Popular credit union speaker, trainer and consultant Jason Boles of Jason Boles Consulting and CU Achieve Inc. have merged.
The new company will operate under the name Fans Created. Boles will serve as the firm's CEO and Melissa Boyce as president. The consultancy is owned by First Community Services Inc., a CUSO of First Community Credit Union in Jamestown, N.D. The consulting firm will operate out of Kansas City, Mo., and Disputanta, Va.
Fans Created offers strategic planning, business development, staff and leadership training and management consulting services.
"By combining the talents and experience of both successful firms, Fans Created has the resources to help our clients succeed," said Boles.
According to Boyce the move to merge was a "no brainer."
"Both firms already enjoyed a healthy strategic partnership. We soon realized if we shared the same vision, values, and passion for delivering quality work for our clients, that we simply belonged together," said Boyce.
Boles said he is looking forward to introducing the Fans Created brand to his clients. Boles said now is the time for credit unions to aggressively and strategically focus on creating hardcore fans-both internally and externally.
With a credit union client base stretching coast-to-coast, Fans Created is supported by seven professional consultants with experience in sales, marketing, business development and management consulting.
Jason Boles Consulting was formed in 2007 by Boles. Prior to launching JBC, he served as executive vice president of the credit union consulting firm Counter Intelligence Associates.
Launched by Boyce in 2001, CU Achieve helps executives and their frontline staff become more competitive by creating change in their credit unions through strategic vision, marketing, business development and training.
Vantage Goes Green in the Fast Lane
Vantage Credit Union has taken going green in a new direction.
The credit union's "Save Green, Get Green" savings campaign, which began last April was designed to help consumers save money by automatically transferring funds to a special savings account. One semifinalist was randomly chosen from each of the credit union's 15 branches.
"Our goal with this campaign was to encourage people to start saving in an automatic, ongoing way," said Kathy Palmer, Vantage CU vice president of marketing. "The promotion was a great success; many of our members are now building up savings."
One of the 15 semifinalists will drive away in a 2008 Toyota Prius after the final drawing Feb. 21, which was slated to take place at the St. Charles Convention Center at 3:00 p.m.
To spread the word about the year-long savings campaign, Vantage CU launched a mix of commercials, outdoor signage, postcards, statement stuffers and other print materials featuring the car. In addition, St. Louis locals who spotted the Vantage CU-wrapped Prius around town could win gas cards or cash.
"Our country has seen negative savings trends over the past year. That coupled with current worries about the economy and the rising cost of living makes it even more important for us to encourage people to save money," said Palmer. "Every little bit a person can save is a step in the right direction."
Cooperative Spirit Is Essential
HealthAmerica Credit Union is making the most of its cooperative nature with a name change to Healthcare's Cooperative CU.
The Jacksonville, Fla.-based credit union opted to update its name to better reflect its cooperative mission and stand out from the competition.
Established in January 1954 as Blue Cross Blue Shield Employees Credit Union, the cooperative limited membership solely to BlueCross employees for its initial 28 years, until 1982 when then-new CEO Maury Pilver extended full membership privileges to all American hospital and other health care employees.
Currently the credit union with over $100 million in assets serves health care employee-members in 46 states.
Shell FCU Names Makeover Winner
Shell Federal Credit Union has named a winner of its redo my room contest: local Deer Park High School student Robert Wilcoxson.
As part of its iLife youth program launch, the credit union invited people ages 14-25 to submit a video less than two minutes explaining why they needed a room makeover. The winner would receive $1,000.
The contest couldn't have come at a better time for Wilcoxson, as his room was still a mess from Hurricane Ike water damage. After submitting his video, he told his friends to vote for him and other students in the school who logged onto the iLife Web site voted for him as well.
Even though the basics in his room have been put back together from the storm damage, he plans to have a graffiti design painted on his wall and a new fan installed. Of course, no room would be complete without a flat screen TV and a couch to lounge on.
Video updates of Wilcoxson's progress as he makes over his room will be posted on www.sfcuilife.org.
GTE FCU Provides Glimpse of History
GTE Federal Credit Union recently took consumers on a quick tour through credit union history with its latest television commercial.
At a time when consumer trust in financial institutions in general is at a low, GTE FCU wanted to not only promote their products and services but raise awareness of the credit union difference.
The 60-second spot aired on television stations in the Tampa Bay market during local and national news programs. The spot opens in the dark days of the Great Depression, when banks collapsed and the national unemployment rate reached double digits, then moves to the signing of the Federal Credit Union Act in 1934 by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt and the creation of GTE Federal Credit Union in Tampa in 1935.
As the ad continues, it notes that the birth of the not-for-profit financial cooperative system allowed credit unions to give citizens with common interests a place to save and borrow their money. Then the narrative and images shift to GTE FCU specifically.
With the growing numbers of Tampa Bay-area residents experiencing financial challenges because of the economy, GTE FCU leaders felt that now was a perfect time to raise awareness of why credit unions were created and to emphasize their stability.
"We wanted to take a step back to remind people about what makes credit unions so unique," says Doug Richardson, senior vice president of marketing at GTE FCU.
Richardson said future television ads will expand upon the broad range of financial products and services available through the Tampa credit union.
