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Michigan Brand Campaign Research
When the CU Difference Campaign was developed in 2004, MCUL's Cooperative Advertising Forum (changed to the CU Difference Committee in 2008) established research as a key component to conducting a meaningful, measurable program. The intent is to demonstrate that the CU Difference movement is effective in promoting and expanding the credit union industry. Research surveys are conducted annually to monitor consumer awareness of credit unions.
Getting Started
In late 2004, the Cooperative Advertising Forum commissioned its advertising partner, BERLINE, to conduct a Pre-Awareness Attitudinal Survey. Forum members were interested in gathering data on how consumers felt about four variables:
- Awareness of the differences between credit unions and other financial services institutions
- The idea that credit unions provide superior service as compared to competitors
- The message that anyone can join
- The steps to take to find a credit union near you
Survey facilitators randomly qualified 1,400 respondents across the state for the first survey. Roughly half of the 1,400 people surveyed identified themselves as primary bank customers, and the balance as primary credit union members. For each household, survey facilitators conducted the interview with an adult who was the primary decision-maker or equally involved in the household financial decisions. The number of respondents varies from campaign to campaign in order to limit costs, but the procedures remain the same. Consumers in each of the state’s seven DMAs and four out-of-state DMAs are included in each survey. The state's 11 separate media markets are:
- Alpena
- Detroit
- Flint/Saginaw
- Grand Rapids
- Lansing
- Traverse City
- Upper Peninsula
- Lenawee County
- Cass/Berrien counties
- Gogebic County
- Menominee County
The 2004 Pre-Campaign Survey found that:
- Good customer service, good rates and low fees are not enough to expand the credit union industry's market share.
- Consumers choose credit unions when they recognize the significant advantages that credit unions give over banks.
- Banks have historically dominated the financial services realm because of their huge marketing budgets—not because they offer better products or better service.
- Beyond convenience, banks pale in comparison to credit unions.
- If credit unions are to increase their market share, it will be at the expense of our largest competitor, banks.
Post-Campaign Surveys
Post-Campaign surveys were conducted after each media campaign to measure the effects of the advertising spots on the awareness and understanding of consumers. The Post-Campaign Research results indicate that meaningful gains have been made in accomplishing these objectives, including:
- AWARENESS OF CREDIT UNIONS. Unaided awareness of credit unions jumped from 18 percent in 2004 to 27 percent after the 2008 campaign. This is an important indicator because it means that consumers are remembering credit union advertising specifically, without being prompted for that answer by our research facilitators.
- AWARENESS OF OUR DIFFERENTIATION. Credit unions rank higher than banks in seven of the eight top attributes for choosing financial institutions, such as superior customer service, better rates, lower fees and treating customers with respect
- REINFORCE SERVICE. Credit unions maintain high marks regarding superior customer service.
- REINFORCE ANYONE CAN JOIN. 45 percent of Michigan consumers understand that anyone can join a credit union, up from 29 percent in 2004.
- FIND A CREDIT UNION NEAR YOU. The TV and radio spots tell viewers to visit our call-to-action Web site, www.lovemycreditunion.org, to learn more about credit unions. Results consistently show that the site gets significantly more visits in months when our spots are running on radio and TV.
For more information
Contact Maureen Lafrinere, Marketing Associate, at mml@mcul.org or 800.262.6285, ext. 242.
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