If you missed it, there was no shortage of advertising, McDonald’s recently announced it was going to serve breakfast all day. Business analysts enjoyed the new talking points as they debated whether or not this was going to be a good or bad move for the fast-food giant.
The results have been all that McDonald's had hoped for and more as same-store sales are up considerably this quarter and competition is scrambling to determine how to keep up.
Strategist Mark Arnold gave us the connection between McDonald’s and credit unions in his piece for CUInsight.
There is a simple yet compelling application for credit unions in this McDonald’s example. What is the one simple thing you could do (or stop doing) for your members that would thrill and engage them?
If you can find it, statistics are firmly on your side. According to this recent Gallup article, when consumers strongly agree that their financial institution looks out for their financial well-being, 84% are fully engaged and none are actively disengaged. And when financial institutions take the time to address consumer’s financial well-being, they strongly increase consumer confidence in their primary financial institution.
Alternatively, is there something you should stop doing that would enamor members of your credit union? Are your twelve different checking account options (that seemed so terrific when marketing developed them) really helping members, or just confusing them? Should you make that big a deal out of your annual meeting when fewer people come every year (and those that do are pretty much there for the free meal and giveaways)? Is it time to do away with products and services your members simply no longer use, such as the telephone account access system or travelers checks? Or, again, can you learn this magical thing only from actually talking to your members?
Regardless of the one thing you could do (or stop doing) that would serve as the credit union equivalent of an “all-day breakfast menu,” the McDonald’s lesson is clear. More than likely, there is that one thing out there that members talk about or ask for on a regular basis and, for whatever reason, the credit union cannot (or refuses to) accommodate. And it is important for credit union professionals to focus on what the member wants – not what we (executive management, board, staff) want.
As consumers steer the ship we call the marketplace, reflect on this lesson and inventory your technical abilities to keep up with the demands. If your credit union member services need a boost to its menu offerings and you are lacking efficiency in your current core processing system, don’t wait until you become the competitor chasing after the bank version of McDonald’s in your market.