ROSEVILLE, Mich.-Generation Y hangs out at Facebook.com, so Christian Financial Credit Union (CFCU) decided one year ago that would be just the real estate it needed to open a branch.
"Credit unions are always trying to target Gen Y," explained Lauren Vance, marketing manager at CFCU. "Facebook offers us a free page to close the distance between us and them."
Now, nearly 100 existing members are banking online with CFCU at Facebook, said Vance, adding that nine people have also joined CFCU through Facebook from September through November, which is about 1% of all new members, Vance said.
The credit union's advertisements on Facebook get as many clicks as its advertisements at Google - but cost less, she added.
Christian Financial wouldn't think of building a branch at the popular social networking site without offering online banking capabilities - that's why the $236-million credit union provides MyMoney Internet banking at its Facebook site, she said.
"Without MyMoney, Facebook can actually be detrimental to a credit union," Vance said. Indeed, Facebook culture seems to revolve around the thousands of available applications; without applications, Facebook is nothing.
Using the MyMoney application, Christian Financial CU members can stay within their Facebook hub and make payments, transfer funds, check balances, join the credit union-and possibly, in the future, aggregate their financial accounts, said Jay Slavin, SVP-product and business development, Fiserv. MyMoney is offered by Fiserv Galaxy and will soon be available to all Fiserv core systems, he said.
"MyMoney gives us that edge," - an affordable edge, at that, said Vance. "I can't think of another way to get in front of millions of people in such a cost-effective manner."
Credit unions pay a one-time fee based on asset size for MyMoney, plus a monthly fee based on the number of registered users, said Slavin.
"MyMoney is a delivery channel that credit unions don't normally go down," he added. About 20 credit unions are currently offering MyMoney to their members on Facebook, he said.
Asked why more credit unions aren't grabbing at MyMoney, Slavin pointed to the generation gap between credit union decision-makers and Generation Y members. "We Baby Boomers don't see the benefit in that cold delivery channel," Slavin said. "We want to know what the ROI is. We really have no clue" about Facebook.
Likewise, financial institutions didn't have a clue about Internet banking in the early years, yet now the service is a staple, Slavin observed. "It has taken a number of years for credit unions to get 20% penetration rates for homebanking. I don't see why MyMoney would be any different. You're not going to draw the vast number of people right out of the gate."
Credit union leaders shouldn't worry about understanding Facebook culture, he said; instead, they should embrace it.
Vance recommends credit unions "put someone in the driver's seat that 'gets' Generation Y and social networking" when you build a Facebook branch and offer MyMoney.
"First of all you have to update your Facebook page regularly," Vance continued. "I've seen some credit union sites that simply post their hours and a promotion blurb. That's not enough to generate people coming back to your page."
Vance keeps Christian Financial Credit Union Facebook fresh with an RSS feed advertising current rates; a blog feed from Brass, the Generation Y financial magazine published by Brass Media, and recent promotions aimed at Gen Y, she said. At some point, she also wants to post video blogs from staff and members, she said.
In addition to adding aggregation features, Galaxy is planning to launch person-to-person payment capabilities; a version of MyMoney for mobile devices; and rewards for pushing people to MyMoney, said Slavin.
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For info on this story:
www.christianfinancialcu.com
http://companies.to/mymoney
www.galaxyplus.com
