Eastern Florida Financial Credit Union – Barf bag

This clever mailer invites people to “bring unused bags to one of our conveniently located branches to get $425 with these valuable coupons.” READ MORE

County Bank – Biscuits for Breakfast

This clever campaign, targeting businesses in the bank’s area, offers new business customers a free biscuit breakfast for up to 13 people — delivered right to your doorstep — as long as you’re willing to meet with a Countybank representative. READ MORE

Small businesses could hit the microsite and pick their fixin’s.

Prospera – Frozen direct mail

Prospera mailed nearly 4,500 packages to a pre-qualified list culled from the credit union’s 60,000 members. Each recipient received a follow-up phone call from Prospera. The message: ““Paying taxes is a big headache. That’s why we’re freezing them for 10 years.” READ MORE

The O Bee Amazing Money Maze

The credit union’s name, “O BEE,” is the centerpiece of a massive, 6-acre maze made from corn plants. They call it “The Amazing Money Maze.” READ MORE

There are two small bridges running from left to right in the center of the maze.

Young & Free’s “Guitar Hero” Cage Duel Truck

Two Guitar Hero players are pitted against one another in a truck that’s one-part cage-fighting arena, one part human fishtank. Currency Marketing came up with the idea while planning TDECU’s rollout of “Young & Free,” a popular Gen-Y “challenge marketing” program for credit union in the U.S. and Canada. READ MORE

Two college students — both majoring in Guitar Hero — face off inside a mobile Gen-Y “Thunderdome.”

BofA – “Now Prove It”

BofA, an official NFL partner, kicked off the 2008 season with its “Now Prove It Challenge” contests at various stadiums around the league. Fans competed in endurance contests to see who could outlast the others by continuously touching a giant 20-foot inflatable BofA jersey. The last fan standing won a pair of tickets to every 2008 regular season home game of their favorite team. READ MORE

How long would you touch a giant inflatable jersey to win season tickets?

Coast Capital – Super huge “thanks-for-nothing” card

Coast Capital Savings invited people in British Columbia to add their signatures and messages to an 8′x10′ cheeky “thank you” card “congratulating” big banks for the $3 billion in fees that they charge Canadians annually. They obtained people’s signatures by trotting the card out to public spaces. READ MORE

An 8′ x 10′ card signed by hundreds of people really makes a statement.

TD Bank – “Random Acts of Convenience”

In TD’s “Random Acts of Convenience” initiative, the bank gave away free umbrellas, cups of coffee, premium shopping bags and gift wrapping during the holidays. They delivered pizzas and did people’s laundry, also for free. One lucky winner could choose a free personal chef, chauffeur or house cleaner for a year. The bank regularly gives away suckers and dog treats. READ MORE

Mmm, yummy…free pizza, wrapped and delivered in a TD-branded box.

AltaOne FCU – “Good Deeds”

In the weeks leading up the to the grand opening of a branch, the credit union sent out a street team to conduct random acts of kindness such as paying a family’s dinner bill, or surprising a local fire department with a free lunch. The hitch? No one knew AltaOne was behind all the good deeds until the night of the grand opening. READ MORE

Mrs: “Honey, who were those nice kids?” Mr: “I dunno, but they just bought us lunch!”

First Ontario – Outdoor visual metaphors

FirstOntario Credit Union recently launched a classic guerilla marketing campaign to reinforce a message of safety and strength. FirstOntario placed everyday items — such as bikes, park benches, fire hydrants and bubble wrap — in unexpected ways around key communities to drive home the message that the credit union’s short-term investments are “Extra safe.” READ MORE

Four redundant fire hydrants reinforce the message: “FirstOntario has guaranteed returns.”

Sydney Credit Union – “More Generous Banking”

SCU and rolled out a new brand theme, “More Generous Banking,” by sending out street teams across Sydney to conduct “Random Acts Of Generosity,” including giving out free coffees, free massages and — no joke — free hugs. READ MORE

Street teams giving out rubs and hugs directed people to the credit union’s new website.

Industrial Credit Union ATM spews random $50s

During the 2008 holiday season, the credit union randomly swapped $50 bills for $20s in an ATM at a new branch location. READ MORE

This direct mail piece went to over 5,000 households near the new branch. It unfolds like a gift.

Servus Credit Union – “The Feel Good Ripple”

The Canadian credit union invited people to share their “feel-good deeds” on a specially built Servus microsite (shown below). For each story someone shared, they were entered to win one of ten $500 donations. READ MORE

“Do something nice, then pay it forward.” The concept speaks to people’s inner hippie.

