Community First Credit Union Fuels Rapid Growth with Human-Centric Digital Strategy, Powered by Glia6/14/2022 Glia, the leading provider of Digital Customer Service (DCS), has helped Community First Credit Union digitally transform member services to deliver high-touch, highly personalized OnScreen experiences. Community First’s human-centric digital approach has optimized how digital channels enable connections with members and provide online guidance. This member-first approach has fueled a 36% increase in sales, driving especially strong results for loans where conversions have more than doubled in the first year with Glia. Community First loaned a record amount to consumers, homebuyers and businesses during that time. “Our secret sauce is that we found a way to generate ROI by creating human connections through digital member servicing. Our lending team more than doubled production last year with Glia. It’s because we’re facilitating a digital experience that members find interesting and relevant,” said Jimmy Lovelace, SVP of Member Experience, Community First Credit Union. Community First Gets Proactive Glia’s OnScreen collaboration tools allow Community First to proactively reach out to members and provide online guidance for loan applications, which can be complex. With the ability to see the same screen as a member, service representatives immediately understand how to best provide support, offering help with an auto loan application, for example. CoBrowsing gets even more proactive, helping members to navigate the Loan Options site, find online resources and even fill out an application. As a result, Community First has increased proactive engagement 9 times since deploying Glia, creating more opportunities and contributing significantly to the credit union’s strong growth in loans. This outreach capability has proven popular with Community First’s member services team. “Digital Customer Service is all about connecting people and enabling personal, human experiences online. Community First Credit Union is a stellar example of an institution that has made the member experience its top priority, leading to tremendous growth and strong member satisfaction,” said Dan Michaeli, Co-Founder and CEO at Glia. To learn more about Community First and its human-centric digital approach, read the Community First Case Study.
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Co-op Solutions and Constellation Digital Partners announced today that the two credit union service organizations have formed a task force of mutual clients to expedite the smooth integration of Co-op digital apps into Constellation’s online and mobile banking platform. “Partnering with Constellation and our credit union clients on this task force will accelerate smooth integration of lifestyle-banking solutions,” said Gail Tofil, Vice President, Strategic Business Development, for Co-op. “This is about momentum in the digital space. The faster we reach our integration objectives, the sooner credit unions will reap the rewards of Co-op’s and Constellation’s investments in digital transformation.” Leaders from Coastal Credit Union, Farmers Insurance Group FCU, Kinecta Federal Credit Union and Nusenda Credit Union join representatives of Co-op and Constellation on the task force. Foremost on the list of solutions to be tackled through this collaboration is the support for card management, and the capability to reveal card data – to leverage the capabilities of fintech services already on the Constellation platform. Additionally, the credit unions will determine which Co-op digital payment solutions, like P2P, bill pay and account access, will most benefit their members' needs. Co-op is among Constellation’s original investors and has engaged with the fintech in different capacities since its founding in 2017. Constellation innovates to deliver on the promise that credit unions “don’t need big bank money to afford big bank technologies.” The task force will break down the “how” of that promise by setting and executing solution integration plans for connecting Co-op products to Constellation’s digital banking platform. “To enable banking as members have come to expect, credit unions need to bring innovation to the market faster and with a more diverse set of solutions,” said Dawn Sirras, SVP, Fintech Partnerships for Constellation. “App diversity extends primary financial relationships by meeting members where they are across more of those sticky, everyday banking moments.” Co-op intends to form additional task forces with other technology business partners to further help the industry meet modern members’ digital payments expectations. “We believe strongly in listening to our clients through collaborative forums, such our client Co-Creation Councils and task forces comprising technology partners to provide the best experience for credit unions and their members,” said Tofil. “This is a real differentiator for Co-op in the market, and we will continue to dedicate resources to grow this service model.” Alabama Central Credit Union Selects Corelation for KeyStone’s ‘More in the Core’ Functionality6/10/2022 After more than two decades on another core, Alabama Central Credit Union ($198 million in assets; 17,269 members; Birmingham, AL) is ready for a change. The credit union has signed with Corelation to convert to KeyStone in 2023. “Throughout the demonstrations and the entire selection process, our interactions with Corelation felt like a partnership rather than a sales pitch,” noted Alabama Central CU President/CEO Brad Haddock. “We have a good relationship with a credit union that is already using KeyStone, hearing their positive feedback on their partnership with Corelation helped solidify our decision.” The move to KeyStone will enable Alabama Central CU to replace many manual processes with automated jobs, creating efficiencies throughout the organization and saving significant time with reporting. The credit union noted that the switch to a person-centric core processor will offer easier transactions and smoother service interactions for their members. “A big reason we chose KeyStone is the fact that there are no modules to buy,” shared Alabama Central CU CFO Jessica Baker. “With all of KeyStone’s ‘More in the