Credit unions havelong taken extra steps to build brand loyalty and separatethemselves from large financial institutions by delivering superiorcustomer service. And, for years these efforts paid off. In 2011,CUNA reported that membership at not-for-profit financialinstitutions hit an all-time high and did so again in 2012, withcredit union membership surpassing 93 million in the second quarterof that year.

However, the competitive landscape is changing at warp speed asincreased financial options are creating an environment in whichmembers are more likely to move their services elsewhere. At thesame time, the perceived homogeneity or commoditization of corebanking services has created a downward spike in overall brandloyalty for banks and credit unions alike, as consumers no longerhave the same challenges or level of angst when shifting accountsfrom one financial institution to another.

In sum, the financial services market is a highly competitiveand highly fragmented space with an almost dizzying array ofoptions available to customers. Even though they have maintainedtheir reputation for delivering better service, credit unions arenot immune as they face increased competition from newer consumeroptions such as internet-only banks and payroll cards.

Moreover, today's credit union members are more informed andconnected than ever before. They have a variety of informationsources from which they can gather information about everythingfrom a credit union's level of service to its peer average ratio.This “knowledge” continues to change member expectations of theircredit unions.

Some of the key changes include:

No term limits: Today's members are reducingtheir number of visits to physical branches in favor of mobileoptions, remote deposits, internet choices and call centerinteractions. The driving forces are speed and efficiency. Toremain relevant and competitive, credit unions must offer acomplete set of interaction channels that deliver 24/7 access toaccounts and core transactions. While the branch is and will remaina key element of a holistic customer engagement strategy,alternative channels are rapidly rising in importance.

Let's make a (good) deal: Members remain highlysensitive to the traditional competitive elements that are inherentin financial relationships. Rates for loans, deposit accounts andcredit cards still matter. In addition to price, breadth ofofferings and perceived stability are core considerations. While apersonal relationship with a credit union manager helps defray someof the price sensitivity, credit unions need to remain aware of andcompetitive with the marketplace for its core offerings.

Their opinions matter: The importance of socialinfluence on today's members is at its apex. Target members aremore likely to be influenced by their personal and professionalpeer networks than by advertising. In addition, they are more proneto comment on their experiences, both positive and negative, in thesocial space than ever before.

With this evolution as the backdrop, credit unions must evolveas members evolve. Best-in-class credit unions are looking at wayslarge organizations are revamping their customer engagement modelsbased upon the new, competitive landscape.

To adapt to the changing and evolving member, credit unions ofall sizes have made forays into Member Relationship Management or Customer Relationship Management.

The list below represents a set of actions credit unions shouldconsider when exploring CRM or MRM solutions to improve customerinteractions.

Get in alignment: Credit unions must aligntheir processes and tools to today's customers and their mindsets.With this in mind, consider the following:

• Do you have a social engagement policy?
• Are you leveraging structured social networks for inbound andoutbound messaging?
• Do you offer referral incentives to members for theirrecommendations?
• Do your messages and offers focus on alignment to customerneeds?

Map it out: Another important alignment centerson mapping customer touch points to the customer journey. Thismeans that credit unions must identify customer demographicsegments and life stages. This is important for developing segmentand stage specific messaging and is key in ensuring that a CRM/MRMsystem is successful in providing recommendations for relevantproducts and services at the right time.

Go for the goals: Finally, any organizationconsidering a move to a CRM/MRM solution must be specific aboutgoals and metrics. To measure success, one must set internaland external benchmarks along with milestones and checkpoints alongthe way.

The right solution enables credit unions to build a socialengagement policy to better meet members where they are. Moreover,these technologies help credit unions create channels to reachpotential members at the right life stages.

Credit unions can benefit from these technology options withouta lot of upfront expenditures or long implementation time. A set ofbasic business and IT questions (to a CRM provider) will help getcredit unions on their way to maximizing technology to bettermanage the member experience.

Matthew Keenan is‎ vice president, CRM Product Managementfor the Atlanta-based enterprise software provider Aptean. Hecan be reached at 847-691-3964 [email protected].