Targeting A Younger Demo, Connex CU Says It's Time To 'Unbank'

NORTH HAVEN, Conn.-Unbank. In one word, Connex Credit Union is seeking to explain what a credit union is and how it is different from its for-profit counterparts.

The $374-million institution has budgeted $250,000 for its "Unbank" campaign to tell potential members that they have options when it comes to their financial institutions.

"We don't really want to be down on banks, but just want to make sure that folks know that there are other choices," said VP of Sales and Service Tansley Stearns. "We wanted to point out those differentiators in a fun way."

The 40,000-member CCU is building off the success of a smaller "campaign it ran in 2009 (CU Journal, Feb. 23), which took a video crew to the streets to ask consumers, "What's Up With Banks?" Connex incorporated that tagline into the "Unbank" campaign, but added a lot more firepower with print, radio and television ads as well as campaign-specific website and in-branch customization.

Connex enlisted the help of Bethany, Conn.-based agency Mason, Inc. to design and execute the entire campaign, which creative director Richard Gamer said was created to deliver a differentiated message while still incorporating familiar themes.

"Banks use lifestyle photography but it's always conservative and a little clichéd. We tried to find photos that were more surrealistic and whimsical," he said. While bank advertisements may show the typical American family standing in front of its new home or a customer and a banker grinning while shaking hands, "in our case we have people skydiving or laying in swimming pools but all you see is their feet."

TV and radio spots are equally unique. A recent advertisement showed a hostage situation where bankers were holding customers for ransom by using high fees. The protagonist of the commercial gets to a phone and tells the audience to not panic, go to the Unbank website and contact Connex's emergency help center. The Unbank campaign site is changed monthly to coordinate with the commercials; in the case of the "hostage" ad, the site features a rotary phone acting as the emergency hotline to help potential members.

Both the tone and message of the entire campaign is designed to reach out to a younger audience and move towards strategic goals of bringing the next generation into the credit union fold.

"The idea that you can do something that is against the trend, defy the institutions and join something that is member-owned and represents everything banks don't represent is a perfect tie in to the audience," said Gamer.

"That's the demographic that knows even less about credit unions and it's an important demographic because of our FOM is aging," Stearns added.