The Financial Brand sat down with Kathy Hammond, VP/Business Development, Kent Credit Union earlier this year to talk about their rebranding project. The credit union rolled out a new logo, website and brand slogan, “We Make Banking Better.” While the rebranding is mostly cosmetic in nature, it’s a major image upgrade. There are plenty of credit unions with a lot more than Kent’s $38 million in assets and 6,300 members that don’t look this good.

What was the purpose or motivation behind the rebranding?

We wanted to re-evaluate what Kent Credit Union meant to our members, our board and our staff. And also what desires, wants and needs our members have. By combining the results of a member survey, a strategic planning session of executive management and board of directors, and “brandstorming” with the staff, we compiled valuable data from all perspectives of what Kent Credit Union means to each of them.

We also wanted a fresh, more relevant look that was representative of Kent Credit Union given all the components of branding. The new brand and identity is more iconic, focused and contemporary than our previous brand. It clearly links us to our roots in the community (Kent is known as Tree City), but also represents stability and growth. New banks and credit unions are expanding into our communities and I think the brand differentiates us from them.

OLD LOGO

NEW LOGO

Kent Credit Union’s slogan is “make banking better?”
How does Kent make banking better?

At Kent Credit Union, we take away the “fear” in banking. Our members’ funds are safe and secure, and backed by the full faith and credit of the United States government. We strive daily to make every banking experience a positive one, by providing excellent member service and offering a full array of products and services, many of them free.

We are committed to going beyond simply a financial relationship with our members. We are our community’s oldest credit union and have positioned ourselves to be a source for honest financial counsel; a safe place in the community that truly looks out for our members’ interests. Our new brand aligns with that. Our staff buys into this philosophy and displays it by learning names, taking a few extra minutes to chat when they can, or sending a dog biscuit through the tube at the drive-thru when they see a dog in the car. We’re committed to providing convenience, good rates and low fees, but also to giving members something extra – something better – at every opportunity.

How was the brand introduced to staff?
What are staff being asked to do to “live out the brand?”

Riding Tigers Communications did a presentation to our staff, explaining that branding is much more than a logo or a website. At the end of the presentation, they unveiled our new logo and website.

NEW WEBSITE

We also shared the results of a member survey with our staff to let them know our members’ likes and dislikes, and how they perceive Kent Credit Union. We compared that to our short-term and long-term strategic plan, all of which helped to formulate our new branding and the roles we would all play in achieving our goals.

The best thing about the rebranding is that staff was already living out the brand. The re-branding wasn’t about becoming something new, it was about better defining what we already are so we can communicate it better. The agency met with us multiple times, we spent a day taking them on a tour of our communities and our branches; they met our board, shot photos of the community, met most of our staff and talked with them about what we are. Then combined with a survey of our members, the new brand grew from our strengths as an organization. We never wanted to be something that we are not. Our staff was always making banking better.

Where are you at with the rebranding process?

We started out with changing the imagery on our glass doors and replacing wall posters in the offices, along with business cards and other paper collateral. We also introduced the new logo at our annual meeting to our members, and have had several ads in the local media sporting our new logo. Brochures and other credit union literature will be introduced as we deplete current supplies, which may not be ideal, but in this economy, we must use our funds wisely.

We’ve also done giveaways such as pens, sports bottles, keychains, etc., with the new logo that have been distributed at showcases and various other credit union events.

MISSION STATEMENT & ENTRY DOOR

For 120 years, people in Ohio knew their bank simply as “OV.”

Not any more. The bank was forced to change names by one of their competitors.

The ‘Ohio Valley National Bank’ was founded in 1887 and had been doing business under the same name since it was founded over 120 year ago. Impressive, especially considering that no other bank in its market had used its original name for more than 11 years.

Unfortunately for Ohio Valley National Bank, another area bank decided to change names and become ‘Ohio Valley Bank’ in 1994. The new ‘OVB’ immediately applied for trademark protection with the United States Patent & Trademark Office. (Snapshot of the USPTO trademark here.)

Fact: When the USPTO looks at a trademark application, there is a five-year period where if no one contests the trademark, it is approved and uncontestable from then on. It doesn’t matter if someone had been using that same brand name for hundreds of years. It may not be fair, but it’s the law.

According to an article in the Evansville Courier Press, this is apparently what happened to the original ‘OV.’ The original ‘OV’ probably assumed its trademark was safe since it was first and had been using its name forever. The new ‘OVB’ filed for a federally registered trademark in 1994, but the original ‘OV’ never contested the application. Five years passed and… Ooops.

The original ‘OV’ was then faced with a choice. They could either choose to share their name with another financial institution in the same market, or they could change names themselves.

The original ‘OV’ chose to modify its name, dropping the words “national” and “bank” as it became ‘Ohio Valley Financial Group.’

Reality Check: This is a cautionary tale to all those financial institutions who erroneously presumed they safely owned their trademarks – forever. Wrong. Just because you’ve had your name for 100+ years doesn’t mean anything – even from the USPTO’s perspective.

It is your burden and responsibility to protect your trademarks, and if you let someone else use your name (or something similar) for too long, you will forfeit your right — forever — to exclusively use that name.

Bottom Line: If you haven’t federally protected your trademark yet, get started today. You have to attack everyone who threatens the integrity of your trademark(s). Getting litigious may not be your natural instinct, but letting anyone share your trademark(s) is the same thing as saying, “I don’t care if these assets erode and their value depreciates.”

(*Dislcaimer: If you have questions concerning financial trademarks, please consult an experienced trademark attorney.)

The name change is a result of the merger of all 10 banking subsidiaries of Boone’s parent company into one bank. The parent recently changed its name from First Corbin Bancorp to Forcht Bancorp, reflecting the name of its founder and CEO, Terry Forcht.

Terry Forcht started his first bank in Corbin, Kentucky in 1985.

Forcht Bancorp has $1.5 billion in assets with 34 banking centers in 11 Kentucky counties.

Source: Cincinnati Business Courier