FirstBank – Small Businesss’ Business Cards

The bank managed to squeeze 500 business cards from its small business customers’ into displays inside a transit terminal. READ MORE

You know some people looked at the display and thought, “Hey, I need someone to _____.”

FirstBank – Billboards for small businesses

To show even more support for small businesses, FirstBank ran giant billboards advertising the services of its small business banking customers — folks like piano teachers and wedding singers. READ MORE

You can dial the phone numbers, but they go to a recording.

A showcase of 11 different creative marketing initiatives from banks and credit unions around the world.

Citi – “Kinda The Same Thing”

Someone snapped a photo of this transit ad from Citi. The bank can certainly benefit from a little lighthearted humor right now.

Three Rivers FCU – “Happy Dog”

This 30-second TV spot, made specifically to air during the 2010 Superbowl, involves a clever pairing between the soundtrack and visuals: a dog puts his head out of a car window and his gums flap in the wind to a victorious operetic performance. It’s fun to watch. Agency: Weber Marketing Group.

THREE RIVERS CREDIT UNION – “LUCKY DOG”

Keesler FCU – “Money Talks”

Keesler had the opportunity to teach financial education at Biloxi High School. To support the effort, agency Raoust + Partners created “Money Talks,” a Gen-Y style financial literacy program including a letter to parents, wearables, posters, pamphlets, and stickers.

St. George Bank – “Big Enough, Small Enough”

In this brand ad campaign for one of Australia’s larger financial instituions, St. George depicts itself as a “big bank,” something that has been out of vogue lately. The message: “Just because you’re big, doesn’t mean you have to act like it.”

ST. GEORGE BANK – “BIG ENOUGH, SMALL ENOUGH”

Bucks First FCU – “Violent & Awesome Commercial”

This Pennsylvania credit union teamed with internet sensations Rhett & Link (formerly of Alka Seltzer fame) to create an online commercial that must be seen to be to be believed. The video opens with a guy wearing a deer — err, make that a “buck” — costume getting hit by a car. The concientious motorists take the wounded buck to Bucks First FCU because they “treat bucks right.” Get it? The 90-second pun-o-rama has been viewed over 365,000 times with an average rating of 4.5 start (out of 5). Some observers in the financial industry have heralded the spot as an online marketing and social media triumph deluxe, while others have wondered if the video sends the right message about the credit union’s level of professionalism and financial acumen. What do you think?

BUCKS FIRST FCU – “VIOLENT & AWESOME COMMERCIAL”

Missouri Bank – Website

The first thing you should notice is how clean and refreshingly uncluttered the site is — markedly unbanklike. Then there is the interactive wall of testimonials with pictures and quotes from 75 different bank customers right on the homepage. This is one of the more interesting bank websites you’ll see.

Community Savings – “Piece of the Pie”

In Canada, it’s quite common for credit unions to give some of their profits back to members as “patronage dividends.” Promoting them the way Community Savings did prior to its merger with Servus is not common, however. The credit union boxed pies and printed messages on napkins encouraging everyone to “get their piece of the pie.” It’s a fresh take on what is arguably the hardest working pun in the financial industry.

ANZ – “Fraud Squad”

Australian Bank ANZ (pronounced “a-n-zed”) debuts a pair of spots about fraud, unauthorized online purchases and its “Fraud Money-Back Guarantee.” The spots portray the bank’s fictional Fraud Squad as a ridiculously zealous group with some wildly innovative (if not impractical) ideas for how to keep customers safe. The five-week campaign is supported by outdoor, online and ATM marketing. Agency: DDB Melbourne.

ANZ – FRAUD SQUAD “HELIUM GAS”

ANZ – FRAUD SQUAD “AIRBAG”

Department of Commerce FCU – “Auto Loans”

Agency Raoust + Partners turned what could have been just another boring auto loan product promotion into something visually interesting by drawing on car-related imagery. The checkered flag, chrome lettering and dashboard gauges are nice touches.

Golden 1 Credit Union – “No Bailouts.”

Many banks and credit unions have been quite comfortable — and arguably successful — celebrating a single point of differentiation: they are too small for bailouts. While the heyday of headlines like “Bailouts are for boats” and anti-jet banners has passed, there’s enough residual consumer resentment towards the financial industry that the bailout-bashing angle still has some traction.

