Cupcakes, smoothies, fro yo, and noodles. What do all of these foods have in common (other than the fact that they are all delicious)? Many of the establishments that make and sell these foods are like rabbits. You see one, and then, pretty soon, you see many more just like it cropping up in neighborhoods all around town – all with slight variations of the same name, menu, and even logo and color scheme. These are all food trends that are all trying to play the same game.
A billboard advertisement I saw in my hometown the other day was clearly trying to simulate a national noodle chain with its pithy punch line and swirly font, and it got me thinking about sustainability and marketing.
QR codes, flash mobs, iPads and “coffee shop branches.” These are all trends, too…trends that a lot of credit unions have smartly employed in their marketing and member experience efforts.
Pursuing a trend doesn’t necessarily mean there isn’t room for business continuity and sustainability. However, every business – whether it is a cupcake shop or a credit union - has to be incredibly smart and deliberate about its plans or, like most trends, it will end up going the way of the tofu ice cream shop.
How can you leverage trends successfully?
Step One: The most important thing to remember when pursuing any trend is making sure that the trend fits your credit union’s strategic goals, culture, and target audience(s). If you are doing it merely because you’ve seen a bunch of other credit unions doing it (like the restaurants above), then the trend won’t be a lever for success.
Step Two: As your credit union is serving that next cup of gourmet coffee, keep your eyes on the horizon. The next trends are already on their way, and you need to be ready to adapt your service model and product suite when appropriate to capitalize on those trends while keeping true to your credit union’s identity and strategic goals.
Step Three: Stay tuned for Part II of this series for more on what your credit union can learn from successful restaurants. You may want to dress up for this one and call for a reservation.
Amanda
MarketMatch solves business problems for credit unions and banks through marketing by providing FOCUS, generating MOMENTUM, and creating measurable RESULTS. We are the only marketing firm to offer an ROI guarantee for our clients.
Contact me to learn how MarketMatch can help you with your marketing efforts, whether it is through marketing strategy, branding or rebranding, budget planning, new product development, and much more. Learn more about all of our client services by clicking here.
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