Core’ functionality, we’re getting a solid core processing system, rather than feeling like we’re leasing a product where the expense grows with every add-on.” The ability to integrate their preferred third-party vendors into the core with the KeyBridge open API was also a key factor in Alabama Central CU’s selection of KeyStone. Alongside their core conversion, the credit union has plans to update their interactive voice response (IVR) and mobile banking platforms to provide their members with easier to use technology. “Alabama Central Credit Union has remained dedicated to helping the hard-working people in their communities achieve their financial goals for more than 80 years,” noted Corelation President Rob Landis. “Building strong relationships with our credit union partners is at the heart of Corelation’s mission and we thank you, Alabama Central CU, for putting your trust in Corelation.” Rivermark Community Credit Union is celebrating the opening of its newest branch location in the Hollywood District of NE Portland. The full-service branch, located at 4730 NE Sandy Boulevard, features Video Teller technology and Saturday hours. The branch also has a drive-up ATM/Video Teller Kiosk with extended hours and a member parking garage. As part of the celebration, Rivermark will be holding a giveaway event that will pay the monthly rent or mortgage payment of a local resident for one full year. The giveaway kicks off the Hollywood branch opening celebration during June. To enter to win the Year of House Payments (up to $14,200 towards rent or mortgage payments), new members can open a new checking account online or at the Hollywood branch using promo code NEPDX200, by July 31, 2022. "We are excited to be part of the thriving Hollywood community in Northeast Portland", said Seth Schaefer, President/CEO of Rivermark Community Credit Union. "We’re committed to providing affordable financial solutions to members, with an emphasis on being local, personal, and accessible”, continued Schaefer. Backbase, creator of the category-leading Engagement Banking Platform, raised €120 million in growth equity funding from Motive Partners. Having grown organically to over €200 million in revenue, Backbase is now partnering with a Fintech specialist private equity firm, to further strengthen its claim on the Engagement Banking category. This growth investment values Backbase at €2.5 billion. Motive Partners is a founder-friendly partner, fully supporting Backbase in remaining an independent force and driving the Engagement Banking strategy, by continuing to focus on customer-centric innovation that transforms the financial services industry’s siloed channels and legacy applications. Most banks struggle with a patchwork of disconnected, point and channel solutions that were never designed to service the customer holistically, leaving behind a raft of broken journeys for their customers. This investment will allow Backbase to double down on its vision for Engagement Banking and accelerate its mission of re-architecting banking around the customer. Engagement Banking is a paradigm shift. Rather than stitching these legacy applications together and trying to rework banking around outdated technology, banks and credit unions can instantly leverage the power of a cloud-based engagement banking platform to create frictionless customer journeys across all the stages of the customer lifecycle. From onboarding, to servicing, to lending, to expanding share of wallet, this investment supports the growth through product expansion and further growing our sales and marketing operations. “Today is a major milestone for more than 2,000 Backbasers and 150 customers around the world, to celebrate the incredible progress we made. With this partnership, we’re even better equipped to drive our Engagement Banking vision to the next level. I couldn't be more excited about the opportunities that lie ahead and the positive impact we can make,” Jouk Pleiter, Founder and CEO of Backbase said. “To all our customers, I personally want to restate our long-term commitment to being your independent, long-term partner in innovation. For us, it is still day one." “For more than a decade, Backbase has shown leadership and innovation in enhancing digital relationships between financial institutions and its customers,” explained Rob Heyvaert, Founder and Managing Partner of Motive Partners. “We’re excited to support Jouk and the Backbase team with this initial fundraise as they continue to expand, grow and build the leading, customer-centric, Engagement Banking Platform globally.” Neil Cochrane, Partner at Motive Partners commented, “Backbase continues to lead an innovative category underpinning the banking sector, and we believe that together we have a unique growth opportunity to build upon Backbase’s strong foundations. As Backbase continues it’s growth journey, we’re excited to leverage our team’s depth of expertise alongside Jouk and the team.” “Backbase’s proven track record of entrepreneurship and organic growth will continue. Our formula is simple: focus on the needs of our customers and empower highly skilled teams to deliver. We’re changing a big industry, which is hard work. Having critical mass and market momentum allows us to stay laser-focused,” Pleiter added. “Together we’re making it happen.” Community First Fund, an independent non-profit community loan fund, launched its first credit union branch today with an official grand opening and ribbon-cutting ceremony. Community First Fund Credit Union aims to create financial equity and economic mobility for individuals and families, especially African Americans, Latinos, immigrants and women. The credit union’s mission is supported through access to consumer financial products and education that improve personal financial stability and provide opportunities to obtain quality, affordable housing. “We’ve been serving Lancaster for 30 years by providing access to credit to entrepreneurs who want to make a positive change in the community,” said Daniel Betancourt, President and CEO of Community First Fund and the credit union. “With the credit union, our mission is to provide a pathway to financial stability for families. We’re excited to expand our service in the community and celebrate this milestone.” Community First Fund based its plan to launch the credit union on national research that shows
