(As Seen on CUInsight) – Getting noticed is not always easy. But in the competitive landscape of banking services, having people know your credit union’s name is rarely enough. People need to know who you are, why you are before they’ll truly trust you with their finances. Obtaining this level of brand awareness, however, can be challenging. And too often it’s simply ignored.
What is Brand, Really?
Brand is the cornerstone of differentiation. It is your distinctive story. A well-developed brand enables credit unions to communicate their unique value proposition to members and not-yet-members alike. It tells consumers not just who you are but who they can expect you to be. A brand is not just an appearance or description. It’s not a perception. A brand is a promise—a promise that you are who you claim to be and that every experience with you, across all touchpoints, will be consistent and satisfying.
People often consider their logo—and possibly a tagline—to be their brand. But a strong brand is built on five fundamental elements: the why, the message, the voice, the visual identity, and the experience. Without exploring each of these elements, it can be difficult for a credit union to understand their brand themselves. And if you don’t truly know your own brand, attempting to have others understand it is going to be an exceedingly difficult challenge.
The Why
At the heart of any successful brand is a compelling why. As Simon Sinek famously put it, “People don’t buy what you do. They buy why you do it.” Put differently, you can’t just be, you have to be for a reason, and your reason needs to resonate with the people you are trying to reach.
Within our industry, we think of credit unions as having a why that revolves around member-centric service, community focus, a commitment to financial empowerment, and caring. You may have your own unique spin on your why, but these people helping people principles lie at the center of our collective why.
Credit unions, in other words, have an inherent why, operating from a common collection of values and beliefs. Understanding and articulating this why—however you’ve constructed it—is the first step in crafting a brand that resonates deeply with your members and others within your community.
Messaging
Effective brand messaging is about more than simply saying what you do. Messaging communicates your why, your values, and your commitment. The way you talk about yourself must be meaningful and relevant to your targeted audience and it must speak in a language they understand. As you craft your messaging—and it’s important to think of it as crafting rather than writing—you need to ensure your words reflect what your brand stands for. You need to ensure this messaging is consistent across all platforms (print, social media, email communications, your website, etc.) as well as personal interactions.
Storytelling can play a key role in your messaging. The best stories are told not by you, but by your members and reinforce why you do what you do. Stories told by people like themselves can connect with your members on an emotional level and serve as an affirmation of your brand. Well-told stories express values consumers care about and communicate who you are. Turning members into advocates also creates a strong sense of loyalty.
Never underestimate the opportunity every communication presents, and the power of your words.
Voice
Your brand’s voice expresses your credit union’s personality. Your voice may be friendly and approachable, professional and authoritative, or fun and whimsical. It is what personifies your credit union—in an odd sense, your voice and personality are what make your credit union human, or at least give it recognizable and relatable human characteristics.
Social psychologist Jennifer Aker said in an oft-cited article published in 1977 that brand personality is divided into five traits:
- Excitement – imaginative, inspiring, spirited, edgy
- Ruggedness – outdoorsy, tough, adventurous
- Sincerity – down to earth, honest, trustful, cheerful
- Competence – reliable, intelligent, responsible
- Sophistication – high class, glamorous, charming
Identifying with two personalities is okay—most of us do in our personal lives. But one must be your primary personality, and whatever personality and voice you choose, it must express your why, align with your values, and be consistent across all your messaging. Vitally, it also must be authentic.
Visual Identity
Your visual identity is the most immediately recognizable aspect of your brand. It includes your logo, color palette, typography, and overall design aesthetic. Although people often don’t relate visual identity and voice, how you present yourself visually is an excellent opportunity to express and reinforce your brand’s personality. It has the power not just to represent your brand, but to differentiate it and help you stand out.
As with messaging and voice, your visual identity must be consistent across all personal interactions with your credit union. When visiting your website, using your digital banking app, viewing an ad or commercial, or stepping into your branch, the visual component of your branding must be clear and constant. Consistent visual identity helps with brand recognition. It creates credibility, trust, and an understanding as to who you are.
A strong visual identity is not just pretty or clever graphical design. It evokes emotion in your target audience. It upholds your values and contributes to the story you are trying to tell. Developing a visual identity is not where you start. It only comes after you have developed your why, crafted your messaging, and established a voice.
Member Experience
The member experience is where your brand promise intersects with reality. It describes how customers interact with and experience your brand, both physically and emotionally. How members and other consumers feel and react when engaging with your credit union—whether online, over the phone, via email, or in person—will shape their perception of your brand.
Because a consistent member experience reinforces the promise your brand makes, it’s critically important that every member of your staff understands your brand and their part in upholding that brand. Every teller, loan officer, member support specialist, and marketer must remember that the experience they provide when interacting with members is what conveys the brand you’ve created. Ensuring that every interaction reflects your brand’s values is crucial for building and maintaining trust and loyalty. For this to happen, your internal culture should have your brand at its core.
Key Takeaways
The importance of creating solid and consistent brand awareness cannot be underestimated. Your graphic design and how you write emails to your members should never be considered independently. The five components of your brand must be viewed as completely integrated.
- The why. Your reason for doing what you do must not only be known by every member of your staff, it must be clearly articulated to your target audience.
- Messaging. Every message you craft presents an opportunity to communicate your values and your commitment to those values.
- Voice. The personality you present through the voice you use is what personifies you, helping consumers understand who you are and better relate to you.
- Visual identity. How you present yourself visually often is a person’s first interaction with your credit union. It needs to reinforce your values, your message, and your voice.
- Member experience. Your brand must be something everyone in your credit union understands, believes in, and reinforces at all times.
The underlying sixth component—and one of the most critical—is consistency. Your visual identity, messaging, voice, and member experience should always be consistent, independently and with one another. This not only is true with external marketing but with everything you do. Your brand guidelines must be clear, ensuring every member interaction—with your staff, your website, your advertising, etc.—upholds and reinforces your brand’s promise.
Your brand’s values and mission should be at the center of everything you do. They should guide your decision-making, shape your marketing strategy, and influence how you interact with members. By staying true to your values and mission, you can build a brand that is memorable, authentic, and trustworthy.
Remember, people should not know your brand because they see it; they should know your brand because they know it. They should know your brand because it resonates with them and they feel connected to it. This connection is built not just on visual identity but on the story behind your credit union’s reason for being and consistency in delivering experiences supporting your brand.
About the Author
Tim Brooks is Vice President of Corporate Marketing at Synergent, a fintech specializing in core processing, digital banking, integrated payment solutions, and marketing services for credit unions nationwide. With over thirty years of experience, Tim leads brand strategy and development, focusing on strategic planning, messaging, and market analysis to create impactful campaigns that boost brand visibility and engagement.
