One year into the pandemic: Where are we now?

It’s been a little over a year since the COVID 19 pandemic drop-kicked credit unions’ 2020 plans out the window and made them re-evaluate many areas of their business. I’ve spoken to many credit unions about the challenges and solutions that came out of 2020. Here’s what I found out.

Drive-thru Banking Turned Out to be a Star.

Considered by some to be rather lowly and old-fashioned, drive-thru banking became much more important for credit unions during 2020 as the drive-thru was a means to assist members in person without direct contact. Credit unions quickly found innovative ways to streamline drive-thru transactions and to offer services, such as opening new accounts, at the drive-thru.

Credit unions without a drive-thru had a much more difficult time serving members. Depending on the state, some were forced to close their branches completely or severely limit the number of members they could assist at one time. Those participating in shared branching relied on their fellow credit unions to help, which added to the volume those credit unions saw. The compassion and collaboration so many of those acquirers showed was inspiring.

 

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