public relations for credit unions

BE THERE. BE MORE

WHAT IS PUBLIC RELATIONS?What is public relations? Of all the professions in financial

services, this may be the most difficult to define. Its ranks

include credit union personnel on the vice president level—

but the term is also often applied to temps hired to hand out

tchotchkes at trade show booths.

The profession has been around for a surprisingly long

time. It got its start in the early 1900s at the height of

the Progressive Era as a corporate means of defensively

countering muckraking journalism, and as a means of

advocacy for the far-reaching political reforms of the Theodore

Roosevelt and Woodrow Wilson administrations. Many credit

the first real demonstration of its power during World War I,

through the work of George Creel and his Committee on Public

Information, which helped mobilize the country to buy war

bonds, enlist soldiers and promote relief programs at home.

It became a permanent part of corporate structures during

the 1920s, pioneered by such figures as Edward J. Bernays,

who wrote the first book on the subject in 1923, “Crystalizing

Public Opinion.”

Today the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) defines

it this way: “Public Relations is a strategic communication

process that builds mutually beneficial relationships between

organizations and their publics.” As the organization explains

on its website, “This definition focuses on…a communications

process, one that is strategic in nature and emphasizing

‘mutually beneficial relationships.’ ‘Process’ is preferable to

‘management function,’ which can evoke ideas of control and

top-down, one-way communications. ‘Relationships’ relates to

public relations’ role in helping to bring together organizations

and individuals with their key stakeholders.”

Credit unions clearly see the importance of public relations

as PRSA defines it. A quick PRSA Member search using the

key words “credit unions” finds 80 “practitioners” enrolled

in the organization, working full time for credit unions or

industry organizations.

CO-OP Financial Services (www.co-opfs.org) does as well. The

provider of financial technology to credit unions also employs

a PRSA member (and a former local chapter President at that).

The company is not only dedicated to providing its credit

union clients with products, but with strategic counsel as

well, so that they can prosper in a highly competitive financial

services marketplace. This white paper is part of that ongoing

counseling initiative.

WH ITE PAPER

Public Relations for Credit Unions / 1

BEST PRACTICES: PUBLIC RELATIONS FOR CREDIT UNIONS

BE THERE. BE MOREPublic Relations for Credit Unions / 2

Having defined our subject first off, this paper will look at

some guiding principles of the trade—both strategic and

tactical—and then hear from six employees of six diverse

credit unions who are in the trenches, hard at work in daily

best practice of the art and science of public relations. We

will conclude by recommending two resources available to

CO-OP credit unions as they endeavor to bring together

their institution with their key stakeholders, in the form of

two-way communications.

STRATEGY AND TACTICS: SOME GUIDING PRINCIPLESThe PRSA definition began by calling public relations “a

strategic communication process.” Strategy is where

we should begin. Communications consultant James E.

Lukaszewski of New Brighton, Minn.-based The Lukaszewski

Group (www.e911.com) writes “Strategy is a mindset, a way

of thinking about decision making, work issues, even a wide

variety of life-related issues.” He quotes author Michel Robert

to further define strategy: “It identifies the key factors that

dictate the direction of an organization and is a process that

the organization’s management uses to set direction and

articulate their vision.”

Though public relations professionals have attained the

rank of vice president at credit unions, the number is rather

small. Fewer still have a seat at the management table to set

organizational direction. To start doing so, Lukaszewski offers

some advice on “How to Develop the Mind of a Strategist.” He

begins by pointing out “Keep in mind that we’re talking about

a management process, not a creative process. Creativity

and strategy are different.” He then offers five attributes of a

strategic mindset:

INCONSISTENCY: Relentlessly question all assumptions. The goal is always a different approach and identifying new options.

CONCLUSIVE APPROACHES: Seek the impact of a conclusive result, even though that result may only be one of a series of increments—often not exciting or even very visible.

SUBSTANTIVE INTENSITY: Focus on the most critical parts of a problem or opportunity through fact-finding, truth seeking and reality testing.

LAGGERSHIP (SIC), ENTROPY: Understand the priority and sequence of doing something and also of doing nothing. There are always a variety of options.

PRAGMATISM: Clarify, refine and carefully target; deal in facts, truth and reality-based information; and when possible, forecast results that can reasonably be achieved.

If strategy and creativity (the tactical exercise of

communication) are different, the latter is also guided by a

handful of basic principles. Perhaps the most time-tested of

all are “The 7 C’s of Communication,” originally formulated in

1952 by Scott M. Cutlip and Allen H. Center, and still a part

of their still-authoritative text, “Effective Public Relations.” In

communications, they call for:

CREDIBILITY: A climate of belief—built on the performance of the institution.

