ST. JOSEPH, Mich. — Generation Y is getting its opportunity to let its voice on the financial system be heard across the globe thanks to a new "guerrilla" marketing campaign put together by one credit union here.
United FCU launched the effort to reach out to the next generation, give them a forum where they can rant and hopefully entice them to become lifelong members of the $850-million institution.
The project, which revolves around the CU's new "antibank" website, hosts videos by Gen Yers who sound off on the financial crisis, explains the credit union difference and provides tools on both fiscal management as well as ways to get involved in the community.
"We knew that we wanted to continue to be relevant to our market as time progresses. This generation is a very important generation and they react very differently than other generations. We wanted to give Gen Yers, and especially students, the chance to voice their thoughts and feelings about the financial industry within their community," said VP-marketing Donna Rohrer. "We want to make sure what we're doing today positively impacts the communities that we will serve in the future."
College students and younger members of the workforce look for businesses to be more socially and financially responsible, Rohrer explained, and so United FCU is re-vamping its image to fit those individuals instead of forcing them to fit to the credit union's model. Targeting potential members who have not set down roots with a financial institution is a "good starting point for us because we want to build relationships with this group before they have established other relationships for the long-term," she added.
To help kick off the campaign, United FCU set up kiosks at a pair of local college campuses that allowed students to record their rants. Students were also given the chance to design their own T-shirts emblazoned with the credit union's new "Matter" slogan-many students used that opportunity to express their opinions on the financial crisis on their new articles of clothing. As an extra incentive, everyone who submitted a rant or designed a T-shirt were entered into drawings for significant gift certificates at their college's bookstore.
Over 30 videos have been uploaded to the website, with more bound to come as the campaign will continue through the summer at at least one more campus and at several festivals and fairs. The site also allows users to upload their own videos over the Internet.
"We want to be authentic - we intend to post whatever they record," Rohrer said. "We will do some editing if there's some profanity but we're not afraid to put something out there where somebody says something that makes us a little squeamish, because they have the right to say what they want to say."
United FCU hopes to see a 10% increase in loans and membership in its Generation Y demographic as a result of this campaign, which Rohrer called "by far the most comprehensive approach we've taken to target this group." Curiously, though, the campaign does not directly market United FCU's services - Rohrer insisted that the credit union is not just trying to get people to sign up, but just to tell show them that there are organizations that are different than the typical bank.
"We're really trying to reach this group and allow them the opportunity to express their opinions. We want to partner with them, listen to what they need and try to be responsive to the extent which we are able," she said.
