WMG News & Events

Weber Marketing Group will attend BAI’s Retail Delivery Conference in Las Vegas on November 13-15.

The annual conference is for financial services executives and senior managers who want to learn creative approaches to growing their business in a non-growth environment. Attendees will hear the visionary perspectives of experts from both inside and outside the financial industry.

EHS Design, Momentum, L9 and Captive Indoor Media will be sharing a booth together with Weber Marketing.

The conference will be held at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino. For more information about the conference or to register, click here.

In a campaign to attract new members, USA Federal Credit Union in San Diego, California, launched “Spike’s Scratch-and-Win Sweepstakes” in September. The two month goal of 400 net new members was surpassed in the first two weeks of the campaign, and after four weeks, USA Federal has added over 1,200 net new members.

The promotion is a coordinated multimedia effort that includes advertising, direct mail, online marketing and one-day sales events. Weber Marketing, USA Federal’s brand development partner since 2002, came up with the member acquisition strategy and created all materials for the campaign.

The campaign features a tough but loveable bulldog named Spike, who encourages non-members to join the credit union and enjoy special offers. Spike invites people to “Join today, save big and win cool stuff!”

Spike’s “Scratch-and-Win” tickets were mailed to San Diego area residents with opportunities to instantly win HD TV’s, iPods, Nintendo Wiis, cold hard cash, a $2,500 dream vacation and the grand prize, a Harley Davidson motorcycle.

Members can play along too. Spike has a “$1,000 Big Bones Drawing” for those members who refer friends and family.

Rob Folsom, Chief Strategy Officer at USA Federal, says everything is going great. “There is a buzz surrounding this campaign like nothing else I can remember in my history with the credit union!"

To get the attention of staff and emphasize the importance of the campaign, USA Federal’s CEO Mary Cunningham kicked off the major membership drive in full costume on a Harley Davidson.

“Everyone likes Spike,” says Jeffry Pilcher, Creative Director for Weber Marketing. “He makes the membership message fun, so he grabs people’s attention whether they’re 16 or 61.”

Spike has made live appearances at USA Federal’s one-day sales events, where people have flocked to branches for special offers such as 7% certificates of deposit and 5.99% auto loans. Radio stations have broadcasted directly from USA Federal’s locations during the one-day events.
The campaign is scheduled to run through the end of the year.

For more information, please contact Jeffry Pilcher, Creative Director at Weber Marketing Group, at 206-340-6111.

This fall, Weber Marketing Group completed its 50th radio spot.

Over the past few years, the company has noticed an increase in the number of financial institutions interested in radio.

“In 2000-2001, Weber Marketing only did a handful of radio spots,” says Jeffry Pilcher, Creative Director at Weber Marketing. “But with credit unions expanding their charters, more and more of them are pursuing community marketing strategies that include radio advertising.”

“For credit unions looking at broadcast advertising, radio is perfect,” observes Josh Streufert, Weber Marketing’s Associate Creative Director.
“It’s a great medium to create an expressive voice and personality for your brand.”

Streufert also acknowledges an important difference between TV and radio.

“With TV, it’s all about the size of your budget. Bigger budget, more options,” he says. “But radio is ‘theater for the mind.’ It’s all about creativity and ideas. There are no sets, no actors, no costumes. So budget isn’t that important.”

All 50 of Weber Marketing’s radio spots were for financial institutions, and 11 won awards from top financial industry organizations.

Clients include:

• Advantis Credit Union
• American Eagle Federal Credit Union
• Anchor Bank
• Arizona State Credit Union
• Horizon Bank
• KeyPoint Credit Union
• Numerica Credit Union
• OnPoint Community Credit Union
• Red Canoe Credit Union
• Utah First Credit Union
• Vantus Bank
• Veridian Credit Union
• Washington State Employees Credit Union

Weber Marketing will attend the Firefighters’ National Credit Union Summit in Albuquerque, New Mexico, October 10-13.

The conference brings together credit unions serving the firefighter credit union community. Attendees will be exploring a variety of subjects of key interest specifically to firefighter credit unions.

Los Angeles Firemen’s Credit Union, a client of Weber Marketing, will also attend the annual event.

Newport News Shipbuilding Employees’ Credit Union in Newport News, Virginia will officially change its name to BayPort Credit Union in November, 2007.

When Newport News Shipbuilding Employees’ CU was organized in 1928, only shipyard employees were eligible for membership. Today, the entire 1.7 million population of the greater Hampton Roads and Chesapeake Bay community is eligible to join the $950 million credit union.

According to President and CEO George Dudley, “Our original sponsor, Newport News Shipbuilding, was purchased by Northrop Grumman in 2001. Research showed that the old name was often seen as too long, confusing and unwelcoming by some existing and potential members.

“The name BayPort is more inclusive of the Chesapeake Bay area we serve, and welcomes our communities to join our great financial cooperative,” added Dudley. Weber Marketing worked with a joint team of credit union Board members and management to conduct market research, carefully evaluate hundreds of names and develop a new brand program.

Mark Weber, CEO of Weber Marketing said, “After researching the brand equity that Newport News Shipbuilding Employees’ CU has built over the past 80 years, we knew the new name had to capture the spirit of their shipbuilding legacy and their communities’ pride in the Chesapeake Bay region. It also needed to welcome a new generation of consumers looking for a better financial experience. The credit union chose BayPort because it reflects their connections to the many port cities of the Greater Hampton Roads area while providing a link to their Newport News heritage.”

Newport News Shipbuilding Employees’ CU conducted a variety of focus groups among members, potential members and staff to gather feedback and direction in building the new name. The name change is part of a simultaneous rebranding project led by Weber Marketing. The new brand will include two TV spots and a rollout campaign scheduled for January 1, 2008.

“We appreciate the expertise provided by Weber Marketing to help us build a new name and brand that will carry us forward for years to come,” said Monte Crowl, VP Marketing at Newport News Shipbuilding Employees’ CU.

“When we revealed the name and the focus of our new brand story to our staff, they erupted and cheered in a standing ovation,” added Dudley.

First Federal Bank is now Vantus Bank

Another Weber Marketing client, First Federal Bank in Sioux City, Iowa officially changed its name to Vantus Bank on September 4.

As stated in an article in the Sioux City Journal, the new name is aimed at differentiating the bank from multiple competing institutions in the Sioux City area using the “First Federal” name. “Vantus” is derived from the word “advantage,” and speaks to the unique benefits Vantus offers its customers. The name is highly distinctive and differentiates it from other banks.

According to Michael Dosland, President and CEO of Vantus Bank, “We are pleased with our customer and employee responses to our new name. Our new identity is important to our future plans to expand customer services and banking locations.”

For more information on naming and branding, contact Randy Schultz at 206-826-0322.

Red Canoe Credit Union in Longview, Washington won nearly all of the medals in its asset category at the Washington State Credit Union League’s annual Spectrum Awards Dinner on September 12.

The $423 million credit union hired Weber Marketing in the fall of 2006 to develop their new name and brand program. Weyerhaeuser Employees Credit Union changed their name to Red Canoe CU in early 2007.

In an article appearing in the Credit Union Times, the win was celebrated as a vindication for the controversy surrounding the credit union’s decision to rename itself ‘Red Canoe.’

Red Canoe CU won six Spectrum Awards for the following:

• 2006 Annual Report
• Red Canoe website design
• In-house creative campaign
• Red Canoe name change announcement radio ad
• The Shareholder, their national newsletter
• New name and branch launch

The credit union also received two honorable mentions for their follow-up radio spot and regional newsletter.