New White Papers Explore Marketing to Baby Boomers, Ex-Bankers at CUs

CUNA Councils
October 9, 2008 | COMMENTS

Addressing the financial services needs of the often ignored baby boomers – the 76 million men and women who comprise 26 percent of the population – is the subject of the first of two new white papers from the CUNA Councils.

“Marketing to Baby Boomers,” by the CUNA Marketing and Business Development Council, details relevant products and services for this demographic and how to strategically market these offerings. The white paper includes research and case studies that focus specifically on boomer women, who are emerging as a market super power predicted to control two-thirds of U.S. consumer wealth over the next decade.

The paper outlines the numerous opportunities that the baby boomer market presents, along with some caveats in this intense competition for wallet share. According to the paper, “This age cohort is hungry for financial information from their trusted advisor. They will attend seminars, but want information without the sales hustle—they get too many offers for free dinners and credit cards. As the interviews with professionals indicate, if the information is too sales oriented, your members will be turned off immediately.”

Credit unions have been filling lending positions with ex-bankers for many years, but the trend has gained more attention recently due to credit unions’ growing need for commercial lending experience. The second new white paper – “Ex-Bankers Working for Credit Unions: Challenges and Opportunities” by the CUNA Lending Council – offers tips and tools for hiring ex-bankers with the right mindset to thrive in the credit union environment and helping them to make the transition.

According to the white paper, “For ex-bankers, the key to success in the credit union movement seems to be understanding the credit union philosophy and reconciling it to their own approach to lending policies and procedures. When ex-bankers successfully take this step, they can make significant contributions to their credit union organizations and even the credit union movement.”

CUNA Council members are entitled to complimentary copies of these white papers; non-members may purchase the white papers for a price of $50 per copy.

The papers are available online in the white paper section of each council site - select the “Marketing and BizDev” tab for the baby boomers paper or the “Lending” tab for the ex-banker paper.