1st United Services CU Adopts "Simpler, Faster and Friendlier" Mantra

The following is a profile of 1st United Services Credit Union’s (USCU) Star Members Lobby Brochures. This series won a Gold Award in Products and Services Brochures in Asset Division D (More than $500 million) during MAC’s 2007 Awards Competition.

The 1st United Services Credit Union (USCU) brochure series was part of a larger re-branding campaign that included branch design and merchandising, the website, and all of the marketing collateral. The goal was to revitalize the credit union’s brand through the promise of “a lifetime of simpler, faster, friendlier financial products and services.” 

Market competition is particularly strong among regional credit unions and banks around Pleasonton in Northen California’s East Bay. According to Stephanie Jones, VP of Marketing, and Lisa Eddy, Marketing Communications Officer, 1st USCU decided it was not enough to have the lowest loan rates or highest deposit rates. It needed to provide superior service.

Although the credit union is community chartered, it made the strategic decision to focus on the core member groups it was founded to serve: people who serve others. These groups are close-knit communities, and by using real members from these communities, the credit union would position itself as a trusted partner for financial services.

What was the one message that needed to make it through to members and potential members? This credit union belongs to its members, and their word matters. The marketing staff decided to leverage the power of CU testimonials as well as the readers’ emotional response to the occupations of its core member groups (teachers, police, military, county employees). The new collateral would feature real members and their stories of how 1st USCU has made their lives “simpler, faster, friendlier.”

The first challenge was to locate real members who had a compelling story to tell about 1st USCU and were willing to be videotaped and photographed for unlimited use. Star Member packets that included two newsletter stories were distributed and members were encouraged to tell their own 1st USCU story. A total of 27 members volunteered their story and time. The list was whittled down to 18 members who are currently being used in the new branding. Six of the Star Members are featured in the lobby brochure series.



Each of the six Star Members had its own brochure and 10,000 copies of each were produced on a budget of $18,376.

This approach was an easy sell to senior management. The marketing staff used a PowerPoint presentation that explained branding, the evolution of the new brand promise from the CU’s mission, and the power of testimonials in supporting a new brand promise. A key element in the presentation was a collection of sample components of the marketing pieces. Even with the credit union’s own staff, the images of generic but real police officers, physicians and teachers extolling the benefits of 1st USCU elicited a powerful, positive emotional response. There was no fluff. The campaign would feature real people speaking in their own words.

Once production of materials was underway, the CU provided general education on branding and the importance of the brand to all employees. Every new hire is now trained on the brand before they begin working. The new brand and its promise is constantly reiterated to the entire staff, whose goal is to uphold that promise. This process really produced a complete cultural shift within the organization. Because the lobby brochure series was part of a re-branding campaign, 1st USCU couldn’t use numbers to measure its success. They had to rely on member feedback – which was substantial. Members were pleased to learn that the collateral featured actual quotes from “real” people. They also appreciated that 1st USCU had taken the time to ask them how they feel about their credit union.

Jones and Eddy say the campaign was successful because there was no fluff. The people were real. The words were real. Real people speaking to colleagues in their own words.