U.S. First Credit Union Ads Advance Blunt Blandishment: We Are Not a Bank

SAN MATEO, Calif. — Sometimes the best way for a credit union to stand out is to state the obvious with a simple declaration: We are not a bank.

“In light of recent events in the financial markets, our timing couldn’t be any better,” said U.S. First Credit Union Chief Financial Officer Peggy McCauley. “We’re in a very competitive market, and we needed to define ourselves because there is a distinct advantage with credit unions and our prior advertising efforts weren’t getting the results needed. We wanted to do something that would push the envelope a bit more and the tagline ‘not a bank’ hit the mark. This is not from a perspective that banks are not financially sound. Our message is we’re U.S. First Credit Union and we’re not a bank; we’re better.”