Sunmark Federal Credit Union has taken a layered personal approach to reaching out to Gen Y.
The Latham, N.Y.-based credit union has done extensive research, including relying on its own Gen Y staffers to determine the wants and needs of its youth market and help craft customized solutions.
"It's been really interesting. It was great to see that they are more educated than the youth of my day, and we discovered that they are very interested in reward points, which actually mimics the trends in Gen X," said Sunmark Director of Marketing David Weinstein.
A new site, officially launched last December, has been created to easily deliver Sunmark's service and support offerings to its members and community business partners. The site provides users with a new user-friendly toolbar to guide them through the site and connects users with a live operator who can discuss topics in real-time.
Weinstein said the new site brings it own edge when it comes to the user experience. Along with the new lifestyle solutions-based toolbar, it offers more convenience with new features, such as clearer tabs and navigation tools, an HR-based employment tool, rate offerings, member alerts and an overall redesigned user interface. The site also incorporates a decision slider that enables users to identify life choices they may be facing and pairs them with the appropriate services and support within the credit union. Social media web links have also been embedded to allow any user to access the credit union's Facebook and LinkedIn pages.
Recognizing the local youth market's interest in pending and current legislation, the $355 million credit union provided a detailed, easy to understand summary of legislative issues and explained their effects for example, in terms of lending.
"People really took notice of that educational awareness component. As a credit union, we continue to look for new ways for members to gain knowledge and financial opportunities at our organization," said Weinstein. "Our first step has been to retool our youth products and services so that as they age and hit certain milestones they 'graduate' into another realm of banking. Financial literacy has been our core function out in the community so we're building on that to create educational components that resonate and add value to their banking experience based on the needs of each age group."
Weinstein sees social media as part of a more holistic approach to community and a way to further build on Sunmark's brand awareness.
"It's a blended approach that helps us position Sunmark as a community resource," he said.
--mdigiovanni@cutimes.com
