The secret to credit union strategic planning

by Bo McDonald, Your Marketing Co.

There’s one rule I ask each of my clients to abide by, with no exceptions, whether it’s credit union strategic planning or strategic marketing for our clients.

That rule is: Ask a freaking question.

Think about this. When you make the statement “we need to grow loans” the natural response of those in the discussion with you will automatically go to ideation. “What if we did a direct mail piece…. Or maybe we could run a rate discount campaign…”

WAIT. STOP. You need perspective on what the actual problem is before you can find the right solution. That’s when you need to pause and “ask a freaking question!” For example: “Why aren’t we growing loans to begin with.” Is it poor response time to loan apps? Is your policy too strict and needs adjustment? Is our rate not competitive? Do we have a brand awareness problem?

 

continue reading »