Nov. 3, 2008 at 4:01pm

What if…you actually went through with it?

Posted by Kacie McKinney in Differentiation is Key, Special Events, The Power of Creativity
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“What if…”

The start to a question that could lead to an exciting and brilliant marketing and public relations campaign and endless possibilities…if you let it.

During a typical brainstorming, many ideas start out like this:

“I have an idea. What if we _______?”

Unfortunately, most of these ideas end up in the trash and are transported to the marketing dump, left to decompose and never be thought of again. All because of the other “what if…” questions, such as:

“What if the CEO doesn’t like our idea?”

“What if no one shows up?”

What if you found a way to make those seemingly crazy ideas come to life? What if you took chances and made it happen? What if you decided to go through with one of your unique ideas and it generated new members and national media coverage?

Seattle Metropolitan Credit Union decided to take a chance with its “what if…” question and made it a huge success. When planning what they would do for their next marketing event, they thought “What if we hand out cash to people on the streets of Seattle?”

What may seem like an impossible idea to some ended up generating national and local radio exposure, national print coverage including Credit Union Journal and Credit Union Times and more than 200 spots on broadcast television across the country, including CNN and all the local Seattle networks including KING5, KOMO, KIRO, KONG, KCPQ, NWCN and others.

At the event at its downtown branch, credit union employees asked people, “What if we gave you $10? What would you do for somebody else?” They gave the cash to the people who shared their ideas for the $10 on a YouTube video.

The aim of the event was to educate the community about the credit union's 7 principles campaign, with the focus of its principle of giving back to the community. It also aimed to educate potential members about the difference between credit unions and banks.

But instead of an everyday event, the credit union wanted to do something to cause a stir...so it did.

A credit union handing out cash with no obligation attached!? INSANE! Most would fear the possibilities and dread what their board (and/or others) would say.

Not Seattle Metropolitan Credit Union. They took a chance and went through with their idea, and now credit unions from around the country are calling and asking them for advice.

The credit union would never have gotten the same amount of publicity for a re-used event idea or a simple advertising campaign alone.

You can do it too!

Here’s what you need to do for your next campaign:

• Step 1: Think of something you have always wanted your company to achieve
• Step 2: Throw out any excuse about why you haven’t done it
• Step 3: Get a team together and start implementing your idea
• Step 4: Watch your idea come to life
• Step 5: Smile and bask in the glow of your credit union’s success

Take a chance. Start figuring out a way to go through with that idea you’ve been too busy, too tired or too fearful to try.

Congratulations to Jill Vicente, Andy Wright and the rest of the Seattle Metropolitan Credit Union team for going through with their idea and making their event a huge success.

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