Implementing an Internal Communications Strategy within your Credit Union

Oftentimes, companies don’t recognize the need for improving internal communications until it’s too late—when their employees are unhappy and their culture is suffering. If you do not have an internal communications strategy implemented within your credit union, you are already two steps behind. Did you know that ineffective internal communication leads to lost revenue, customer dissatisfaction, massive miscommunications and rapidly decreasing employee engagement and retention? According to Gallup’s State of the American Workplace report, 70 percent of employees are already not engaged.

Make it a priority

After digesting the above news, you probably just had a revelation—you are going to prioritize achieving great internal communication within your credit union, but unfortunately it’s not as easy as simply making an intentional decision to do better. Prior to establishing a new strategy, you need to accept that change could be inevitable and that these changes should be embraced by you and your fellow executives. Additionally, prior to implementation, it is necessary to gather information from your employees to develop a baseline. You can begin gathering the pertinent information by distributing short anonymous surveys to your employees, or by meeting with them in small groups or one-on-one to discuss their views and concerns regarding communication within your company.

Tailor your approach

Once you have established a baseline, you will need to discover which internal communications methods are the best fit for your credit union. All companies are not created equal and will have different needs and preferences. Hone in on improving horizontal communication by exploring tools that allow your employees to communicate most effectively and encourage collaborative, open conversations. If employees feel mass emails are clogging up their inboxes and leading to miscommunications, perhaps you should consider services like Slack or Google Hangouts. If your company’s Intranet is not being properly utilized, it may be time to consider discarding the service for something more appealing to your employees.

Appreciate your employees

Another important aspect of internal communication is to ensure your employees feel included and appreciated, as it increases their engagement, work ethic and loyalty. Intentional efforts ranging from something as simple as recognizing a celebratory day, such as a birthday or a noteworthy accomplishment, to focusing on improving the vertical communication between your executives and employees will have a noticeable effect. If your employees feel that there is not a sufficient amount of vertical communication, consider holding a weekly team meeting so that everyone feels in the loop and included.

Measure your success

The best way to discover appropriate internal communications tools for your company is to pick your employees’ brains for their suggestions—and once you select the most appropriate communication methods, be sure to set goals surrounding them in order to measure your success, or to learn you need to reroute. Use metrics such as Intranet logins, surveys, retention rates and sales changes to measure your internal communications success. It might take time to figure out what is right for your credit union, but we assure you, once you do—it’s worth it.

EPL Staff

EPL, Inc.

5 ways credit unions should engage with members on social media

Did you know that one in every five mobile minutes is spent on either Facebook or Instagram? With an average of 1.04 billion daily active users, these social platforms have the potential to be an outstanding marketing tool for your credit union. If used correctly, social media can engage your members in a customized way that will enhance their overall experience and increase their loyalty to your credit union. Here are five best practices for engaging with your credit union’s members on social media:

1. Utilize Facebook Messenger
Connect with your members – instantly. People, especially millennials, don’t want to wait for answers when using social platforms. They crave instantaneous responses and therefore tend to prefer their communication to be on social channels rather than in-person or over the phone. Credit unions can easily take advantage of this customer preference by utilizing Facebook Messenger. This platform allows members to privately direct message your credit union’s Facebook page with questions or information that one might not want to disclose on the public Facebook wall. It’s important to discourage your members from sending personal information such as social security numbers and account details through this platform, as Messenger isn’t completely secure. Setting up notifications and closely monitoring this channel will allow your credit union to respond to the questions in a timely manner and bolster member satisfaction.

 2. Interact and be responsive
Social media wasn’t developed to be a silent one-way street. Make sure your credit union is interacting with content that is posted on your page and answering all member inquiries.
Received a negative review or comment? Be proactive in establishing a company strategy for responding to negative comments and complaints. An aspect of this plan will be your response timeline – it is best to always respond within one business day, if possible. In addition, have your team craft specific language so multiple employees are able to properly respond to member comments while maintaining one cohesive brand voice.

3. Prove you’re a thought leader
One of the best ways for a credit union to establish itself as an industry leader is by pushing relevant content on its social channels. Whether it’s breaking news, trends or original content, engaging in relevant conversations about the credit union industry will demonstrate that your credit union is a thought leader. Has new technology been developed that will significantly impact the credit union industry? Write a blog about the possible effects to insert your credit union into the conversation, and then share the content across your social media channels. If done properly, your members will find significant value in your content and will in turn actively follow and engage with your channels.

4. Show your credit union’s company culture
While sharing industry news is one excellent way to engage with your members on social media, it’s equally important to showcase your company’s culture. Connect with your members on a deeper level and humanize your brand by thoughtfully highlighting employees, departments, awards and social events. Do you have an all-star member? Feature him or her on your social channels! Keep in mind that these posts are most appropriate on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. Be sure to save LinkedIn for the industry insights and original content such as white papers, news articles and blogs.


5. Share member-generated content
Actively seek member engagement by running contests, asking for photos and posting questions on your social channels. Utilize your members’ creative ideas and opinions by simply asking for it; you can gain valuable insight from member feedback.
Once your credit union implements these best practices, monitor your channels and utilize social analytics to gauge your success and channel growth. Not getting the results you’d hoped? Vary your content and test new strategies. Remember that establishing a solid social strategy takes time, so be patient during your evaluation. If done well, your credit union will see higher engagement and increased member loyalty through your efforts.

Rhiannon Stone

VP, solutions delivery

EPL, Inc.