Marketing With Memes

From mullets to motorcycle grannies, ECCU’s ‘Get a New Ride’ vehicle loan promotion appealed to all audiences. Click to view larger.

During the 17 years I’ve been at Educational Community Credit Union, we’ve had numerous, successful loan campaigns, which have always taken a personalized member approach. Creative, tasteful and warm – plus somewhat traditional – could all be used to describe our brand and advertising. But this past spring, we needed a big push to drive loan demand, and we ventured that members were ready for something new.

We contemplated how we could cut through the clutter and attract more loans from a younger audience, specifically Gen Y or those born between 1979 and 1999. This age is prolific in the Southwest Michigan market and city of Kalamazoo, home to Western Michigan University and two of ECCU’s seven offices.

A Bold, New Look

What was an innovative approach for reaching Gen Y – especially when so many messages compete for their attention daily? We felt the creative had to be unique, not cliché or rate-focused.

After hours of brainstorming, Marketing & Communications Specialist Jessica Rand suggested using humor and memes as a way to capture the interest of Gen Y. The concept was brought to life with the help of our marketing agency and presented among a few more traditional ideas.

Discarding the conventional, we decided to take on a totally new perspective, one that would challenge our audience with unabashed humor, bold graphics and quick-hitting copy. But consistent with our brand, member benefits would remain at the forefront.

Finally, ‘Get a New Ride,’ our spring vehicle loan campaign, was born.

The strategy paid off big with more than $8.1 million in new and used vehicle loans disbursed during the promotion’s timeframe, March 18- May 31. In all, 558 loans were made at a median rate of 2.99 percent APR, averaging $14,521 per loan. 

Support From the Top

For any successful promotion, there must be support from the top. Our CEO, CUES member Chuck Cornelius, endorsed the campaign from its initial concept through the promotion’s last day. While he leans to the more traditional, he appreciated this campaign’s edgier feel designed for the less conservative Gen Y audience.

Members spoke to Chuck throughout the campaign, often commenting on the creative. Some even wondered about the change in direction. “It was interesting to watch members react to the concept,”  he says. He explains that the campaign’s success was because people were talking about it. “And that’s the objective for any robust promotion.”

Goals Met, Then Exceeded

The campaign, which ran for 10 weeks, drove loan demand, disbursing more than $8 million in vehicle loans and exceeding our initial goal by just over $1 million. Equally important was the buzz it created, and how much fun members and staff had in relating to the visuals.

A Meme, You Say?

According to Merriam-Webster, “memes are an idea, behavior, style, or usage that spreads from person to person within a culture.”

We’ve all seen the impact social media has had in the popularity of meme humor. Memes are fun, engaging, and meant to be shared. And they brought ECCU’s loan campaign to life.

The originality of the art was kept deliberately outrageous. Captions with familiar white block white lettering plus galvanizing, comical photos were central to each meme’s design.

Taking a wholly different approach, we worked to create a scheme involving mullets, motorcycle grannies, and sweatband-wearing travelers. Playful captions, such as ‘Don’t Mullet Over’ and ‘Perk Up Buttercup,’ complemented the amusing graphics. We kept captions brief for maximum impact.

While our agency did assist initially, we eventually developed all of the memes internally. We chose the photos with Jessica, who created the ads. The results were outstanding and demonstrated a strong increase in loan volume from the Gen Y market and other segments as well. (click on image below to enlarge)

Gen Y was our initial target market; what we didn’t fully anticipate was the successful spill-over to other segments, including Gen X. Of the 558 loans closed during the promotion, 34 percent (191) were Gen Y and 28 percent (157) Gen X.

A Variety of Advertising Channels

To increase loan demand, ECCU placed five billboards, totaling 900,000 views in the Southwest Michigan market. Radio coverage included WKFR (Top 40), WRKR (Classic Rock), and 102.5 Great Country. Website banners, our quarterly newsletter, eye-catching point of sale, social media ads, and member emails were all part of the mix.

The memes worked especially well with social media (Facebook and Twitter primarily) and groups we targeted. They created a buzz every day in our offices! (In fact, we loved the campaign so much that three of our marketing staffers dressed up as the meme characters for Halloween. And, of course, we shared pictures on Facebook.) 

While standout creative is essential to any successful campaign, our ‘Get a New Ride’ meme campaign exceeded everyone’s expectations. Still, when the day is over, member satisfaction is always what’s most important.

Members identified with the memes; staff loved the concept, and the creative worked exceptionally well in all our advertising channels. Because of our effective internal collaboration and the support for something new, we were able to deliver an exciting and overwhelmingly successful promotion.

CUES member Chris Camp is VP/marketing at $424 million/37,000-member Educational Community Credit Union, Kalamazoo, Mich.