--mdigiovanni@cutimes.com
The new company will operate under the name Fans Created. Boles will serve as the firm's CEO and Melissa Boyce as president. The consultancy is owned by First Community Services Inc., a CUSO of First Community Credit Union in Jamestown, N.D. The consulting firm will operate out of Kansas City, Mo., and Disputanta, Va.
Fans Created offers strategic planning, business development, staff and leadership training and management consulting services.
"By combining the talents and experience of both successful firms, Fans Created has the resources to help our clients succeed," said Boles.
According to Boyce the move to merge was a "no brainer."
"Both firms already enjoyed a healthy strategic partnership. We soon realized if we shared the same vision, values, and passion for delivering quality work for our clients, that we simply belonged together," said Boyce.
Boles said he is looking forward to introducing the Fans Created brand to his clients. Boles said now is the time for credit unions to aggressively and strategically focus on creating hardcore fans-both internally and externally.
With a credit union client base stretching coast-to-coast, Fans Created is supported by seven professional consultants with experience in sales, marketing, business development and management consulting.
Jason Boles Consulting was formed in 2007 by Boles. Prior to launching JBC, he served as executive vice president of the credit union consulting firm Counter Intelligence Associates.
Launched by Boyce in 2001, CU Achieve helps executives and their frontline staff become more competitive by creating change in their credit unions through strategic vision, marketing, business development and training.
Vantage Goes Green in the Fast Lane
Vantage Credit Union has taken going green in a new direction.
The credit union's "Save Green, Get Green" savings campaign, which began last April was designed to help consumers save money by automatically transferring funds to a special savings account. One semifinalist was randomly chosen from each of the credit union's 15 branches.
"Our goal with this campaign was to encourage people to start saving in an automatic, ongoing way," said Kathy Palmer, Vantage CU vice president of marketing. "The promotion was a great success; many of our members are now building up savings."
One of the 15 semifinalists will drive away in a 2008 Toyota Prius after the final drawing Feb. 21, which was slated to take place at the St. Charles Convention Center at 3:00 p.m.
To spread the word about the year-long savings campaign, Vantage CU launched a mix of commercials, outdoor signage, postcards, statement stuffers and other print materials featuring the car. In addition, St. Louis locals who spotted the Vantage CU-wrapped Prius around town could win gas cards or cash.
"Our country has seen negative savings trends over the past year. That coupled with current worries about the economy and the rising cost of living makes it even more important for us to encourage people to save money," said Palmer. "Every little bit a person can save is a step in the right direction."
Cooperative Spirit Is Essential
HealthAmerica Credit Union is making the most of its cooperative nature with a name change to Healthcare's Cooperative CU.
The Jacksonville, Fla.-based credit union opted to update its name to better reflect its cooperative mission and stand out from the competition.
Established in January 1954 as Blue Cross Blue Shield Employees Credit Union, the cooperative limited membership solely to BlueCross employees for its initial 28 years, until 1982 when then-new CEO Maury Pilver extended full membership privileges to all American hospital and other health care employees.
Currently the credit union with over $100 million in assets serves health care employee-members in 46 states.
Shell FCU Names Makeover Winner
Shell Federal Credit Union has named a winner of its redo my room contest: local Deer Park High School student Robert Wilcoxson.
As part of its iLife youth program launch, the credit union invited people ages 14-25 to submit a video less than two minutes explaining why they needed a room makeover. The winner would receive $1,000.
The contest couldn't have come at a better time for Wilcoxson, as his room was still a mess from Hurricane Ike water damage. After submitting his video, he told his friends to vote for him and other students in the school who logged onto the iLife Web site voted for him as well.
Even though the basics in his room have been put back together from the storm damage, he plans to have a graffiti design painted on his wall and a new fan installed. Of course, no room would be complete without a flat screen TV and a couch to lounge on.
Video updates of Wilcoxson's progress as he makes over his room will be posted on www.sfcuilife.org.
GTE FCU Provides Glimpse of History
GTE Federal Credit Union recently took consumers on a quick tour through credit union history with its latest television commercial.
At a time when consumer trust in financial institutions in general is at a low, GTE FCU wanted to not only promote their products and services but raise awareness of the credit union difference.
The 60-second spot aired on television stations in the Tampa Bay market during local and national news programs. The spot opens in the dark days of the Great Depression, when banks collapsed and the national unemployment rate reached double digits, then moves to the signing of the Federal Credit Union Act in 1934 by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt and the creation of GTE Federal Credit Union in Tampa in 1935.
As the ad continues, it notes that the birth of the not-for-profit financial cooperative system allowed credit unions to give citizens with common interests a place to save and borrow their money. Then the narrative and images shift to GTE FCU specifically.
With the growing numbers of Tampa Bay-area residents experiencing financial challenges because of the economy, GTE FCU leaders felt that now was a perfect time to raise awareness of why credit unions were created and to emphasize their stability.
"We wanted to take a step back to remind people about what makes credit unions so unique," says Doug Richardson, senior vice president of marketing at GTE FCU.
Richardson said future television ads will expand upon the broad range of financial products and services available through the Tampa credit union.
--mdigiovanni@cutimes.com
