MADISON, Wis.-Pat Wesenberg is the new chairman of the CUNA board, but one thing that won't change during her year-long tenure is a national branding campaign-that is, there won't be one.
"I don't think there's anything wrong with a national branding campaign," said Wesenberg. "The concern I have with a national branding campaign is that each credit union is unique. Every credit union has their own brand. That's why I would say a national awareness campaign makes more sense; a campaign to build awareness about credit unions and what they do for their members. Tell their story, but not be credit union-specific."
So what's the difference between the two?
"I look at a brand as specific," explained Wesenberg. "I think an awareness campaign is more that we want people to know about another option in financial services, and that option is credit unions, and here's what credit unions can do. I think there's a differentiation there. If you walked into two credit unions in the same community, you'll see two totally different operations, two totally different experiences. To me, the brand is the experience."
Wesenberg said that CUNA's board has had discussions about awareness campaigns and that there is an appetite for one among credit unions, but "nothing is in the works, so to speak."
As one might expect of the CUNA chair, Wesenberg is an advocate for the agency's recently unveiled "Unite for Good" campaign, which seeks to bring CUs together for a shared vision and shared planning, along with the goals of raising PFI penetration and increasing total member value by more than 300%.
"It really epitomizes what credit unions are all about," said Wesenberg. "We all started as cooperatives working together, and I think the broader credit union industry can benefit from everyone being cooperative and figuring out ways to work together."
