SAN DIEGO — Looking to ensure it doesn't "age itself out of existence," one credit union has gone to the dogs ... and is growing like a Great Dane.
USA Federal Credit Union found itself struggling in 2006 and 2007 with "how can we make the credit union message attractive in a MySpace, Google, ING world."
It did so by unveiling Spike, a bulldog whose picture and "attitude" would become the centerpiece of its marketing (for more information, search Spike/USA Federal at cujournal.com).
The challenge? "How do we make this message relevant to a generation that doesn't not want to join a credit union, but don't know what one is," offered Todd Kern, VP-marketing with USA Federal.
In conjunction with Seattle-based Weber Marketing Group, USA Federal turned to "Spike," a bulldog around which it built its new internal and external brand. WMG President Mark Weber said the dog theme is leveraged in marketing via five related points: Dogs follow their instinct; dogs love their owners; fat cats drool; keep it simple, and have fun.
Speaking to Credit Union Journal's Grow Show, Kern and Weber said that when they began working together they were "looking for something to refresh the brand."
But the goal was even larger than that; it was seeking to refresh its very membership base.
"We were trying to be everything to everyone and in the process we weren't being anything to anyone," he said. "It was apparent we needed a culture shift. We needed new, younger members in order to grow, and we needed attention in a crowded market."
The strategy they settled upon, noted Weber, was met with shock from the CU's management team and board. "We proposed a dog and a scratch-and-win campaign," he said. "Our first job was how to win people over and get them to buy in."
That included management buy-in, added Kern, who said he got plenty of support from USA FCU's CEO, Mary Cunningham, who told him, "Do anything you want, just keep it legal."
With morale admittedly low at the CU, efforts were made to bring departments together and to stage rallies among staff. Recognizing that the in-branch experience would need to match or exceed the expectations created by the fresh marketing approach. Staff was trained to ensure no member got out the door without being asked "Where do you have other banking relationships?"
Kern, saying he is seeking to create a "cult-like following" for Spike, said USA Fed hosted "brand camps" for all employees. "It was to iterate to them what the brand was. It gave us the opportunity to explain to staff that the brand is not the bulldog, but that you who work for our credit union are the brand, as is anything that relates back to the credit union."
"The dog worked; it got people's attention," said Weber. "People started talking about the dog and realized it resonated because we started talking about the fat cat. We talked about you should own the dog."
Ultimately, USA Federal (which markets itself as USA Fed after discovering "federal" is a negative to many younger members) came to build its culture and its tagline around "Friends, family and fun."
"We knew in trying to reach Gen X and Gen Y that they didn't know what a credit union is," said Kern. "So the tagline that emerged was, 'We are 180 degrees from banking.' It establishes we do banking, but do it far differently."
The numbers show Spike has been anything but a dog of an idea. One year after launch, USA Fed had signed up 4,569 new members, 571 net. The average age of those members was 35, with 69% from Gen X, Y or a tween.
Spike continues to bark for USA Fed. Tongue-in-jowl marketing messages have included, "Say no to the fat cats, " "More wag. Less bank," and "It's OK to chase cars." It distributed t-shirts that read, "We're kind of like a bank, but we don't suck."
