Your Credit Union’s Cinderella Story

Your Credit Union’s Cinderella Story I play in a tennis league where last season I went 4-1, and this season I’ve started out 2-0. I got a backhanded compliment once (no pun intended) that I was the “largest gazelle” they had ever played. Well… I am a man of “larger carriage” and I can cover […]

What’s Wrong and What’s Right with Strategic Thinking

Strategic Thinking Imagine you are in an airplane flying coast-to-coast, cruising at 30,000 feet. There are the mountains and valleys, cityscapes with twinkling lights, barren land and farmland – and let us not forget those little circles on the ground (they are center-pivot irrigation systems, by the way). You can see a lot… albeit a […]

Credit Unions and Corporate Social Responsibility

What’s Wrong with Credit Unions and CSR During one of our credit union brand development projects, the topic of corporate social responsibility arose, and I got push back from the CEO.“It seems like every organization says they are giving back to some charitable cause,” he said. “I don’t see the value in it. We’ve tried […]

How to Market to Prospects in 15 Seconds

What is the biggest objection to banking with you? Many credit unions and community banks point the finger at rates and service, and then tack on a qualifying statement, “but we’re competitive.” There’s not a lot of confidence or conviction there. If you have 15 seconds to communicate a message, keeping in mind that the […]

5 Powerful Videos to Persuade Your Audience

There are five types of videos that can help you make an authentic connection with your audience. YouTube is the second largest search engine on the web. With more than half (55%) of people watching online videos every day, video has become the platform for satisfying both informational and entertainment needs. If pictures are worth […]

How to Rewire Employee Engagement

Our family dog, Charlie, is a delightful Cock-a-Poo – the offspring of the Poodle and the Cocker Spaniel. These are two of the most intelligent dog breeds. Charlie is hypoallergenic, easygoing, affectionate, and will melt your heart. He can sit, stay, shake hands, stand on two legs and occasionally will bark on command. And that’s […]

I Don’t Do Piggy Banks

When you think of an ad for a financial institution, what immediately comes to mind? There is the woman who dangles keys outside the car window. That’s perfectly natural… sigh… when we get a new car. Then there’s the tiny house – that perfectly square illustration we’ve come to know since we were 3 years […]

A Thunderstorm or a Brainstorm – Effective Meetings

The word “meeting” might as well be a four-letter word. Come on… admit it. If you’re like us, you’ve at least uttered a four-letter word (or two, three or four) when you get that unexpected calendar notification pop up. Ding! Research suggests we lose $338 in average salary costs per meeting. Sixty-three percent of meetings […]

Dare to Create – Next Level Financial Marketing

I’m not a zealot when it comes to video games. There’s only one game that I play on my son’s Xbox, and that’s FIFA 18 (soccer). Most often, I’m playing as the U.S. Women’s National Team. I can’t even find the men’s team on the video game, which partly speaks for my age and partly […]

Credit Unions, Banks and 23 Democratic Candidates

At the time of writing, we have 23 Democratic presidential candidates who want to unseat President Donald Trump. Now… name five of them. How’d you do? Did you struggle like most Americans? Of those you did name, let me guess the ones you got right. You got Bernie Sanders and Joe Biden. Those were easy, […]