CONTEXT: A communications program must square with the realities of its environment.

CONTENT: The message must have meaning for the receiver.

CLARITY: The message must be put in simple terms.

CONTINUITY AND CONSISTENCY: (First of all, note the difference with the first bullet for strategic attributes.) What Cutlip and Center mean here is: Communication is an unending process. Consistent exercise of communication leads to both factual and attitude learning.

CHANNELS: Established channels should be used. (What about the brave new world of social media? Yes, indeed, because social media qualifies as “channels the receiver uses and respects.” True enough of Millennials—everyone, in fact, it seems by now. As we shall see, social media communication—due to its multi-discipline application—is often outside the direct day-to-day function of the public relations practitioner.)

CAPABILITY OF AUDIENCE: Communications are most effective when they require the least effort on the part of the recipient.

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BEST PRACTICES: THE EXPERIENCE OF SIX CREDIT UNIONSWe have a definition of public relations. We have guiding

principles as to its strategic and tactical expression. What

about the daily grind of its practice? CO-OP Financial Services

spoke with credit unions from Alaska to Virginia to learn some

best practices from actual experience.

One thing that ought to be said right away: You don’t have to

be the largest credit union in the world to have a dedicated

public relations resource. As a matter of fact, the world’s

largest credit union, Navy Federal CU, does have a public

relations staff member. But so does Denali Alaskan FCU, at

about half the total assets under control that an institution

needs to qualify for “the billionaires club.”

Credit union public relations practitioners who kindly lent their

time to this white paper include:

Jeanette Mack, Manager, Corporate

Communications, Navy Federal CU, Vienna,

Virginia ($60.5 billion assets, 5.1 million

members)

Glenn Birch, Public and Media Relations

Director, Virginia CU, Richmond, Virginia

($2.6 billion assets, 237,000 members)

Jessica Emert, Director of Community

& Public Relations, ORNL FCU, Oak Ridge,

Tennessee ($1.57 billion assets,

164,000 members)

Clarissa Rodriguez, Assistant Vice President,

Corporate Communications, Security

Service FCU, San Antonio, Texas ($8.1 billion

assets, 990,200 members)

Robin McKenzie, Senior Vice President,

Marketing & Communications, Redwood CU,

Santa Rosa, California ($2.44 billion assets,

240,000 members)

Keith Fernandez, Vice President, Corporate

Communications and Development, Denali

Alaskan FCU, Anchorage, Alaska ($550

million assets, 60,000 members)

“Credit unions,” says Virginia CU’s Birch, “have three distinct

advantages in public relations—credibility, structure and focus.

We are member-owned, so we are focused on our members’

success. They trust us as advisors. These are tremendous

assets. We offer regular financial services for regular people—

and this is a great way to carry your story to the media. It is

immediately relatable and much easier to get across.”

With such public relations advantages at their disposal, some

common themes and practices cropped up as our credit unions

sought to capitalize.

Organize Like an Agency—Or Hire One

Several of the credit unions we spoke to have only one public

relations professional who does “A little bit of everything,”

says Emert of ORNL FCU. With limited bandwidth, though,

Emert’s main focus is on community and media relations.

ORNL FCU does, however, make use of a public relations

agency, Ackermann PR of Knoxville, Tennessee. The public

relations firm has helped the credit union with the media

training of its executives and subject matter experts. Redwood

CU is another credit union that makes use of outside public

relations counsel—in their case, a sole proprietor.

For credit unions with larger staffs or handling the function

entirely internally, Fernandez of Denali Alaskan FCU

recommends “setting up the department like an agency—

with each team member responsible for specific ‘clients.’”

Fernandez himself previously worked at an Anchorage-based

public relations firm. In Denali Alaskan FCU’s case, Fernandez

has four Marketing Officers who handle distinct public relations

tasks, such as their speaker bureau, branch and youth

outreach, financial education and community outreach, and

digital and social media.


One thing that ought to be said right away: You don’t have to be the largest credit union in the world to have a dedicated public relations resource.

BE THERE. BE MORE

Planning to Ensure Integration

The credit unions we spoke to create an annual plan for

their public relations, and often draw up detailed plans on

an opportunistic, project-by-project basis. The goal is to

ensure that public relations “fits into the overall targets of the

institution,” says Birch. “Integration is important.”

