Apr. 13, 2010 at 5:15pm

The Wizard Says: Create Emotional Voltage

Posted by Kurt Jacobson in Differentiation is Key
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“Engage the imagination, then take it where you will. Where the mind has repeatedly journeyed, the body will surely follow. People go only to places they have already been in their minds.” – Roy H. Williams, The Wizard of Ads.  Read more

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Mar. 26, 2010 at 2:25pm

Flatter your way to market share

Posted by Kurt Jacobson in Talking to Members, What We're Up To
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Harvard Business Review cites research demonstrating that even “insincere” flattery can make customers more inclined to choose your brand. The research shows that given a choice, participants were more likely to choose a coupon from a store that had complimented them than from one that hadn't.

We have to assume that flattery from an ad, e-mail blast or TV commercial is “insincere” because it’s not a personal comment based on personal knowledge. So we can either get upset that insincere flattery works, which can seem so wrong, or we can use it to our advantage.

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Feb. 25, 2010 at 3:46pm

4 Reasons Why Being a Boss is Not an Olympic Event

Why sports analogies are often wrong for business

Posted by Kurt Jacobson in What We're Up To
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Conventional thinking can be counter-productive. We use sports analogies such as winning and losing. But in business, winning and losing aren’t absolutes, they are degrees. A particular financial institution doesn’t get 100 percent market share or 0 percent, but some degree of share. Read more

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Feb. 10, 2010 at 3:05pm

Preparing for your encounters with the death panel

Posted by Kurt Jacobson in The Power of Creativity
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I gave a talk to a group of university communicators who are surrounded with decision influencers who are well-intentioned, educated and opinionated… Read more

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Jan. 27, 2010 at 3:16pm

Francis Bacon, marketing communicator?

Posted by Kurt Jacobson in The Power of Creativity
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We think according to nature; we speak according to rules; but we act according to custom.

-- Francis Bacon

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Dec. 14, 2009 at 10:11am

What will people find when they search for you on Google maps?

Five reasons to update your Google Local Business listing

Posted by Kacie McKinney in Strategic Communications
Comments (1)

You have probably already seen your listing on Google Maps (the listing that pops up when you type your CU’s name or address into Google Maps).

But did you know that Google lets businesses update the listing? (It’s free! And only took me about 20 minutes.)

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Nov. 24, 2009 at 2:48pm

What's up with business lending? Eric asks a good question

Posted by Kacie McKinney in What We're Up To
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Eric King, VP of business services at Delta Community Credit Union, emailed to ask me about how credit unions are growing through business services. It occurs to me that not a lot is being written about that subject, though business services should be a very big deal as banks retreat from that level of lending.

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Oct. 22, 2009 at 12:44pm

Think before you bash

Posted by Kacie McKinney in Strategic Communications
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Bank-bashing ads. Smart move?

Psychologist Maya Bourdeau’s How We Influence Series brings an interesting perspective. (If you’re in the Seattle area, King County Chapter of Credit Unions is hosting a webinar Oct. 27).

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Sep. 23, 2009 at 3:38pm

National CU brand? Good luck!: Individual CUs must brand themselves differently–from banks and each other

Part 3

Posted by Kurt Jacobson in Strategic Communications
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In two recent posts I said a national credit union branding campaign would probably not work, and that national promotions might.

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Aug. 24, 2009 at 11:38am

National CU brand? Good luck!: If not a national CU brand, how about national promotions?

Part 2

Posted by Kurt Jacobson in Strategic Communications
Comments (2)

I recently said that a national CU branding campaign probably won’t work. See last post here. Those who left comments made some great points.

If a national branding campaign won’t work because a powerful differentiator will be hard to find, maybe an ongoing series of national promotional campaigns will work.

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Plenty more in the Archives