Pinnacle Bank – “Move Your Money”

Like many community banks, Pinnacle wanted to make the most out of Huffington’s “Move Your Money” populist campaign, so they created this email marketing piece. The message isn’t promotional nor self-serving in any way. It simply invites people to check out the “Move Your Money” website and viral YouTube video. Lots of banks looked to capitalize on Huffington’s efforts, but not that many were willing to help promote like this.

Here are some of the major innovations and significant online/technology trends that financial marketers should watch in the coming years. (Please note: This is by no means intended to be a comprehensive or definitive list.)

What do you think will be a major trend shaping financial marketing in 2010 and beyond? Please leave your thoughts and comments below.

1. The Megasite

The once-simple microsites financial institutions made for their marketing campaigns have ballooned into massive undertakings. Look at the monstrous scale of Umpqua’s “Save Hard, Spend Smart” website or GTE Federal Credit Union’s “U-22” site. These are major undertakings with multiple layers and dozens of pages.

Nowadays, creating an immersive and engaging online experience requires a lot more work. Figuring out how to integrate the array of social media platforms — Twitter, YouTube, Facebook — is a struggle.

Megasites will be a continuing trend through 2010 and beyond. Just be sure to create brand/image synergy between your promotional subsite(s) and your primary website.

2. Financial Edutainment

Financial education will have to become a lot more entertaining and interactive in 2010 and beyond. Check out BofA’s “Morris on Campus,” or their comic attempt with “Mo Rocca on Banking,” to get a good idea for how high the bar has been raised.

Many credit unions are using “savings challenges” to stimulate interest in lessons of thrift. Umpqua’s “Save Hard, Spend Smart” initiative has a number of financial education components. ING DIRECT’s “Planet Orange” is another great example. And Nevada State Bank hired the world’s most celebrated conman to create a series of online educational videos about fighting identity theft and financial fraud.

3. New Channels for Customer Service

Live online chat has been around for a few years, but financial institutions are deploying it at a quickened pace. With instant online chat, you can address people’s questions and concerns right at the point-of-sale, transforming an otherwise static, one-directional marketing tool into an interactive sales/service experience. Expect to see a continuing increase in the uptake of live chat.

BofA was the first bank to provide customer service via Twitter. Wells Fargo, Wachovia and others have joined in. Now, BofA is getting serious. They have a whole dedicated Twitter team, and a new fancy CMS tool to manage their Twitter-based customer service interactions.

But you don’t need to be on Twitter to provide next-generation customer support. For example, you can text “unhappy” to the State Bank of India and they guarantee they will respond to your complaint within 48 hours.

4. Online PFM

Few things have made as big a difference to consumers over the last couple years — from a practical perspective — as the introduction of online Personal Financial Management tools. Online PFM is like a more robust, next-gen version of desktop applications like Quicken, enabling consumers to track spending and manage their money. One big feature is that many PFM solutions aggregate information from multiple financial institutions in a single view. Other PFM features can include financial advice, community features, and visualizations.

Companies offering online PFM services like Mint, Geezeo and Jwaala have taken the financial industry by storm. Now, white label players are coming into the market, and some banks are even deploying their own proprietary PFM solutions. Any financial institution that underestimates the significance of the PFM trend is making a big mistake.

5. “We’re Listening”

Financial institutions who believe that their primary purpose on the social web is to listen will solicit feedback — both the good and the bad — from the public, and do so publicly. They are out there on the web saying, “Go ahead and tell us what you think.”

HSBC’s FirstDirect, with a website displaying good and bad customer feedback, is one of the most notable examples. HSBC also invited folks to speak up on its “Soapbox.” There’s also Westpac in Australia with its “Truth Pod.” USAA hosts “What’s on Your Mind.” And United FCU created “Matter” so Gen-Y could rant and complain.

6. Proprietary Applications

ING DIRECT was probably the first to introduce an API for Twitter with its “Fee Tweeter” application. And Vantage Credit Union’s “Tweet My Money” is a fully-proprietary innovation that allows people to access account information and make transfers via Twitter.

Chase hosted a contest for charitable donations using its own proprietary Facebook app. And SunTrust recently launched its “Swap A Solid” Facebook application enabling people to trade durable goods with one another.

Netbanker.com has written extensively about iPhone innovations in the financial industry. Check out their archive of iPhone articles. They even produced a comprehensive (and meaty) report.

7. Remote Deposit Capture

Whether by mobile phone (like USAA and WV United FCU), scanner (like Jefferson Financial) or even the honor system, enabling people to make deposits remotely will be a big trend from now until checks go away.

