How to Create an Unbeatable Cross-Selling Plan for Your Credit Union

Building an effective cross-selling program for your credit union is essential for long-term success, as it relies on the most valuable asset of all: relationships.

Unlike major financial institutions, your credit union has the opportunity to foster genuine relationships with your members. By offering personalized care, attention to detail, and value that members can't find elsewhere, your credit union can strengthen those relationships and drive loyalty.

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Expanding your credit union should go hand in hand with cultivating and deepening existing relationships with satisfied members. In addition to regular onboarding and engagement efforts, targeted cross-selling offers for loan and deposit products can be highly effective in achieving this.

Purpose of Cross-Selling

Cross-selling serves two critical purposes for credit unions:

1. Driving loan and deposit growth: cross-selling allows your credit union to grow its loan and deposit portfolios beyond acquiring new members. By reaching out to members who are already familiar with your credit union and making them aware of additional services, such as auto loans, you create new opportunities for your credit union to serve their needs.

2. Building loyal relationships: effective cross-selling nurtures loyalty by satisfying members with one service and quickly meeting their needs with another. As a result, your credit union becomes an invaluable part of their financial life, and they will turn to you before considering alternatives.

Surprising Cross-Selling Stats

Before your credit union dives into cross-selling, there are some numbers you should know:

• Increasing Revenue: studies have revealed that cross-selling can increase revenue by 50%. 
• Retention: an existing members can be 7x more beneficial than trying to acquire a new member. 
• Using Data: offering personalized recommendations based on a member's data can increase sales by 35%. 
• Bundling: HubSpot research shows that 63% of sales teams offer bundling, which makes it the most-used cross-selling tactic. 
• Artificial Intelligence: AI is a great way to improve cross-selling efforts. Studies show that AI can improve cross-selling revenue by 114%. 

Ideas for New Ways to Cross-Selling

To develop a highly effective cross-selling program, consider the following approaches:

• Promote related products to new account holders within the first 90 days of opening an account. Offer genuinely valuable and helpful products that enhance their financial well-being.
• Combine cross-selling offers with financial education resources that empower members to make the most of their money.
• Implement a system to track and understand member conversations. This helps your credit union better understand their needs and preferences.
• Send targeted, relevant, and timely offers to specific groups of members. Avoid mass-blasting offers to the entire membership base. Precision and focus are crucial for successful cross-selling.

Remember, the key to an effective cross-selling program lies in understanding your members. Invest time in getting to know them—what they like, dislike, need, and want. The more accurately your credit union can answer these questions, the better you can design a cross-selling program that resonates with members. For more insightful tips on cross-selling, FLEX has authored a valuable guide that can assist you. Download it by clicking the button below and start enhancing your cross-selling efforts today!