October 28, 2011
Listerhill Shows Where Its Heart Is With Awareness Campaign
As consumer confidence continues to drop and economic protests continue to rise, it is nearly implausible that a mid-size credit union in northwest Alabama would have more satisfied members requesting promotional materials to share with friends and family than the cooperative could grant.
“It’s rare in the financial industry for people to find a business they are so passionate about that they want to promote it,” said Brad Green, President/CEO of Listerhill Credit Union in Sheffield, Ala. “People often ask us for t-shirts and other promotional items. They want to promote us.”
With this member-demand in mind, the marketing staff sat down to plan their International Credit Union Day celebration on October 20. The team wanted to surpass their status-quo lobby snacks and put together something big.
“We thought the best thing we could do is raise awareness of the mission of credit unions and help to explain why they are different from other financial institutions,” explained Marketing Director Kristen Mashburn. “And we thought the best way we could do that is through a website.”
A synergy developed between the idea for an educational credit union website and their vocal member satisfaction: iheartmycreditunion.org. The new, socially-driven website would offer bare facts and comparison charts showing the pros and cons of credit union services verses national bank averages. Most importantly, it would give site visitors the chance to express their credit union experiences.
While the website presents testimonials from satisfied credit union members, its rate comparison chart occasionally shows banks in a more favorable light than credit unions. And although sponsored by Listerhill Credit Union, a site application links visitors to all the credit unions in their locale.
“With all the negative financial news in the media, we want to educate people about their alternatives. As a not-for-profit financial institution, financial education is our mission,” said Green. “If people join other credit unions because of this website, we have done our job. We hope to foster good will and cooperation among credit unions.”
A group of Listerhill employees, identifying themselves as the Where’s Your Heart Squad, wore red and white t-shirts emblazoned with “iheartmycreditunion.org” and awarded five dollars cash to more than 100 unsuspecting customers at random businesses – simply for using their credit union debit card on International Credit Union Day. Each squad member would explain, “Though some are charging for their debit cards, we’re giving you five dollars for using yours.”
While a five dollar cash giveaway isn’t going to help anyone retire early, it did put a smile on recipients’ and bystanders’ faces.
Mashburn summed up the campaign simply – “This is really all about educating our community on credit unions and why they are different from other financial institutions. When people have this information, they can decide for themselves what is best for their situation.”
Listerhill Credit Union is a not-for-profit, member-owned financial institution. Founded by Shoals residents over 50 years ago, Listerhill has grown to include more than 70,000 members, $500 million in assets and 17 branches, making it the 7th largest credit union in Alabama.
Questions?
While we hope you find the information you need online, we want to remind you that Listerhill is more than a website. We’re your credit union, and we look forward to helping you. Call us at (256) 383-9204 or 1-800-239-6033 for friendly, local assistance. Better yet, stop by one of our branches for some personal service.
