As we look to International Credit Union Day on the horizon next month, we are looking for ways to help remind members and communities about the credit union mission of people-helping-people as well as the “not for profit, but for people” mantra credit unions carry at the core of their DNA.
What are you doing in your community to raise awareness of your brand and the Credit Union mission?
As part of our view-through rate going internal education efforts, we came across this stand-out case study from Virgin Money in the UK that we thought hit a home run in terms of raising brand awareness plus offering a positive way to demystify the brand in order to get new clients (members) on board. Take a look, and see our recommendations below.
WHAT:
Virgin Money (a financial services brand) created a Q&A video series on YouTube to help address and calm
money worries among UK consumers.
WHEN:
Fall of 2020
WHY:
Insights revealed people in the UK – whether Virgin Money customers or not – were worrying more about money, so Virgin Money worked on an initiative to address the issues people were facing.
HOW / THE STRATEGY:
Video Q&A series featuring team members (during lockdown) addresses common questions.
The webpage invited questions through an online form that would allow the newly devised ‘Red Team’ to call customers needing help, then responded with video content as well as an always-on call-back service, manned by staff.
RESULTS:
9.3 million views and returning a view-through rate double the industry average.
KEY TAKEAWAYS:
While we may not have the budget of a Virgin Money brand, there are some key takeaways here:
1). Ask questions. Solicit questions and concerns from your members and your potential members. We generally do not have the resources to poll potential members regularly to know what’s on their minds and what their needs are, so ask! Use your social channels to solicit info and feedback via an online form or poll. It’s easy and the costs are minimal.
2). Get your people on camera and post video content of your internal team(s). We can’t be at in-person events quite like we were in 2019. Demystify your brand and your team with easy, simple videos. Either have your team introduce themselves and say one thing about themselves, or have your team answer common questions. These can be captured on a Smartphone and posted easily and regularly. The more authentic, the better.
3). Don’t restrict your help and support to members only. Credit Unions are not-for-profit, but for people. As part of your Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) efforts or your community give-back, offer guidance and resources for your community. Consider it your mission to build strong communities, and offer insights and financial education support to everyone in your community, not just your members. This will give your current member pride in ownership while also giving your team pride in purpose.