Month: April 2025

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With Whom Do You Share Your Brand?

One of the truisms about branding is that grreat companies create great brands.  Brands do not build great companies.

Tim Calkins is a markeing professor at The Kellogg School of Northwestern University.  He publishes a monthly newsletter, Strong Brands,  providing contemporary  examples from his classroom.

The latest edition includes an update on Tesla, a brand he has written about before.

Tesla
In my last post I wrote about Tesla’s brand repositioning. Things seem to only be getting worse and sales were sharply down in the first quarter. News that the Proud Boys are now showing up at Tesla dealers to show their support will only further polarize the brand.

Driving a Tesla has always been about making a statement. I suspect supporting the Proud Boys wasn’t the statement most Tesla buyers were trying to make. 

Credit unions have both individual identities as well as the generic reputation of being a different kind of financial institution.   What one credit union does well or becomes a front page story,  affects the cooperative system’s brand.

Just as important the individuals and organizations a credit union decides to work with or to support affects their reputation with their members and the communities they serve.

As credit unions decide their NIL relationships, the business partners they seek to serve, and the community events they support, they are creating a reputation much greater than a financial service option.

As boards consider whether to facilitate digital currency options, the sale of marijuana or vape products, or finance options such as interval vacation  ownership, consider the impact on the “brand” the credit union is presenting  members.

When a credit union offers  a special financial product or specific business loans, it endorses that activity.

For example is now the moment to promote a special financing option for the purchase of Teslas?

As in life, what credit unions do with members; money always speak louder than the latest PR or messaging  campaign.

 

 

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Trump’s Tariffs Affect Cherry Blossom Run

The annual Credit Union sponsored  Cherry Blossom 10 mile run on Sunday April 6  in DC had a last minute adjustment.

Runners Learning about a Course Change

On the day before the race, Saturday, April 5, President Trump’s 10% tariff on all imports to the US took effect.  The tariff covers all products, services and intellectual property from any country, regardless of that country’s tariffs on the US exports to them.

Race organizers were told by the US International Trade Commission that the mile, as a concept for measuring distance, was an English “intellectual property” import.

Therefore the race must be expanded to 11 miles, or 10% further, or face a last minute cancellation for the over 20,000 registered runners.  The race committee agreed to the request and moved the finish line by an additional mile.

Credit Union Runners React

While some participants felt that politics should not be a part of this effort to support the  Children’s Miracle Nework, most were stoic about the additional distance added right as the runners were assembling.

One runner, Alix,  who has competed for many years, commented that the added length was no worry.  That’s “because credit unions are always willing to go the extra mile for their members,” she said.

 

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The Power of Questions. . . and Answers

This past week Senator Cory Booker stood in the chamber for over 25 hours delivering a powerful call for the  people to challenge the Trump administration’s threats to democracy.

It was an heroic physical commitment to ignite awareness of the critical political tests facing the country.

He described this time as our moral moment with America’s fundamental values on the line.  It was a call to the conscience of a nation.

Our democratic capability for change he summarized  as the power of the people is greater than the people in power.  

Our Moral Moments

 People may or may not agree with Booker’s impassioned call.  But his basic questions are ones every person will encounter in their own experiences.  He asked:

What will define our greatness in the moral moments we face?

What is the role of character?

What would we view as threats to our bedrock commitments?

Individuals will craft their personal responses as to what they want to uphold for the communities and society in which all live.

One person who analyzes the special role of credit unions and its abundance of business examples is Ancin Cooley, a credit union consultant. I believe his observation about credit union’s current political circumstances draws us back to Booker’s questions.

Tigers with Amnesia

In reflecting on the history of the credit union movement, one fact stands out: our strength has always been rooted in our members and communities—not in politics.

From its inception through its adolescence, the cooperative model thrived without relying on the president or Congress to dictate how we serve our members.

Today, many credit unions manage capital budgets that rival those of local governments, underscoring a powerful truth: real power resides within the community we live. Credit Union are tigers with amnesia.

While political wins and advocacy play a role, we must never lose sight of our true source of strength. The idea that credit unions must depend on politics is, in many ways, contrived. Instead, our focus should be on empowering our members and meeting their needs, regardless of which political party is in power.

After all, the cooperative movement challenges both traditional capitalism and political centralization by proving that community-driven finance is a force to be reckoned with.

