ROCKVILLE, Md.-REALTORS FCU may have its head in the cloud, but it knows how to grow members: the CU keeps at least one foot on the ground.
Membership at the nation's lone Internet-only credit union grew by nearly 15% last year, thanks in part to campaigns at local brick-and-mortar REALTOR associations, according to Jesse Boyer, EVP, COO and CIO at REALTORS FCU (RFCU).
"When marketing to new members, we found you can't just send e-mails," said Boyer. "As an online-only credit union, we originally were of the belief that e-mail would be most effective, but partnering with our sponsor, the National Association of REALTORs, has been of immense value."
REALTORS FCU has struggled with profitability since its founding (see related story, below), but is hopeful several new steps will help push it into the black.
The $75-million CU trains employees at local affiliates of the National Association of REALTORS (NAR) to become "ambassadors" and talk to REALTORs about the credit union, he explained. The local associations are rewarded with preferred CU rates based on the effectiveness of their ambassadors.
"Most REALTORS have day-to-day contact with their local association, so we can extend our presence and raise awareness where members are doing their business," he said.
That's particularly valuable for a young, virtual CU with a national field of membership, Boyer added. "We don't have the branch that people drive by everyday, so we've had to learn how to stay at the forefront of members' minds."
More than 600 members joined RFCU in the three months after the ambassador program was launched in November 2010, Boyer said. "That's triple the rate of our average member growth."
E-mail campaigns do have their place: REALTORS FCU grabs attention each time it advertises in NAR member e-mails, Boyer continued. A used-auto loan promotion between June and Aug 2011 pushed applications by 110% per month. "This was largely driven by e-mail communication sent by the National Association of REALTORs as well as the credit union's online marketing."
A superior online member experience begins with the online member application process, suggested Boyer. "Make sure that your online delivery system is intuitive, user-friendly and self-service. Word gets around. We spent a significant amount of time hammering through the experience from a new-member point of view."
In fact, after discovering that members didn't like the original online banking platform, REALTORS FCU switched and found the right fit with Better Online Banking from Austin, Texas-based Jwaala, said Boyer.
Like other Internet-only financial institutions, REALTORs FCU isn't actually confined to the Internet. The contact center at REALTORs FCU is critical, Boyer said. "Our contact center representatives have a unique skill set because they field questions that require a hybrid of product knowledge and online technology knowledge. We've worked hard on scripting and training."
Contact center reps help reassure members who fear banking online, he continued. "The contact center is our most personal touch. They translate our voice and service beyond the computer." REALTORS FCU outsources the contact center to Total Member Care, provided by PSCU Financial Services.
Live chat service may seem like an obvious fit for REALTORs FCU, but the young CU is weighing cost-benefit-and figuring out how to deliver a consistent, high-quality experience, Boyer said.
REALTORS FCU extended the online experience to the mobile applications in November via iPad and iPhone, Android, Blackberry and Windows devices. About 20% of the CU's 4,500 online bankers have activated mobile banking, said Boyer.
