NEW YORK -
As part of a three-week ad campaign run TV and radio spots will be airing in Albany, Buffalo, Syracuse and Long Island and billboards will be placed in communities surrounding New York City to tout the credit union difference, "Open to You, True to You."
Bonnie Sklar, spokesperson for the New York League, which coordinated the campaign, said the focus of the campaign is to educate consumers about credit unions and about eligibility to join, the first ads targeted by the league at consumers. "This is the first time we've done add targeting consumers and the general public," said Sklar, noting a recent ad campaign targeted state lawmakers.
The ads were designed by Oklahoma-based Third Degree Advertising, which has created media campaigns for Tinker FCU, Mission FCU, Allegiance FCU, Wright-Patt CU and Delta Community CU, as well as the Oklahoma CU League.
The New York ads will join a variety of other messages being touted by credit unions across the country.
In Alabama, where consumers are being urged to "Think Credit Union".
In the Washington, D.C.-Baltimore market, where members and non-members are asked to consider "What's In It For Me?"
In Oklahoma, where the public is being reminded that CreditUnionsCare.
'I Save' is the message for Maine consumers.
And Pennsylvania members and non-members alike are being told the credit union is where "iBelong".
The New York ads will appear in the state's secondary markets and in the suburbs just outside New York City, the most expensive media buy in the country. That way commuters in and out of Manhattan will see billboards in Rockland County, Westchester County and on Long Island, said Sklar.
The visual cornerstone of the campaign is a blue marker, with which consumers will be challenged to "make their mark" to control their finances. The league is passing out tens of thousands of blue markers with the website address, CreditUnionsFORYOU.com where consumers can find a credit union near them.
The new website, which went live last week, provides information on the credit union difference, how to find a local or national credit union and financial calculators. The campaign's television and radio spots will also be shown at the site.
The league will also be making supplementary materials available to credit unions, including four-color posters, web banners and buttons, branded markers and the use of radio spots, two in English and one in Spanish.
"The goal of the overall campaign is to spread the good news about credit unions to a broader audience, to educate current members as well as general consumers about the credit union difference," said William Mellin, president of the New York League. "We want to help dispel eligibility myths-to let our state residents know that credit union membership is open to almost all New Yorkers."
The league is paying the costs of the campaign out of dues revenue but homes to extend the three-week media buy. "It's going to come down, in the end, to money," said Sklar.