Senator Booker and Cooley are both asking we carefully consider what we believe in.  What are we willing to stand up for? The actions we take when moral moments arise, will test who we will become.

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Tired

Artist Elizabeth Catlett (1915-2012) was born in D.C.  She went to the segregated Dunbar High School and graduated from Howard University.

Last night I attended a National Gallery of Art reception celebrating the opening of an exhibit of her work called, A Black Woman Revolutionary Artist and All that It Implies.

Her skill as an artist in all mediums is exceptional.  Sculptures large and small are done in stone, bronze, terra cotta and wood.  The drawings, prints, oils and pastels are equally expert.

But just as important was the constant purpose for her art.  She believed art should be for the public and address the hopes and lives of the people she portrayed.

When she saw the Mexican mural artists on a trip to San Francisco, her work focused on portraying the lives and political struggles of America’s  black communities.

The NGA’s hundreds of works are immediately accessible upon viewing, whether literal portraits or abstract sculpture.  They communicate feeling and meaning at once.

The terra cotta sculpture below, Tired, captures a woman at rest, her plain clothing suggesting a day of labor.  Her long neck and uplifted chin suggest pride.  Her folded hands, rest.

This is a very small, even understated, example of some very dramatic sculptures and portraits of hundreds of Catlett’s creations.

It communicates because it is universal in its expression.  When have we all not at some point felt this way.  Especially those who, like the artist,  commit their skills to change the lives, futures and understanding of those society leaves behind, ignores, or persecutes.

Struggle for change in any country is never easy or finished.  It is simpler to move on to more traditional roles.

But this exhibit of a lifetime dedicated to a revolution demonstrates a constancy of purpose that enhances every  single work.

Elizabeth Catlett is an example of an artistic leader whose life was dedicated to change how we see and remember our country’s past.

If in D.C. visit the National Gallery East Wing for an experience that will be enlightening both for the art and example of a person who never tired fighting for change.

While there will be few who will ever create such a  leadership legacy, we all leave examples of our ambitions and passions.  Sometimes that  motivates persons to spend their professional lives with credit unions.  How would you like that work to be remembered?

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Why I Love My Job

From the field. The following examples are from a CEO’s monthly report to staff.  He documents their business strategy to “out-local” the competition.

Serving One Member at a Time

A member called in about his credit card. He stated he falls short on funds every month and has to use his credit card and can’t get out from behind it. He was asking if there is a way to change the payment date.

I looked deeper into this as he is on a fixed income and struggles financially due to always falling short about $60 monthly. I asked him if he had any other debt, and he said he had a couple Affirm loans he got to buy shoes and clothes.

I know we are here for our members, so I told him let’s look at a home equity as he has plenty of equity on the home. Here is where we now stand.

Instead of this member falling short $60 monthly and having to use his credit card we are doing a home equity and consolidating his credit card and his Affirm loans. He will now have an extra $100 monthly to give him some wiggle room. We will also decrease his credit card limit down to $1K to prevent him having easy access to a large amount. This was actually his idea to decrease the card’s limit.

The best part is this member will now have a couple hundred dollars in his pocket out of the loan proceeds and he is getting out of his financial struggle.

Yesterday he called and asked if it was ok to use his credit card for gas considering we haven’t closed yet. He said it’s been tough as he had to use a lot of gas for a trip as he just found out his sister of 77 years old committed suicide.

We just got approval to close on this loan. I’m sending this member a sympathy note and also putting a $10 member appreciation card in it.

At maybe the toughest time in the member’s life we are able to help him and bring some light into this time for him. He is very grateful and says this is changing his life for the better. This is why I love my job!”

Assistance to Members & Non-members Facing Layoffs

Also this month the credit union reported initiatives for local federal and  university employees being laid off.

Messaging was sent to members employed by the federal government, identified through direct deposit data, offering assistance in the event they may face an upcoming layoff.

That assistance could run the gamut from loan restructuring and payment deferrals to budgeting advice and financial solutions based on unique circumstances.

We have 16 associates designated as a Certified Credit Union Financial Counselor (CCUFC) and stand ready to help any impacted member.

The University of Dayton announced the lay-off of 65 individuals and an offer was made to the UD Vice President of HR of similar assistance to those people affected.