There's a stereotypical perception that credit union marketersand compliance officers just don't get along. But like moststereotypical scenarios, this one is almost always misleading.

In fact, marketers and compliance officers who form strongprofessional partnerships are successful in ensuring their social media marketing projects are not misleading, which canprotect the credit union's reputation, prevent potential classaction lawsuits and help avoid uncomfortable conflicts with NCUAand state examiners.

What's more, NAFCU has been urging the NCUA to modernize Part740, which regulates advertising to accommodate the growth ofsocial media, mobile banking and other digital communicationsprograms. NAFCU said it continues to hear from its members thatapplying Part 740 to social media is unclear, complicated andburdensome.

Compliance experts and credit union professionals agree thatknowing the basic compliance requirements to sidestep pitfalls andproblems can go a long way in helping craft and implement compliantsocial media marketing campaigns.

“There are some compliance pitfalls, and we do a lot of trainingfor various leagues and for credit unions specifically on socialmedia compliance issues because it's a big area of concern,” saidGaye DeCesare, president/CEO of COMPASS 4 CUs LLC., a Woodbridge,Va.-based compliance services company.

Some of the less-than-obvious pitfalls are around unfair,deceptive and abusive acts or practices.

The Dodd-Frank Act of 2010 defined UDAAP as acts or practicesthat financially harm consumers and interferes with a consumer'sability to avoid financial harm.

For credit unions, that means they have to be careful with howthey word their social media promotions.

Compliance problems can also easily surface when credit unionsdon't pay attention to the rather complex details of trigger termsthat always require disclosures.

Even compliance experts agree that all of the rules andregulations can be complex and confusing, and are not particularlyconducive to social media marketing.

NAFCU is currently making efforts to change the rules to givecredit unions more flexibility.

Alexander Monterrubio, NAFCU's director of regulatory affairs,said the national organization continues to address the issues ofPart 740 and noted that the regulations are up for review by thefederal agency this year.

However, because the NCUA board is undergoing leadershiptransitions this year and a new president will be in charge ofappointing board members starting in 2017, it's uncertain whetherthere will be any modifications to Part 740.

Read more details about how credit unions address socialmedia marketing challenges in the April 27, 2016 print edition ofCredit Union Times.