LAS VEGAS - Several of the most successful companies in America had their roots in the simplest of business concepts: find a need and fulfill it.
That was the message from Lisa Renner, CEO of CU Holding Company LLC, based in Lenexa, Kan., and an owner/partner in several CUSOs, including Beyond Marketing and TruHome Solutions.
“Dell, Southwest, MTV, eBay…all great stories,” Renner told attendees of NACUSO’s recent Annual Meeting here. “Wouldn’t it be cool if credit unions could be the next Starbucks? All of these companies came from someone spotting a trend and innovating.”
The world is in the middle of a “participation era,” according to Renner. It could be called the “You Tube Era” or the “MySpace Era,” given the popularity of sites that allow people to create and post their own content to the web, she observed. “Consumers don’t want companies telling us what to buy, we want to hear it from our peers,” she said.
Young & Free
Renner cited the example of Commonwealth Credit Union in Canada, which launched a concerted effort to bring in younger members. Not content to merely introduce its “Young & Free” checking product for 17- to 25-year-olds with standard billboards or notes in its newsletter, Commonwealth held an online contest to find a spokesperson. Not only did young people create and submit their own tryout videos, it was online visitors, rather than credit union management, who picked the winner.
“Commonwealth opened 400 new accounts in the 17-to-25 market thanks to this contest,” Renner reported.
Renner offered CUs a large number of current consumer, technological, banking and online trends to follow, including:
* Zopa–a peer-to-peer lending site with which six CUs are currently involved.
* SharedSpaces–a site in the United Kingdom that addresses the costly housing market in the British Isles by bringing together co-buyers.
* Amazon.com, which has added product ratings and peer reviews. “Credit unions should consider letting members rate their products,” she advised.
* Lot$a Mot$a–a learning lab for children Renner described as “Chuck E. Cheese meets Science City.”
* Xcalibur Card: a thumbprint-secured, all-in-one piece of plastic which allows users to store everything in their wallet, from credit cards to ID.
* The power of “green.” We’ve got to get on board with this. It is definitely going to be big.”
According to Renner, credit unions are “sitting on a gold mine,” also known as the baby boomer generation. People born from 1946 to 1964 constitute 12% of the U.S. population, but 18% of CU membership, she said.
The Lion’s Share
This segment represents $3 trillion in spending power, and while CUs “have the lion’s share, they must stay ahead,” Renner declared.
“Look into lifestyle lending,” she counseled. “People are living longer, so make loans for plastic surgery or dental work.”
Visa recently developed a gift card for healthcare expenses. credit unions could work with the millions who have no health insurance, she said.
So how can CUs move from trend spotting to innovation?
“It is not that hard,” Renner told the Credit Union Journal. “Just get out of the industry box. Think how a trend will influence the credit union industry. Look at other industries–what trends are they responding to?”
Renner advised CUs to create accountability in their culture. She said innovation should be added to job descriptions for management.
“Make innovation a part of the organization. Spend 20 minutes discussing it at every monthly managers’ meeting. Rotate the responsibility among the managers for bringing a trend or an innovation to every meeting, so everyone gets experience spotting trends and how they are impacting members.
“The biggest challenge is getting outside one’s personal interests,” she added. “Maintain a curious mind.”