“Unbanked” are people who do not have a savings or checking account, and “underbanked” means they do have bank accounts, but rely on an alternative financial services such as money orders, check cashing stores, or pawn shop loans. Essentially un(der)banked people do not have an established relationship with a financial institution and therefore cannot access nor benefit from critical financial services that ultimately save money and build wealth. To better understand the local need and demand for a credit union, Community First Fund partnered with Franklin and Marshall College’s Center for Opinion Research and surveyed Lancaster County residents. The survey showed a need to strengthen the financial mobility of families and that the creation of a financial center would help foster financial equity and economic prosperity. Community First Fund Credit Union was chartered by the National Credit Union Administration in June 2021 and is one of very few credit unions that have launched nationally since 2017. “This is wealth-building institution,” states Todd Harper, NCUA Board Chair. “Established by the community and for the community, it is at the very heart of our nation’s credit union system that was built on the principle of people helping people.” Community First Fund has received funding from private donors, local foundations such as the Calvin and Janet High Foundation, Lancaster County Community Foundation, the High Foundation, and Ferree Foundation, and national bank partners such as Santander Bank and M&T Bank. Santander Bank was the first bank partner to commit significant financial funding to launch the credit union with a $500k contribution paid over five years. “Investing in projects that help build strong and healthy communities is a key priority for Santander Bank, and we are proud to be a long-time supporter of Community First Fund,” said Seth Goodall, Executive Director, Corporate Social Responsibility for Santander Bank. “The establishment of the Community First Fund Credit Union in Lancaster is a significant enhancement to the community, and we congratulate Community First on reaching this important milestone.” M&T Bank, a long-standing partner of Community First Fund, is the latest bank funder to contribute toward operating support. The bank has committed to provide $1 million over the next five years to the Community First Fund Credit Union in Lancaster. “This moment is about more than opening the Community First Fund Credit Union in Lancaster,” said Tom Koppmann, M&T Bank’s regional president for Southeastern Pennsylvania. “This is about expanding access to banking and other financial services to communities in the area that have been underbanked for years. It’s a transformational moment that could help lift the entire community. M&T Bank is proud to be associated with Community First Fund and its work throughout Southeastern Pennsylvania.” Chimney™, a leader in financial guidance for the digital age, today announced the addition of three credit unions to its platform, bringing the total number of credit unions to over 20 and growing fast. Among the latest credit unions to select Chimney are:
Known for its next-generation tools and calculators and trusted by financial institutions across the United States, Chimney is changing the way banks, credit unions and mortgage lenders provide financial guidance to consumers. With the company’s award-winning digital tools, institutions can offer customers personalized, interactive content at scale while gathering gainful member data, creating an increase in qualified conversions across digital channels. One credit union to recently partner with Chimney is New Jersey-based Affinity Federal Credit Union. Founded in 1935, Affinity is a full-service financial institution, member owned and community focused, with a mission to nurture member financial wellbeing. With more than 20 branches across the tri-state area, Affinity is the largest credit union headquartered in the state of New Jersey, proudly ranking in the top 2% of all credit unions in terms of asset size. The Affinity difference is about people helping people on a deeper level and understanding what YOU need to make your unique dreams a reality. As part of this commitment, the credit union has partnered with Chimney. Matthew Covi, Co-founder and CEO of Chimney, said, “At Chimney, we are creating calculators that build trust and increase engagement. Every credit union member’s situation is unique – from their income levels to their credit backgrounds. It’s impossible to create one-size-fits-all content for this audience.” Covi continued, “Chimney is solving for this. Calculators can provide personalization at scale. Two home shoppers with very different financial profiles can input their specific information into the same calculator and each receive a customized result that can help them decide on their next move. This is critical as more consumers expect personalized experiences – and credit unions like Wellby, Quorum FCU and Affinity know this and are leading the way.” Alaska USA Federal Credit opens its newest, fully redesigned, digitally focused branch located in Scottsdale, Arizona. This new branch is the latest opening in a series of branches created with a new digital focus, which improves member service and efficiency. The new space blends updated technology with personal service. It features modern amenities, social spaces for conversation, and engagement offices for improved member experience and convenience. Employees are also equipped with mobile tablets and laptops, allowing them to complete transactions throughout the branch. Branches are a vital part of the Alaska USA Federal Credit Union infrastructure, and this new branch helps to provide improved member experience. “We’re always looking for ways to better serve our membership,” said Shannon Conley, executive director, retail financial services. “This new branch helps us to bring efficiency, agility, and flexibility to our service delivery, helping us to provide a more comfortable and streamlined service to our membership.” Payrailz®, a digital payments company offering smarter, more