February 10, 2008

“Most credit unions seem stuck in the mud when it comes to competitive differentiation.”

In an article titled “From ‘As-Is’ to ‘Will Be’,” John Redding, principal with the Institute for Strategic Learning, offers advice on how to build a strong brand in these three steps:

Step 1. Analyze your current brand and determine how you can differentiate yourself. Can you be a price/low-cost leader, product/delivery leader or a relationship leader?

Step 2. Map your brand and your performance relative to the competition.

Step 3. Separate what you want to be great at from what you want to be good at.

Redding noted that senior management can’t go it alone, saying that “boards also need to be involved.”

Reality Check: On the surface it’s deceptively simple. But these three steps are much harder than than they look. For starters, it’s really tough to be honest with yourself, about yourself.

Bottom Line: As Redding says, if you do this right, you better be ready for big changes – from operational processes to your entire business plan.

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Previous related stories from The Financial Brand:

• Big Steps for First Independent’s Brand
• Service is not what differentiates you
• A look back at NewGround research from 2004
• Making banking easy isn’t easy

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