8. Online Reviews, Q&A Forums

Allowing actual users of your products and services to publicly comment on them at your website is Web 2.0 at its purest: open, honest, transparent and accountable. America First Credit Union was one of the first financial institutions in the country to let people rate and review its products. You can take it a step further and let people ask and answer questions, as USAA has with its “Member 2 Member” forums.

9. Online Contests for Charity

Financial institutions will wake up in 2010 and realize they can be making engaging online promotions out of their charitable donations. Just look at what Servus Credit Union and Wells Fargo have done. None of this was really feasible before social media tools came along. And you don’t need to give away a lot of money, as one credit union proved with its $2,000 scholarship giveaway.

10. UGC

While nothing new, UGC (short for “User-Generated Content”) will continue to be one of the primary ways financial institutions integrate social media tactics into their marketing mix. Financial institutions will host blogger contests, photo contests, “my ugly [fill-in-the-blank]” contests and make-your-own TV contests. Just be careful that you don’t “salt the mine” with your own submissions, as one bank painfully learned.

11. Making “Community” the focus of Online Communities

Instead of building self-serving online social media communities, some financial institutions are trying to help improve their real, offline communities. Check out what this bank and these two credit unions did to help their communities during the recession. To see this strategy lived out to its fullest, take a look at the myriad of ways Caja Navarra supports its communities online. This Spanish bank will put most non-profits (and not-for-profit credit unions) to shame.

12. Automatic Savings Plans

BofA was one of the first to introduce automatic savings programs, with its “Keep The Change” project. Then there was Wachovia’s “Way 2 Save.” Citizens Bank recently introduced “GoalTrack Savings,” a goal-based savings account with rewards. Third-party products like Bancvue’s “Kasasa” are integrating automatic savings options. You can even include automatic savings into your auto loans.

Reviewed and written by Jeff Stephens, CEO/Creative Brand Communications

Servus Credit Union, the third largest in Canada, has just about wrapped up its “Cash in with Your Camcorder” promotion, a make-your-own-TV-commercial contest highlighting the financial institution’s signature Young & Free Chequing Account.

The promotion is part of the credit union’s Young & Free Alberta initiative, a broad, multi-year “challenge marketing program” from Currency Marketing that has deservedly received much acclaim.

INTRODUCTORY VIDEO
An unshaven Myles Peterman, the 2009 Young & Free spokesperson, dons an undershirt while introducing the contest from his bedroom computer cam.

The Cash In With Your Camcorder contest invited residents of Alberta, Canada, between the ages of 18-25 to create 30-second video commercials about “why the Young & Free Chequing Account rocks.” Prizes included a $2,000 grand prize, and a $1,000 second place prize.

“You could buy an airport for that,” observes 2009 Young & Free spokesperson Myles Petermen says. “It would be made of Legos, but it would be an airport.”

In addition to getting cash, winners may also find their videos used in future advertising.

CONTEST ENTRY – “FINANCIAL IDOL”
This submission comes from the previous Young & Free spokester, Larissa Walkiw. The singing trio in this video uses the same stick-figure style as the video that catapulted Ms. Walkiw to international credit union fame back in 2008. With over 75,000 views, Larissa’s “The Difference Between Banks & Credit Unions” is the most-watched YouTube video in the credit union industry…worldwide. If you’re one of the few that hasn’t seen it, you should take a look.

Launched in late October, participants have been submitting their home-made commercials to the credit union. The credit union provided a “starter kit” of standard elements and other video graphics (such as logos) to help contestants with their entries.

People were able to vote for their favorite submissions on the Young & Free Alberta site through the month of November. Winners will be announced on Friday, December 4.

YOUNG & FREE ALBERTA MICROSITE
Shown here in the voting phase of the contest.

MARKETING MATERIALS

In addition to promoting Cash In With Your Camcorder on the Young & Free website, Peterman also pushed the contest on the Young & Free Facebook page (278 fans) and Twitter account (720 followers).

The Young & Free Chequing Account, available to the 17-25 year-old Alberta crowd, features free and unlimited withdrawals from network ATMs, account transfers, point-of-sale transactions, cheques, bill payments, and more. It is positioned as a simple and easy-to-understand product for those just starting to manage their own finances. The product is unique among Canadian financial institutions who seldom offer free chequing accounts.

There is an online application for the Young & Free Chequing Account integrated directly into the the credit union’s microsite that is so fantastically simple, you’ll have to see it to believe it.

