Posted by Kelley Parks
It was a brisk winter morning when nine strangers descended upon the CU Holy Land of Madison, Wis., to judge the CUES Golden Mirror Awards last January. We braced for the task of reading nearly a thousand entries, debating their merits and deciding who among them is worthy of a coveted Golden Mirror Award.
It was an experience I won't soon forget. One that gave me amusing insight into the heads of hundreds of CU marketing directors from all parts of North America. Here were my observations from the adventure:Small budgets create better campaigns. I always assumed that having a bulky budget would harvest better marketing, but I can officially debunk that myth. Some of the most clever and power-packed ideas came from smaller credit unions with more limited budgets. I now believe that having less money actually pressures marketers to be more creative with their members' money. It will be interesting to see what the economically challenged budgets of 2009 will do to this year's entries. My theory is that the quality of the campaigns will increase exponentially.
Marketing math...tisk tisk. It was rare to find an entry that took as much pride in its results as it did in its creative strategy. Note to my fellow CU Marketing Brethren: Make the CFO your BFF. Learn how to calculate ROI accurately. Help the judges and, more importantly, help your own career by showing how you can rock the financials with a sprinkling of your marketing pixie dust.
It's wild what some CUs spend money on. I was shocked by the thousands of dollars and creative energy that poured into collateral pieces that garnered little to no results. I learned that some credit unions spend more on their annual report than others spend in an entire year on marketing.
Shining stars are easy to spot. Certain entries had a celestial aura. Passion oozed from the entry form at every juncture from the creative to the results. Likewise it was equally easy to spot those who must have been held at gun point to put an entry together. Remember that your entry is floating in a vast sea of other marketing material. And the people reviewing the entries are attention-deficient marketers just like you. Think of it this way: You are really marketing to marketers.
Lots of great marketing never gets recognized. I know too many supremely talented marketing directors who create stunning work, grow the heck out of their CU and never take the time to submit for industry awards. They are too humble, too busy or don't believe in their own abilities. Of course the real reward as a CU marketer is to work in an industry that really cares about people and the ability to make a difference. Everything else is icing. Take the time to enjoy a little icing. Share your work and ideas with your peers. And then share the credit with the staff who make it happen.
And if you want an eye-opening perspective on the state of credit union marketing alongside a hearty feast for the imagination, volunteer to judge industry awards.
It's a ton of fun...even for a rubber chicken...
Kelley Parks is the creative catalyst at gira{ph}. She was a 2009 GMA judge, and the 2008 GMA Best of Show winner.
