PLANO, Texas-Driving growth in 2010 is all about measuring marketing's return and making the most out of what the credit union spends on promotion.
To do that, CUs should go "back to the future" and utilize direct mail, said Marquis President Jay Kassing. "They have to make every marketing dollar count, that is critical. Credit unions have to utilize marketing techniques that deliver measurable returns. There are variety of ways to do that, but we are recommending going with direct marketing-direct mail and e-mail. Whether it's about retention, cross selling, or client acquisition, it does not matter. Direct mail is measurable, which is why it is so wonderful."
Measurement is often overlooked by credit unions-and by many businesses-Kassing said, because marketing gets caught up in the creative. "That is a fatal flaw in the execution piece," he said.
Even more so with today's tight margins, Kassing insisted, because a CU must identify which efforts are working best and demonstrate that the marketing money spent is achieving results. "We do things and often hope we got what we expected. It is difficult to go back to the board (for next year's budget) and say you don't know if you actually achieved what you set out to do."
Fighting through direct mail clutter is less of an issue today, added Kassing. "If everyone else is quiet and you are advertising, the market is listening."
