SAN JOSE, Calif. — Technology Credit Union here has become the second credit union to go live with an official iPhone application — a pioneering combination of locator, mobile banking and promotional features.
The Tech CU iPhone application will advance the credit union's standing in the mobile banking race, all while making it easy for members to locate branches and AllPoint and CO-OP ATMs, as well as login to mobile banking and view product promotions, according to Gabriel Garcia, webmaster at the $1.2-billion CU here.
"Credit unions without iPhone applications are missing an opportunity to extend the brand into a technological advancement in mobile banking," Garcia told Credit Union Journal in an exclusive interview. The Tech CU iPhone app has been available for free download from the Apple iTunes App Store since May 20.
"Members' inquiries and our research tell us that mobile banking will be the choice for Generation Y and Generation X," he continued. "They're expecting to do business via mobile communications."
Once downloaded, the Tech CU tool competes for attention on the member's iPhone application screen, which can display up to 20 applications at a time.
"This is an opportunity to get your application out there, ahead of the curve, and have your icon on the iPhone so that people see you when they start up their phones," said Karl Kraus, president, LocatorSearch, a New York-based credit union technology solutions provider.
On May 4, Credit Union Journal also first reported that Texas Dow Employees CU of Lake Jackson, Texas, was the first credit union organization to launch an iPhone application at Apple's stores. The free TDECU iPhone app, called CULoc8, allows TDECU members to locate the CU's ATMs as well as ATMs on the AllPoint network, the CU's 14 branches and CU Service Centers.
Tech CU partnered with LocatorSearch to develop its iPhone application, which not only locates surcharge-free and deposit-taking ATMs, branches and CU Service Centers, but offers driving directions, phone numbers and hours for each, Garcia added.
A built-in button at the top of the main interface allows members to login to the existing Tech CU mobile banking site to view account activity, make transfers, pay bills and more, he said.
But the feature that sets Tech CU apart from every other bank and ATM locator application on iTunes is the built-in "Current Promotions" button, which directs the member to an iPhone-optimized area of Technology CU's Money Savvy blog, Garcia said.
"Current Promotions is a good differentiator from the B-of-A and other apps that use LocatorSearch," he explained. "Others have missed the opportunity to offer a button that goes to a dynamic page and serves out promotions and useful product information to members."
Users can navigate to additional areas of the blog at a resolution specifically designed for the iPhone and read the CU's personal finance blog posts and articles, he said.
"This is a fantastic opportunity to partner with LocatorSearch to bring a simple, useful application to members who increasingly use mobile technology for their banking needs," said Kathleen Litman, VP-marketing for Tech CU. About 4% of the membership uses mobile banking, she said.
Like so many other would-be credit union iPhone application developers, Garcia said he had "big thoughts and dreams of developing the app on my own." In fact, he started tinkering around in October, only to find he needed more advanced programming skills-and a firmer foot in the slippery swirl of the Apple development and approval process, he said.
That's where LocatorSearch stepped in. "Application approval at Apple is a hidden secret," explained Kraus. "Apple wants every application to have the standard Apple look and feel. Once you've been approved as a developer and had an application approved, it's easier to get subsequent applications approved."
Tech CU's iPhone application was submitted to Apple for approval on April 23 and approved four weeks later.
LocatorSearch also developed AllPoint's iPhone application, which bank customers and CU members can use to locate surcharge-free ATMs, said Kraus. The AllPoint app has been available on the Apple iTunes App Store since March. "AllPoint got a ton of downloads," he said.
Partnering with LocatorSearch was a good way to go for Tech CU, but there may be other ways to get into the iTunes App Store, as well, said Garcia.
"Credit unions are afraid of the sticker price of launching an iPhone app," he said. "But there may be some relatively inexpensive ways of partnering with someone, maybe as a proof of concept, through contacts at unconventional conventions such as BarCamp."
Tech CU would like other CUs to break through any internal politics and launch their own iPhone applications, said Garcia. "We're looking forward to see who evolves this after us. Don't be afraid to innovate and bring new ideas to your management. Talk to the right people who will get behind you."
Meanwhile, Tech CU will keep innovating, perhaps adding financial calculators to its iPhone application in the future, he said.