Analysis

• The primary benefit of the campaign for Servus Credit Union is the super cheap marketing they get for their youth account. Giving away $3,000 in prize money is much more cost-effective than having a professional commercial made.
• The secondary benefit is increased website traffic and word of mouth, since contenders will be pushing all of their friends to visit the Young & Free Alberta site and vote. It’s highly a engaging promotion, regardless of the number of submissions.
• Contestants are in it primarily for the cash prize and the shot at getting their creative work used in real advertising. For former spokester Larissa, who is currently pursuing a degree in film, having her ad used by a company for commercial purposes would look good on her resume.

Key Takeaways:

If you’re going to hold a “make-your-own-TV-commercial contest,” there are a few things you should learn from the Cash In With Your Camcorder promo:

1. Consider defining the specific focus of the commercial, as Servus did when they asked contestants to concentrate on the credit union’s unique chequing product. If you don’t provide a range, then you better be prepared to receive entries encompassing the full spectrum of possibilities — loans, savings, checking, brand… who knows?
2. Provide your logo, slogan, colors and other creative resources to assist entrants with their submissions. This also helps create a standardized framework or “visual vocabulary” for entries.
3. Never promise the winning video will run on TV. With any kind of online vote, you can never be sure of the turnout, so don’t obligate yourself to publicly running a commercial that would make you (and your CEO) uncomfortable. You can entice contestants with the mere possibility that — if their submission is appropriate — it may actually air.

Bottom Line: All in all, Cash In With Your Camcorder is one of those smart contests where the winners benefit, but the credit union gains even more.

———————————————————————————————————————————
About the author: Jeff Stephens is founder and CEO of Creative Brand Communications (CBC), a full-service bank and credit union branding and marketing agency. CBC helps financial institutions find their story, tell it, and most importantly, prove it.

[Note: If you've seen creative work from a retail bank or credit union that you'd like to share with The Financial Brand's readers, please send an email to the editor. Recent work, projects from years past, and even concept work will be considered.]

HSBC – “Integrity”

In this minute-long TV spot, a member of the paparazzi stalks Alex, a celebrity, to a nursing home. The photographer snaps a series of exclusive photos capturing his prey in vulnerable intimacy, weeping over her ailing father. The announcer kicks in: “For many people integrity is as important as money. At HSBC, we understand people’s values influence their financial decisions.” Cut back to the photographer who is reviewing his photos on his computer. He’s touched. He hits the delete button. It’s a spot that may bring a tear to your eye, all while screaming “BULLSNOT!” No one brave enough to wear the paparazzi label is throwing that kind of gift away. No way. Not ever. It’s pure gold. Not going to happen.

INTEGRITY :60 TV SPOT

HSBC – “Responsibility”

The fishing is bad, and the boat’s crew are disheartened in this :30 TV spot. But with perseverance, they finally land the motherload. Alas, there is a dolphin stuck in the net, presenting a moral dilemma. The fisherman are saddened, but ultimately make the (politically) correct decision. “For many people, responsibility is as important as money. At HSBC, we understand people’s values influence their financial decisions.”

RESPONSIBILITY :30 TV SPOT

Servus Credit Union – “Cash In With Your Camcorder”

Servus Credit Union in Alberta Canada has just launched a new promotion called Cash In With Your Camcorder, with help from the marketing experts at Currency. Servus is asking young adults “to create a 30-second commercial that shows why the Young & Free Chequing Account rocks.” First place gets $2,000, second gets $1,000, and the winning commercial(s) may be used in future advertising.

Clockwise from top left: Online banner ads, staff information sheets, wobblers, pamphlets, Facebook ad and mini poster. (Click to enlarge.)

Young & Free Alberta microsite transformed for the contest. (Click to enlarge.)

ANZ Bank – “The Chase”

This spot clocks in at 1:30, making it an “epic.” In the spot, it seems everyone is chasing Jack, through the streets of downtown Sydney — a baker, mechanic, chef, beautician — everyone. But Jack’s death-defying feats (of stunt work) help him allude the angry mob. Who is Jack? He’s an evasive business banker. The message: “Getting hold of a small business expert at your bank shouldn’t be hard. That’s why at ANZ, we’ve put on more small business specialists.”

ANZ – “THE CHASE” (1:30)

Centea – “Sperm”

A romantic sperm brings flowers to woo the reluctant egg. Success!! The ad’s caption: “Doing more is in our nature.” Maybe Belgians are more apt to link “biological conception” with “banking” than Americans. Or maybe this spot from a bank in the Netherlands is just plain weird no matter where you live?

