000. The best part? We payed for the iPods with the money gained from the flyers. The CUs simply had to sit back and watch members flock to online statements, a smart, green, money-saving alternative to paper.
So, my question is this: could we do this with a Wii? Would anyone be interested in a "Wii give-away?" Contact me at rdaly@digitalmailer.com or leave a message on our comment section.
One of my colleagues managed to drop a back-issue of the Credit Union Times on my desk today. In it was an article (read the online version here) about how Credit Unions need to "think outside the box".
Ho hum, I thought, considering that just about every article that has ANYTHING to do with Credit Union marketing says those exact words. But then I kept reading (bad idea). The article goes on to say that:
Credit Unions have to get themselves onto Facebook and MySpace.
Gen - Y is the "Hannah Montana generation" (although it never says why).
Gen - Y has no interest in entering a brick-and-mortar building when it can do everything online.
No one cares about helping people.
The article goes on to make outrageous claims about how the iPhone and Bill Gates' retirement mean Macs will outdo PCs - which is bull. PCs claim about 75% of the marketshare, Apple moves around 6%. Read about that here.
The overarching question in the piece is "Are you still a CD Credit Union in an MP3 World?"
Right, I forgot - No one buys CDs anymore. Which is why THEY have shy of 90% of the market, compared to 10% for MP3s and - get this - 0.2% vinyl. People are still buying albums on vinyl!
The article is littered with buzzwords. "Evolve with the marketplace", "Be edgy","Outdo the Banks"...sorry, I nodded off there. I don't want to seem like I'm picking on anyone (I'm really not - the article's a good read and it DOES point out that sometimes the best way to appeal to a group is to latch on to their wants more than their needs), it's just that I'm tired of people in the CU industry who try to drive a square peg into a round hole when it comes to young customers. You want the truth about how young folks (like me) see finances?
I'll do this one thing at a time.
Credit Unions should be on Social Networks - Okay, so Facebook is important to advancing high schoolers and college kids. Fine. But nobody needs to get it in their head that all the problems CUs face trying to get youth membership will disappear when they sign their CU up for a MySpace page or a Twitter account.
Gen-Y uses these spaces as a personal tool, not a professional one (go back and read my old posts on Facebook and Social Networking - or don't, I don't care). So no, you don't get a bump in ROI because you uploaded your favorite videos of a dog chasing his tail. You want to advertise? Advertise. But don't try to "friend" me to tell me about a Roth IRA. I promise you I won't want to chat about it. Want to use Facebook's ACTUAL business tools? Here's a link. I just made your day.
Gen - Y LOVES Hannah Montana- I'd laugh at this if the thought didn't completely repulse me.
And why does this have anything to do with ANYTHING?!? Hannah Montana is not a real person. Is the idea that Gen - Y is desperate to be dual-identity pop stars? Did people in the 30s and 40s call their children "The Buck Rogers generation"? You CAN'T BOIL AN ENTIRE GENERATION OF PEOPLE DOWN TO A FAD. Fads disappear - and so does money, if you're not careful.
That's why we (the young) rely on Credit Unions to KEEP our money. This link points to a study saying that only about 19% of Gen-Y's total income gets saved (that's an average, now...nobody I know puts away 20%, not even me).
You can do it all online! - No, you can't.
I can't go online and speak to a loan officer. I can't go online and resolve a checking dispute or get the best service for a problem I'm having. My computer doesn't burp up cash when I need it. I can't count on my computer for everything.
Sometimes, you have to have a building with actual, living, breathing people inside. The speaker from the article says he's "of the generation that...learned to eliminate the middle man." Well, why's he still here? I point to self-checkout, a phenomenon that is popping up at more and more stores. I love self-checkout because I never have that much stuff and it all pretty much fits in one bag. But when I buy beer (I'm 22) or Lucky Charms (I don't act like I'm 22) that don't scan correctly or need cashier assistance, I can't just beg the machine to read my ID. It won't. Because there is NO SYSTEM in the world that can act without human input.
