SEATTLE—Some people have the wrong impressions about credit union outreach, locations, and technology, according to one person.
Bob Saunders, executive vice president and founder of Momentum here, says he has come across the myth that credit unions don’t advertise or do enough marketing and community outreach, meaning they are supposed to be too small to deal effectively with the average consumer or business.
Saunders’ comments are offered as part of a CUToday.info series on “fake news,” that is, misconceptions and myths that hurt credit unions.
Credit unions may not match the big ad spends of some banks, Saunders said, but he finds them quite competitive in outreach.
“They may sponsor a Little League team rather than a major league team,” he said. Moreover, they frequently sponsor community events that in turn engenders word-of-mouth results.
Saunders said he is exposed to that community-oriented thinking every time he and Momentum field an inquiry from a credit union regarding a retail branch. Those credit unions always stress that enhanced member services are a must, and by that they mean they are looking for branches to help establish relationships with members and help solve their problems.
Shared Networks Make Big Difference
While individual credit unions may lack the extensive branch networks of some big banks, when shared branch networks such as those offered by CO-OP Financial Services are taken into consideration, CUs fit right in on the branch continuum between Chase and PNC.
Bob Saunders
Chase has 5,657 branches, CO-OP’s network features 5,484 branches, and PNC 4,994. There are hundreds more shared express terminals nationwide as well, he points out.
According to CO-OP Financial Services, its network includes 1,865 participating credit unions representing 45-million credit members who in turn conduct 3.2-billion annual transactions.
Speaking of banks, Saunders said he also frequently encounters the myth that when it comes to technology, credit unions can’t compete with the Wells Fargo’s and PNC Banks of the world.
For technology, the myth is that credit unions don’t compete with the Wells Fargos and PNC Banks of the world.
“In my experience it’s almost the opposite,” he said.
One CU's Example
As an example, he pointed to CHROME Federal Credit Union, based in Washington, Penn. near Pittsburgh. Though it has less than $200 million in assets, Saunders said CHROME is as sophisticated as banks many times its size.
For instance, it has made its website interfaces with third party providers seamless, so a member never feels they have left CHROME site.
CHROME, which is a client of Momentum, was seeking to re-engineer itself to focus on its digital and mobile platforms. And it wanted to design its branches to deliver the same kind of experience as could be achieved through digital and mobile.
An office of Chrome FCU.
Saunders said the attitude at CHROME was, “I want to convince my members they never need to come here. But if they do, they will have a great experience.”
Its research discovered the group that visited the branch most was women between the ages of 37 and 47, so it tailored the branch experience to that that demo. One thing it found from its research (and has planned for accordingly) is that those women are willing to wait an average of 15 to 20 minutes to resolve an issue. However, if the issue isn’t resolved to their liking, they will never come back to the branch.
An example of refuting all three myths (outreach, location, technology), according to Saunders, is the business incubator CHROME FCU set up at its location. Any individual member or business can make an appointment to use the space, which can be used for centralized sales meetings or as a well-equipped office for a single entrepreneur.
Momentum designs and builds branches and also does real estate development and workplace optimization for its credit union clients, which include Oregon State Credit Union, RiverFall Credit Union, and 3Rivers Federal Credit Union.
—Mark Fogarty
Chrome FCU.