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To capturing insurance and investment business, target the mass middle-income marketing, recommends Joan H. Cleveland of CUES Supplier member SWBC Life Insurance Co., San Antonio. That’s defined as those with household incomes between $25,000 and $100,000, since this group has a high need for insurance and investment products.
“Fortunately this market segment represents, in many cases, a significant portion of the credit union’s membership,” she says. “Additionally, Gen X and Gen Y are obvious primary demographic targets. They are going through the key life stages that always correlate to a need for insurance and investment products—marrying, having children, buying a home, planning for their children’s college, planning for retirement and even divorce.”
Cleveland advises looking beyond demographics to identify attitudes regarding short- and long-term financial priorities, channel buying preferences and more. “Surveys are the best way to get information, but they have to be short and succinct if in written form,” says Cleveland. “If verbally, the surveys should be done through questions posed by tellers, loan originators, and service reps. Then overlay these answers with the information they already know about their members and voila, they'll have some good groupings of members by attributes."
“Really knowing the member will allow the credit union to market products to a smaller, receptive targeted audience and drive greater positive response,” she adds.
Corrin Maier, director of CUES Supplier member CUNA Mutual Group’s TruStage Insurance Program (www.trustage.com/insurance), Madison, Wis., points to CUES Supplier member CUNA Mutual Group’s What Matters Now™ research, which focused on learning from middle-income credit union members. The study found that members define success by how well they raise their children and having a good relationship with their spouse or partner, followed by achieving financial security.
“It’s important to make your marketing message relevant to what your members care about the most,” Maier says. “We talk to members, and lot of them are concerned about making sure that college and weddings will be possible for their kids even if they are no longer there. So the key is to communicate what the insurance provides, not just what the product is.”
This is Web-only bonus coverage from “Selling Security” in the July 2015 issue of CU Management.
Diane Franklin is a freelance writer based in Missouri.