engaging payment experiences to banks and credit unions across the United States, announced its integration with Q2’s digital banking platform. Q2 Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: QTWO) is a leading provider of digital transformation solutions for banking and lending. Through this integration, Payrailz will offer peer-to-peer (P2P) payment services within Q2’s Partner Accelerator Program. According to research from McKinsey, 82 percent of Americans were using digital payments in 2021, including P2P. The Q2 Partner Accelerator Program, part of the Q2 Innovation Studio, allows in-demand financial services providers who are leveraging the Q2 SDK (software development kit) to integrate their technology with the Q2 digital banking platform. Financial institutions can work with these partners to purchase their solutions and rapidly deploy the standardized integrations directly to their customers. Payrailz’ P2P solution features an open-loop system, real-time transfer capabilities and fraud mitigation controls, along with a more modern payments experience for users. This increased flexibility is critical for today’s financial institutions, as their users want solutions that are convenient, secure and easy to use. Due to the rate of innovation in financial services today, consumers will not put up with a clunky experience, they will simply find a better experience elsewhere. Payrailz’ P2P solution and its seamless user experience will help Q2’s financial institutions demonstrate the value they are able to provide over payments competitors. “At Q2, we are focused on empowering financial institutions to innovate faster and deliver differentiated offerings quickly, to delight their account holders,” said Johnny Ola, managing director of the Q2 Innovation Studio, Q2. “Providing account holders with a seamless peer-to-peer payments experience is a priority for many banks, credit unions and fintechs. Through this integration, we are pleased that Payrailz is offering this option and capability to our customers.” “Our mission has always been to support banks and credit unions with solutions that help them build stronger relationships with end-users and better compete in the marketplace. We noticed there was a need for better P2P options that financial institutions could offer in order to stand up to today’s big payments players,” said Fran Duggan, CEO of Payrailz. “We share Q2’s passion for innovation and are proud to work with them to bring smarter payment solutions to the banks and credit unions they serve.” To learn more about the Q2 Innovation Studio’s Partner Accelerator Program, please click here. Co-op Research Finds Credit Unions Can Challenge Fintechs with Daily Member Interaction via Payments6/6/2022 In 2021, consumers asked for digital engagement. In 2022, fintechs are making it happen. This provoking reality is just one of several uncovered by a joint research project commissioned by Co-op Solutions in partnership with EY (formerly Ernst & Young) and Filene Research Institute. The proprietary research looked at changes to consumers’ financial behaviors and their preferences and activities, as well as the challenges faced by credit union leaders over the past year. The conclusions highlight an opportunity to meet member needs and ignite credit union growth through daily interactions, including payments. Research results are contained in a new white paper from Co-op titled, “Co-op CU Growth Outlook: Bridging Member Needs and Payments Strategies to Deepen Trust.” The research confirms that credit unions can address members’ evolving expectations, meet the increased competition from fintechs and be truly member-centric by supporting their members in their daily activities, interacting with them at multiple points each day. The best way to activate daily engagement is by offering digital payment options, while creating financial transparency and helping members take control of their own financial lives. “We now know that robust and relevant digital payments options are objectively the best way to activate daily engagement,” said Samantha Paxson, Chief Experience Officer for Co-op. “Layering financial transparency and member control on top of those digital payments tools is how credit unions will maintain the trust and, ultimately, the business of modern members.” Step One to Daily Member Engagement – Digital Payment Options The Co-op CU Growth Outlook white paper outlines six steps for activating daily engagement to win the business of more members. The first among them is to incorporate digital payment options, such as virtual wallets, contactless payments, P2P channels and POS purchasing integrations, like buy-now-pay-later solutions. The availability of tools like these is crucial to earning and maintaining member trust, a must-have in today’s highly competitive financial services environment. According to the research, credit unions are falling behind in the race for trust. For example, EY’s survey of 2,000 credit union members and 1,000 prospective members revealed that consumers don’t trust credit unions to offer the digital payment solutions they want. The sentiment proves out in the numbers: 66 percent of respondents use some form of digital payments, yet only 16 percent do so directly with their credit union. “Capturing member trust is about so much more than profitability,” said Paxson. “The competitors out there offering digital payments rarely have the financial wellness of their users in mind. Member-centricity comes down to meeting members where they are so we can get them where they’re going – faster, safer and in a more holistically healthy way. Fintechs, big banks and data-ravenous tech giants are not the answer; but members seek them out when they can’t get what they need from their credit union.” Other findings explored in the research paper include:
Credit union leaders can access the full report, “Co-op CU Growth Outlook: Bridging Member Needs and Payments Strategies to Deepen Trust,” at coop.org. |
Author: Mike LawsonMarried to a most gorgeous and wonderful wife, raising 5 kiddos (including twins!), enjoy helping others tell their stories, and love surfing SoCal waves. Keep it simple. Archives
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