AUSTIN, Texas—The best way to increase wallet share with your members is simple, says Bobby Michael—ask them what they need.
Michael, who now heads $1.2-billion Army Aviation Center FCU in Daleville, Ala., and prior to that was CEO of the now $76-million Core CU in Statesboro, Ga., said he quickly learned that when running a small shop the credit union had to be resourceful and creative to grow. He spoke to an audience at the CUTomorrow Conference here comprised of leaders from CUs of all sizes and outlined ways they can grow and thrive.
Michael spoke about several of the strategies deployed by Core CU while he was at the helm that dramatically boosted growth—including nine years with 15% average annual loan growth, 12% average asset growth at a time when the CU was only growing membership by 3%.
“So most of our growth was not coming from outside the credit union—we made the most of the relationships with the members we had,” Michael told the meeting.
Overlooked Tools
Michael said that credit unions, often smaller ones, can overlook the tools right in front of them that can not only help them grow but also improve the financial lives of their members.
“If you ask your members what they want, they will tell you what they need,” he told the meeting.
Michael recommended member surveys, which have become very affordable with all of the low-cost online tools available.
“And you can do focus groups, they are effective,” said Michael, who cautioned the CU to not seek focus group subjects that will deliver expected responses.
But the real work is done by the front-line team, emphasized Michael, who asked the audience if they had a sales culture at their credit unions.
“If you don’t, make that shift,” he said. “It makes all the difference in the world. You don’t even have to call it selling. Just say it’s promoting the credit union’s product and services. Do staff know they are expected to cross sell? Do your new hires know? I would not hire another person into the organization unless they know it is their job to promote the credit union’s products and services.”
‘It’s Not Fair’
Michael added that cross sales should be a metric tracked during employee reviews and that compensation should be based on performance.
“If you have two employees and one is selling and the other is doing just the bare minimum, it’s not fair they get the same paycheck,” said Michael, who noted that the credit union looks to hire people who are outgoing. “We don’t hire stuffy people. You can’t train personality.”
The front line, too, is one of the best resources for new ideas that can help the credit union grow, emphasized Michael, adding that communication lines need to be opened between front-line employees and management.
Getting the Nuggets
Some of the best ideas come from front-line staff, but to get those nuggets the credit union needs to provide a way for the team to send ideas up the chain anonymously, he said.
To encourage front-line staff to send ideas up to management, Michael said an “anonymous channel” is needed.
Michael shared an example of how a teller sent an idea up to his management team about how to better serve members when their credit or debit card is hacked.
“We don’t have instant-issue at Army Aviation, so when members come in and point out there is fraud on their card we cancel the card, and then we tell them they have to wait seven to ten days for a new one,” explained Michael. “Telling members to wait seven to ten days for their card is almost as bad as telling them they won’t have their phone for a week.”
Michael said a thoughtful teller suggested, through the anonymous reporting channel, that the credit union offer members a gift card to cover the wait period.
“The teller suggested that we load a gift card with their checking balance and give it to them for free,” said Michael. “That has really worked out well for us and our members.”
Anonymous Channel Needed
But Michael said that without the anonymous reporting channel, the credit union may never have received the idea.
“Say this same teller goes to his branch manager with the idea, and maybe the manger tells him that giving away gift cards is too costly, that the cards cost five bucks apiece,” said Michael. “That great idea is squashed, because a manager made the wrong decision based on cost instead of member service. Also, what if the manager does not like that the idea did not come from her?—she does not want any of her staff looking better than her. If you have an uninterrupted communication line from your staff in the trenches, without any filter, you will get some brilliant ideas.”