PLANO, Texas–Catalyst Corporate is reminding credit unions that in addition to the usual school supplies, credit unions have an opportunity to help parents educate students by promoting the value of a debit card as back-to-school season arrives.
That’s the underlying premise behind a new series of pre-packaged, customizable marketing campaigns that Catalyst Corporate FCU created for credit unions to use in marketing debit cards to their members.
“With education costs skyrocketing and student loan debt larger than ever, we wanted to give credit unions the ability to promote debit cards as a training tool for wise money management,” said Terry Young, Catalyst Corporate’s vice president of communications and marketing. “It makes sense for students to first learn how to spend only the funds available in their checking account before taking on greater responsibility with ‘buy now, pay later’ credit cards.”
Catalyst Corporate reported it has created four back-to-school-themed debit card marketing campaigns: “Debit Cards: The Ultimate School Supply,” “Debit Card 101,” Ready for Class,” and “Paper, Pencil and a Debit Card.” Each campaign includes finished art and/or text for the following components: web banner, lobby poster, postcard, new member packet insert, newsletter article, three emails, counter card and blog.
“Students don’t need perfect credit, or any credit, to use a debit card. For older teens or young adults, debit cards provide a convenient way to withdraw cash and make purchases, without taking on debt,” Young said. “Once a transaction is complete, there’s nothing else to worry about – no monthly payments or interest added to an outstanding balance.”
Campaign Materials
In the campaign materials, Catalyst Corporate said it highlighted a couple of debit card features that speak to students (or their parents). CardNav allows cardholders to turn their debit cards on and off, set geographic boundaries and dollar amount limits to control card use and set alerts to notify them of unusual card activity. Catalyst Corporate’s Temporary Instant Debit Card service allows credit unions to issue new cards or replace lost or stolen cards – a fairly common occurrence with students – in the branch without investing in expensive equipment or software.
The back-to-school materials are part of a total package of 11 debit card marketing campaigns that focus on other debit card attributes, such as convenience and built-in card protections. Historically, according to Young, Catalyst Corporate has created marketing campaigns for credit unions using its services. Aside from any additional customization or printing, these materials are available at no cost to credit unions using their services.