WAUWATOSA, Wis. - A Harley Davidson owner logged-in and nicknamed his online account “07 Bagger.” One of the credit union tellers dubbed her checking account “Never Enough.”
Indeed, it’s the little things that leave a big footprint at the Internet banking sites of two credit unions that began offering a host of personalization features last summer.
“Tons of members love the account nickname feature,” said Dean Wilson, CEO at the $36-million Focus CU here.
“The features show the member that we’re interested in improving their well-being, not just selling them products,” added Vickie Schmitzer, CEO at $180-million Frankenmuth CU in Frankenmuth, Mich.
In the third in a series of articles this year that examines how credit union websites are evolving, Focus and Frankenmuth CUs told Credit Union Journal that the new “It’s Me 247” online banking system from CU*Answers helps secure their place in banking cyberspace.
“We are all desperate to personalize our relationship with our members, and to let them choose how they connect with us,” said Wilson. “It’s absolutely integral to our future.
“Some of the nuances that we’re now able to offer members online help them make the Web experience something personal,” he explained. “I don’t want to sound like I drank too much Kool-Aid, but the product allows us to compete on a Bank of America level.”
It’s Me 247 allows each member to make Internet banking look and perform the way he or she likes, thus creating a “Personal Internet Branch,” according to CU*Answers, the Grand Rapids, Mich.-based technology CUSO. Members can choose themes, colors, pictures and security levels. They can request electronic alerts, including account balances, deposits and withdrawals or loan payments.
“We have the tools that make the member’s life easier,” said Wilson. “That’s a big, big positive.” Members can also choose whether their site should be heavier on graphics or text, depending on the speed of their Internet connection.
Focus CU allows members to customize security by selecting the strength of their passwords and blocking log-ins during certain times of day or from unauthorized IP addresses.
“The security features are some of those nuance pieces that allow us to tell members we’re meeting their security needs at their comfort level and show the regulators we’re going above and beyond the requirements,” Wilson said.
Marketing has taken on a more personal face, as well–and member response has been “shocking,” continued Schmitzer. “It’s Me 247 allows us to email members with birthday greetings and customized offers, or to display customized messages at the homebanking site,” she explained. “Our members are actually replying or calling in to thank us for those messages.”
The renewed interest in Internet banking has a larger effect on the business, added Wilson.
“Call volumes are dramatically down, and we’ve seen our postage costs drop,” he said. “The traffic patterns in the branch are slower. We realized that if they’re not going to be in our lobby, but they will be in homebanking, how can we take advantage of that? The online channel has to be more than informational. That’s where targeted messaging comes in.”
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Read more about the Web branch at cujournal.com and search the following bolded terms in the archive:
Web2B: How American First CU Is Breathing New Life Into Its Website
The Web Ahead
Google Whoogle
Naked On The Net
For info on this story:
* www.focus-cu.com
* www.frankenmuthcu.org
* www.cuanswers.com
