A few days ago, our office received an oversized postcard. It was advertising member retention and on-boarding through a tried-and-true methodology. Funny, since we offer something similar to our clients. My memory might escape me, especially if Star Trek, Doctor Who, Battlestar Galactica, Lord of the Rings, Harry…wait, what were we talking about? Oh yes…advertising. So, I’m positive this piece was not ours. We had competition!

It’s good to have competitors. In a way, it legitimizes your own business practices. Otherwise, you are bound to encounter the, “well, who else is doing it? If no one else does it, and it’s as good as you say, then what are we missing?” Competition also keeps you on your toes. Nothing like the threat of corporate annihilation to get you innovating!

The problem here was that I hadn’t heard of them. Which is not good. Having competition is fine; not knowing they exist can be a problem.

This specific marketing slick was not descriptive, more of a, “come on over, sign up for a meeting, and learn how our services can benefit your credit union.” Good job. Better to stimulate curiosity rather than giving it all away. Think back to the last time you were directly marketed (in today’s society, that’s never long). When it appeared as if you had all the information, what was your natural response? Precisely.

“I’m not interested.” “We have something very similar.” “I’ve heard about that and we decided it wasn’t for us.”

Contributing too much information does the opposite of driving interest towards your product or service; it pushes them away. Most people want to create a reason why they are already “ok” or “just fine”.

Our competition appears to approach the member on-boarding challenge through a combination of proprietary communications and education programs. I wish them the best, though I’m still unsure why we received the marketing. Though we work with many credit unions, we are by no means one ourselves. I’m sure they simply wanted to make sure we were well informed about our competitive environment.

What about credit unions? Who are your competitors? Of course, the big banks. Anyone else? Other credit unions, you’re right. Are there any more whom you must compete for your member’s business? In fact, yes.

The competition for credit unions, and anyone within the industry, large or small, are those doing something better than others, for less or with greater member benefit. Technology has enabled a diversified portfolio of services, with no struggle to manage. A person can easily have Google Wallet for online shopping, embrace Chime for their debit card, use a credit union for their auto loan, Bank of America for their mortgage, Citi for a credit card, and Mint to manage it all on their computer, tablet, and phone. Doing this 10 years ago would have been madness, but today, it’s no hassle at all.

Like Mufasa once said, “Remember who you are…” As a credit union, you must focus on precisely what can help grow your institution and serve your members. It is a rough reality to face, but you cannot be everything to everyone. Not anymore. So why not be just right for what brings you the greatest success!