ROMANTIC SPERM :30 TV SPOT

ANZ – “Happy News”

The Australian banking powerhouse asks, “Isn’t it time for some happy financial news?” The ads are invitations for people to “arrange an everyday banking review.” Even though they are intended to be parodies, they are still a little depressing.

Brookline Bank – Concept Work

The bank recently hired Shark Communications, who is working on the following concepts. It’s interesting to see a bank’s creative work before it’s been approved and finalized for the public. You’ve gotta love the “Empower Mint.”

Sterling Bank – “Make Dank”

You’ve got to admire the pranksters who modified this billboard ever-so-slightly. Their handiwork is barely noticeable. “Dank” (as if you didn’t know already) is an expression frequently used by stoners for something of high quality, usually sticky, hairy, stinky, highly-potent green bud. It’s hard to classify this as vandalism when the copy revision makes an arguable improvement. More members of the target Gen-Y audience probably thought about banking at Sterling after the billboard was edited than before.

Yep, that’s a huge doob (aka “joint” or “spliff”) hanging from his lips.

Almost a year ago to the day, Seattle Metropolitan Credit Union unveiled a new type of promotion never before seen in the financial industry. They asked people, “If we gave you $10? What would you do for someone else?” For their answers, the credit union gave away $10 to people — free — with the assignment to “pay it forward.”

The credit union gave $10 to 182 people, awarding a $1,000 prize to one. For a $2,820 investment, the credit union yielded $1.3 million in tracked PR value.

Skip ahead a year, and you can see other credit unions have clearly taken note. At least three other credit unions — one in Canada and two in the United States — have recently deployed the “Pay It Forward” promotion. It would seem the “pay it forward” concept has transcended itself, creating ripples up through the industry and not just down from one credit union.

Servus Credit Union: ‘Feel Good Ripple’

The credit union then wants you to share your “feel good deeds” on their website. For each story someone shares, they are entered to win one of ten $500 donations. There’s already been over 180 “feel good deeds” submitted. You can read them by clicking here.

The initiative has its own dedicated microsite, feelgoodripple.ca. Overall, the site delivers a contemporary take on retro-70s themes, subconsciously tapping our inner-hippie. The site is rich with creative, branded language like “keep the ripple alive,” and “let’s make ripples together.” There’s even a “Ripple Counter.”

“We’re asking you to make someone’s day. Anyone’s day. All in the spirit of community. Help a stranger carry groceries to their car. Give a calling card to someone far from home. Volunteer to walk dogs for an animal shelter. Do something. Anything! Make someone feel good and inspire them to do the same for someone else.”

The site has built-in functions for people to share the Feel Good Ripple with others via popular social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter. Click on the hotlink to share via Twitter, and a new window will appear with an auto-populated tweet: “Join the movement. Make someone’s day and inspire them to do the same for someone else. #ripple http://feelgoodripple.ca”

“This concept of sharing reinforces our strong cooperative beliefs,” the Feel Good Ripple microsite says. “This demonstrates just how different we are from the banks.”

Servus Credit Union’s slogan is “Feel good about your money,” so there seems to be nice brand alignment with this promotion.

Tonawanda Valley FCU – Pay It Forward

The credit union is deploying an almost identical version of Seattle Metropolitan’s original Feel Good promotion.

At a special event this Thursday (October 15th), anyone who answers this question on video gets $10: “If TVFCU gave you $10, what would you do for someone else?”

A panel will select 10 finalists, whose videos will be posted on the credit union’s website. The public will vote on the best idea, and the winner will be awarded “$1,000 to use however they wish in contributing toward their cause.”

Educational Credit Union – Pay It Forward

Same basic strategy here, only it’s $20 free, with the assignment to “create your ripple and pay it forward.”

Video responses to the challenge will be posted on the credit union’s YouTube account. The video with the most comments will pocket $500 and receive a $500 donation to their charity of choice.

Source: Thanks to Market Insights Insiders for bringing these three promotions to The Financial Brand’s attention via their Twitter account.

$4 million severance one day… $474,000 salary the next

Steve Blakely joined Servus Credit Union back in March 2007, a little more than a year before the 3-way marriage between Servus, Community Savings and Common Wealth Credit Unions.

The merger, which received tremendous support from members who voted overwhelming to approve it, was the largest ever in the credit union industry, resulting in the third largest credit union in Canada and the first to canvass an entire Canadian province.

