By Samantha Paxson
If you ask a credit union employee or consultant where they think people should put their money – credit union or bank – the winner, of course, is credit union. But how exactly do you explain this to members and potential members?
Recent survey results might be of help. Try promoting the findings of independent website Business Insider. When it asked readers via an online poll which was better, 86 percent of respondents said credit unions (as of July 24, 2013).
Business Insider's analysis is based on accessibility, checking account fees, interest rates and customer service. The overwhelming “verdict” favored credit unions because credit unions charge lower fees and interest rates, and provide better customer service. The question of accessibility was a draw, which one could say actually makes credit unions the winner since banks are generally much larger – there are 150 banks in the U.S. with assets of $5 billion or more, compared to only 13 credit unions of that size.
Thinking about this question of accessibility, many credit unions have an additional advantage in this area that they can talk about with members and potentials: shared branching. Members of participating CUs can enter a branch of any other participating credit union anywhere in the United States and conduct their business as if they were at their own home branch. There are now 5,000 shared branch outlets in CO-OP Financial Services' shared network, with more than 1,800 different credit unions participating. This network, in fact, is the fourth largest system of branches among financial institutions in the country. Couple that with our network of 30,000 ATMs and CU accessibility is clearly a strength.
The advantages of credit unions are borne out by survey after survey, giving you even more useful data to present to your members and those you're prospecting. In a December 2012 survey, the American Customer Satisfaction Index reported that credit unions remain best in class for financial services, and set the bar for customer satisfaction among all service industries covered by the ACSI, including banks.
Credit unions also have the advantage when it comes to mobile banking, interestingly enough. A 2012 survey by Chadwick Martin Bailey found that 85 percent of credit union members who responded to the survey were happy with the mobile and online access they got at their credit unions – compared to only 66 percent at large national banks and 55 percent at regional banks. If your CU offers mobile, be sure to talk that one up, too.
Maybe you'll want to wrap up your efforts to promote credit unions in your market by citing this quote from the Business Insider report: “Big banks are attractive, what with their vast array of credit products, flashy commercials and glossy logos. But for the most part, credit unions are hard to beat. If you are able to take advantage of a credit union…they are by far the best option for banking today.”
Samantha Paxson is VP/marketing of CUES Supplier member CO-OP Financial Services, Rancho Cucamonga, Calif., the nation’s largest credit union service organization, and operator of the CO-OP ATM and CO-OP Shared Branch networks. She can be reached at 800.782.9042, ext. 2570.