Drink machines don't refill themselves, Gas pumps don't just pump pure crude from out of the ground, and a bank can't run without people there to make sense of whose money is where. You can upgrade or downgrade a building, you can put balance sheets in the palm of someone's hand, but Credit Unions have to do with people. Part of the reason I joined my CU was because I got better service and support, not because of their website. Get real, people.
Nobody Cares About People - Who sold somebody with this one?
Gen - Y can, at times, come off a little selfish. But who isn't? We all want to get the most for our money and the most for ourselves. But one thing that someone had to tell me when I started my account at the CU was this: I own part of a financial institution. I put more into my investment every time I save, every time I borrow, and every time I walk through the lobby. I'm a financial powerhouse, and it only took $5.
You really want to hook Gen - Y? Explain to them that Credit Union membership means owning your own bank.
So, what's the lesson for the day? Well :
Social Network friending doesn't mean anything. I'm friends with people I've never met. Odds are, they only friended you to drive up their friendship number or as a novelty.
Online services are important, but they're only one leg on the table. Match, don't surpass, your online with your over-the-phone, e-mail and personal services.
Never lose your focus on PEOPLE. At the end of the day, Gen - Y wants to be treated well by their CU. That matters more than hip-hop and iPods and, yes, even Hannah Montana.
[EDITOR'S NOTE -- All trademarks and brand names copyright their respective owners]
I got curious when I saw this story pop up in my blog reader. It has to do with loans. Not car loans, which, like home loans, are defaulting at an alarming rate following the bad tidings from this weekend.
No, these were loans for fuel. I'll say that again - a loan for fuel.
This winter, the Maine Credit Union League has authorized small loans to people who have to keep warm. The loans, which have a $5,000 cap, are intended to keep people with high heating costs from getting stuck paying for outrageous fuel prices. The CU decides on the loan and, if and when the loan is approved, mail a check directly to the oil company.
This made me think about Microloans - Kiva.org is a good place to learn more - which involve loaning a small amount of money to a small, poor business to get them started/keep them going. The default rate on these loans is usually very small, and the business model leaves a bit to be desired - read this article from the New Yorker. All in all, however, microloans can make a difference in the lives of the "working poor" as they're often described.
As America has gotten more and more mired down in debt, the concept of more lending is always a little puzzling. Sure, people need things like homes and cars and now, sadly, very expensive fuel for those homes and cars. But what will it take to keep us from all being under the gun?
TIME FOR SOME OPINIONS:
What do you think of small, practical life loans, such as the "fuel loan" above or "micro-credit"? Do Credit Cards take the place of small personal loans?
Stormy Weather: The Weekend Brings Bad News for the Financial Sector
by Ron Daly
Our Friday post had to do with resources available to Texans who had been uprooted by Hurricane Ike. Even as we put together our list, we were uncertain of exactly what was in store. Thousands of people trapped after ignoring the evacuation mandate, thousands more stranded far from home - the picture is grim. But there are those who try to make it a little brighter, bit by bit.
Click the image above to donate. Special thanks to Brent Dixon at OpenSourceCU.com for breaking the story/providing the source code for the donation buttons. Visit their site to get the code for yourself/your blog/your credit union's webpage.
In a move that some would describe as shocking - and others would describe as the good nature of credit unions shining through in a time of need - Texas Dow Employees Credit Union has offered to delay loan/mortgage payments in the wake of the Hurricane. Their Senior VP of lending, Paul Perdue, put out this video:
But that's not the only big financial news from this weekend. Merrill-Lynch was swallowed by Bank of America, Lehman Bros. filed for bankruptcy, and the stock market hit its worst day since September 11, 2001 (won't link to stories, because they're everywhere already). How are CUs faring in the midst of this? This story from the Times Leader explains the urge for calm and how credit unions view the turmoil.
As someone who was a credit union CFO for a number of years and who has always kept an eye on how the financial industry moves, I'm interested to see what happens next in all these news stories.
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