Key Question: Would members have been so enthusiastic about the merger if they had known their CEO would receive an enormous severance package?

“Unbelievable!! Where was this information when the merger talks were happening?”
— Comment on Edmonton Journal article

Blakely got $3.6 million. Why? Well the board of director’s asserts he was no longer the CEO of Servus when it was amalgamated into a new credit union and was therefore legally entitled to a severance package.

So Blakely was out of a job — fired, as it were — when his credit union was merged away.

But then Blakely was immediately rehired as the CEO of the newly merged, three-way credit union. The name of the new entity would be… (drum roll) …Servus Credit Union. Blakely’s new salary? $474,000, pumping his overall 2008 compensation up over the $4 million mark.

Reality Check: $4 million is a lot of money by any measure, but in credit union land, it’s considered a king’s ransom.

To put it in a regional perspective, the average professional playing in the NHL makes around $2 million. And these guys are the heroes of Canada.

Key Question: Blakely kept his job after the merger, so why was severance money paid? Or, as one reporter phrased it, “If you are rehired the next day by essentially the same outfit, why do you need or deserve a $3.6 million severance package?”

The board also gave itself a nice raise. The average compensation for a “volunteer” board member swelled to $59,000, up from $18,000 in the year prior to the merger. One volunteer board member’s pay, presumably the chairperson’s, jumped from $38,000 up to $103,000.

Overall, compensation for board members tripled, up from $339,000 in 2007 to $947,000 in 2008.

Side Note: The Edmonton Journal recently reported that income for Servus Credit Union was down 3%, or around a $3 million difference from the previous year. The credit union attributed a large chunk their losses to the cost of the merger. It’s not hard to figure out why.

Predictably, members are outraged

“The merger was orchestrated by the three CEO’s to feather their own nests.”
– Comment on Edmonton Journal article

When the compensation schemes from Servus became public, the story lit up the phone lines at radio talk shows and spread across the Canadian internet like wildfire. Articles and blogs received hundreds of angry comments from both members and employees. One article in the Edmonton Journal received over 200 comments, while another at the CBC website caught 80+ comments.

“I have never in my life heard of a contract that allows you get severance plus the job,” one upset member commented.

“How could the board give one staffer 8% of the year’s profits, diminishing the dividend for the other 400,000 members?” another observer wondered.

Someone else echoed this sentiment. “A system that pays one guy $4 million while splitting the rest of the profits among thousands of co-op members is a system that’s just broken.”

So much for the promises of a golden future under the umbrella of Canada’s largest, single-province credit union. Never mind the millions that was paid to Servus members last year in the form of dividends. All that goodwill is gone. G-O-N-E, gone.

Bottom Line: From the consumer perspective, this is one huge, ugly black eye for the Servus brand… and the brand for all credit unions in general. It will take years to rebuild Albertan’s trust in credit unions.

Some people have encouraged angry members to vote with their feet and take their money elsewhere. This seems like an odd suggestion, in light of the fact that members should be sticking around to vote with their votes.

“There is no difference between credit unions and banks in Canada any more. The whole idea of a credit union has been perverted and twisted to mirror banks. It’s all about PROFIT$$$.”
— Comment on CBC article

Blakely’s hasty exit

One person said what must have been on many members’ mind, “Mr. Blakely, you have your severance pay, so do us a favor and leave.”

Which is what Blakely will do. He will be retiring — presumably for good this time — on April 30. And one can only wonder if his first severance package will be all he’s taking with him.

As far as the other CEOs involved in the three-way merger… Well, the former CEO of Community Savings retired a while back. But it appears that Jeff Mulligan, the former CEO of Common Wealth, submitted his resignation last Friday alongside Blakely’s.

It is rumored that a “severance/merger bonus” was paid to all three CEOs for a total estimated cost to members around $10 million.

From the member’s perspective, this doesn’t quite sound like the bonanza of savings promised from the amalgamation, does it?

Employee morale in the doghouse

It’s unlikely the pressure to quit came from members. In all likelihood, it came from irate employees.

Blakely, after getting a $3.6 million bonus himself, recently told employees were told they may have to forgo bonuses this year. To put an even sharper sting on this, there were plenty of Servus employees whose only bonus in 2008 was a $50 gift card.

Needless to say, this has all left an extremely sour taste in the mouths of employees. Out of more than 200 comments on one Edmonton Journal article, most of them seemed to come from Servus Credit Union’s 2,000 employees. Some were disappointed. Others were outright furious. Most felt betrayed.

