The Credit Union 2.0 blog gives you all the tools you need to see the forest for the trees.
It’s that time of year again! Time to see who’s been bad or good, scope out shiny new tools, and make wish lists. And no, we’re not talking about the holidays.
It’s credit union budgeting season. Time to decide your fate for the next year. Will you have enough money for everything you need? Or will you cut corners…
And how do credit union employee benefits fit in?
Continue reading “2020 Budgeting: Is it Time to Rethink Your Credit Union Employee Benefits?”
Welcome to episode 51 of the CU 2.0 Podcast.
Can a credit union serve more than one employer group? You know what today’s answer is of course. But to know the history you need to talk with Marc Schafer, CEO of Truliant, a Winston Salem credit union.
That’s because Truliant was sued by a banker’s group in the mid 1990s that claimed it was illegal for a credit union to serve more than one employer group. And the bankers won in the Supreme Court!
So how is it now legal? Listen to Schaefer and his tale of how HR 1151 became law – that’s the legislation that made multiple SEGs legal.
Along the way you will hear a great personal credit union success story. Schafer became CEO of the tiny FDIC credit union when he was 34 in 1986. In 1995 he moved to Truliant which then was a $400 million credit union.
Truliant now is a $2.5 billion credit union.
That’s a remarkable growth story and of course you want to hear it.
Why is Schafer telling his story now? He retires at year end.
His is a terrific story of how to make credit unions work better, for more people.
Related podcasts in this series include Bucky Sebastian (who tells his take on HR 1151), Gary Oakland, Jim Blaine, and Teresa Freeborn.
As for Blaine, the retired CEO of SECU in North Carolina, he too has a story of being sued over multiple SEGs. In an email he wrote this: “few know that the “original” FOM law suit was filed against SECU in state court (SECU is state-chartered) in 1977 by the NC Bankers Association when SECU added small city/county local govts to our FOM. The bankers beat us in the NC Supreme Court (on a split decision with the Chief Justice writing an ‘icy’ dissent!) and we had to divest about 9,000 local govt employees who had joined. We did so – being the ornery, stubborn folks we were! – by forming a federal credit union (today’s Local Government FCU @$2.5 billion) which immediately contracted for all services through SECU. LGFCU had a board and staff of 1, but immediately had a full array of services and about 50 branches at that time! Needless to say our state bankers were ‘not pleased’ and sued in federal court (we forced it out of our state courts since LGFCU was federally chartered!). LGFCU/SECU won on appeal in the 3rd District (Richmond) and the bankers decided not to appeal to the US Supreme Court. When they later came gunning for Marc, the bankers made sure it got heard in the 4th District (DC) which is far more ‘business friendly’ – the 4th ruled in favor of the banks, which led to the adverse Supreme Court decision, the Campaign for Consumer Choice, and HR 1151.”
Which would you prefer:
You use print, radio, TV, and banner ads to attract new members and market specific products and services.
Or…
You let eligible, already-interested parties come to you for those same products, services, and membership benefits.
Those options represent the difference between outbound and inbound marketing. Of course, you don’t have to choose between them. You can (and should) use both methods. But if your credit union is interested in inbound marketing—and letting leads and prospective members seek you out—then this primer should help.
Continue reading “Inbound Marketing for Credit Unions: A Primer”
Welcome to episode 50 of the CU 2.0 Podcast.
You have your eye on new ATMs for your credit union – but you are given pause by the price tags that can quickly jump above $50,000 apiece.
Welcome to episode 49 of the CU 2.0 Podcast.
Take a guess. How many recurring payments does a typical consumer have set up, for how much money monthly?
Alain Glanzman, CEO of fintech WalletFi is focused on exactly that issue – and also on the huge potential it represents for credit unions.
Continue reading “CU 2.0 Podcast 49: Alain Glanzman WalletFi”