“I cannot support management any longer,” said someone identifying themselves as Paul, a Servus employee. “It’s going to take a lot of effort to win back the trust of many employees.”

“How are the staff supposed to look their member-owners in the eye and truthfully assure them that they work for a credit union that is serving the member-owner’s best interests?” another Servus employee wondered.

Since the stunning severance arrangement was brought to light, many of the Servus staff have been spending their time sympathizing (i.e., commiserating) with members. As one employee illustrated:

“Yes, Ma’am. Mr. Blakely is still running the Credit Union.”
“No, the Board of Directors are not embarrassed by this severance pay.”
“Yes, apparently, they are not worried about their reputations.”
“Yes, I understand you will be moving your accounts when you are able.”
“I’m sorry, I, too, use to be proud of my Credit Union.”

Apparently, there was an internal blog for all employees of Servus. It had been intended to help smooth out some of the bumps from amalgamating three separate cultures, but it was recently taken down by management after comments and concerns turned too negative.

“See what happens when you get off the internal blog?” one employee pointed out. “Now employees feel their only option is to air the dirty laundry in a public forum. Not smart.”

Before leaving his post (for the second time), Blakely responded to employees by telling them that his employment contract was an issue between him and the board. That probably didn’t do anything but hasten his exit.

Final Observation: The bigger a financial institution gets, the more responsibility it has to uphold the honor and ethics of its smaller brethren. This applies equally to banks and credit unions. Situations like this are nothing more than a lightening rod for bad press, undermining the trust and impugning the integrity of an entire industry. You could call it, “Too big to fail your peers.”

The mystery is over. The name of Canada’s 3rd largest credit union will be Servus.

The credit union’s board chose the name because the Servus brand was created only 18 months ago, is recognized in the Edmonton market and can be trademarked.

Earlier this year, three credit unions in Alberta (Servus, Common Wealth and Community Savings) announced they were merging to create the third largest in Canada, with $9 billion in assets, almost 400,000 members, 2,000 employees and 100 branch locations. The merger left two big questions unanswered:

1. What will the name of the credit union be?
2. What will happen to Young & Free, the phenomenally popular Gen-Y promo from Common Wealth CU, one of the the merging credit unions?

In the comments of a previous post here at The Financial Brand, representatives from both Common Wealth and Currency Marketing, the agency behind Young & Free, reassured concerned readers that yes indeed, Young & Free would survive the merger.

The selection of Servus as the name comes as no surprise. First off, Servus was the larger credit union in the merger. It’s also a far more unique and interesting name than either of the other two options, Common Wealth and Community Savings, which are both fairly generic names. That’s what makes it possible to get trademark protection with real teeth. And the double-meaning behind the name is a nice touch: “service” and “serve us.”

Being able to secure a clean trademark is critical when changing names, a lesson some financial institutions frequently learn the hard way. (For related coverage on the pitfalls of financial trademarks, see today’s article from The Financial Brand on TD’s troubles with the Commerce name.)

Common Wealth and Community Savings have until October 31, 2008 to phase-in the new Servus name.

You can read the official press release here (PDF).

Members of Alberta’s three largest credit unions have voted overwhelmingly in favor of a merger:

+ Servus [ 60 branches | 195,000 members | $4.75 billion | 900 employees ]
+ Community Savings [ 30 branches | 110,000 members | $2.5 billion | 640 employees ]
+ Common Wealth [ 15 branches | 52,000 members | $1.5 billion | 300 employees ]

The new $9 billion credit union will be the third largest in Canada, with almost 400,000 members, 2,000 employees and 100 branch locations.

But the merger leaves one big question: What will the name of the new organization be?

What do you think?

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The safe money is on ‘Servus’ because it represents over half the deal. When one of the organizations is much larger, it is usually their name that prevails. But it’s no sure thing.

As of now, the newly-merged entity hasn’t decided anything. According to this article, “The board will undertake a name selection and branding strategy review prior to registering the Articles of Incorporation November 1, 2008.”

It’s usually a little easier when only two firms merge. Quite often the two firms simply mashup their two names, like ‘AOL Time Warner.’ But you can’t do that here (‘Servus Community Wealth Credit Union’).

Key Question: Will the credit union give members a voice and invite their participation in the selection of the new name?

Tip of the Hat: Three organizations merging at one time is rare. It almost never happens, and not just in the credit union industry — any industry. But if anyone anywhere can find a way to do it, it’s those affable Canadians.