Planning can include setting specific tactical goals, as

Redwood CU does. “We create goals for the number of news

releases/pitches and track the number of press pick-ups

and level of coverage/exposure,” says McKenzie. “We qualify

our coverage using a simple rating system that allows us to

differentiate brief mentions from stories where we are more

prominently featured or are the focus of the article.”

“Public relations does play a major role in our total marketing

and business development strategy,” says Rodriguez of

Security Service FCU. “The corporate communications,

marketing and business development departments all work

very closely together. We meet weekly to discuss projects

and determine how we can assist each other with current

promotional and community outreach projects and special

events. This helps us maximize our resources.”

ROI—Still Tough

In spite of careful planning, the credit union practitioners

we spoke to still find a perennial public relations difficulty—

measuring results and return on investment.

“Measuring social media results is especially hard,” says

Emert. “We do, however, track attendance at events we

promote. In terms of media coverage, we track the number of

placements and compare it to what it would have cost us if we

had run an advertisement.”

“We track and report monthly what is measureable—news

releases, pitches, coverage—and compare year-to-date results

with our goals,” says McKenzie. “The bottom line is that at

Redwood Credit Union, we take our public relations program

and efforts seriously, because it is a vital component to

building our reputation and trust within the communities we

serve—both locally and in the industry. We continue to grow

substantially in our markets, and the earned media from our

public relations efforts has been an important contributor to

our growth and success.”

Social Media—A Shared Resource

In the 21st century social media

platforms—Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn

and many others—have seemingly leapt into a major

communications channel overnight. The degree to which social

media communications should be under the management of

the public relations professional is a matter of debate within

the profession broadly speaking. There is no doubt public

relations must be integrated into social media communications,

just as it must be integrated into all corporate initiatives.

In fact, with most of the credit unions we spoke to, the public

relations professional is not the specific social media director.

This seems to be owing to the fact of social media’s usefulness

across many corporate disciplines. As Navy Federal CU’s Mack

says, “Social media is a communications channel of value

to marketing, corporate communications and community

relations, as well as member services.”

Birch notes, “Depending on the situation, social media and

public relations can be very different, though they certainly

need to be cooperative. Social media is an excellent tool for

reaching out to members, particularly in time of emergency.”

At ORNL FCU, social media is handled by the credit union’s

creative director, though Emert is an active source of content.

“Social media is a great way to reach a lot of people, and a

lot of different types of people, especially young consumers,”

says Emert. “You do have to be careful not to come across

as selling something. As always, we try to provide helpful

information on these platforms.”


Social media is a communications channel of value to marketing, corporate communications and community relations, as well as member services.Jeanette Mack Manager, Corporate Communications Navy Federal CU

BE THERE. BE MORE

For Mack, social media points to the public relations trend

of being your own news outlet, in addition to working with

outside news platforms. “Being your own content publisher is

part of what is needed to up your game today—or be left out,”

says Mack. “The great thing is that when you are forced to

come up with that content, you are forced to find what your

story is—you find out what you stand for and then tell it.”

McKenzie agrees: “Content and engagement is king. Content

must be timely and relevant. It’s a key part of what builds

your reputation today. And, because social media is a 24/7

channel, we post often—though there is a balance to how

often we post, because posting too often can turn people

off. Engagement is critical, and effective content, timing and

number of posts all play a role in success.”

Again, the key is remembering that public relations must

integrate with other arms of the credit union. As Birch says,

“It’s a matter of holding it all together—public relations, social

media, marketing, financial services, etc. A communications

program isn’t what P.R. does, or Marketing does, we as an

institution do it.”

“Incident” Communications— Not Crisis Communications

All credit unions have a business recovery program. As

financial institutions, all must be ready for events that would

be extremely rare in any other type of business—such as an

armed robbery.

Yet, the credit unions we spoke with said that “crisis

communications” is really not a very good word for

handling—due to good planning—the “unexpected that is not

so unexpected.”

“Prepared messaging is part of business recovery planning,”

says Birch. “Most crises don’t rise to the name—they are

incidents—but need to be handled the same way. Incident

communications is really regular blocking and tackling. A

website can go down. Nobody’s hurt, nothing’s damaged, but

people are affected and you need to communicate.”

“‘Crises’ are fortunately not frequent—but ‘incidents’ are,”

says McKenzie. “For instance, a service complaint on social

media is an incident, and one we deem important to have

a timely and effective response. It’s crucial we have a plan

for that, because our reputation and credibility are at stake.

It can be tricky if a member posts a complaint after hours.

Most credit unions are not staffed 24/7. We are diligent about

monitoring and responding to ensure any issues are addressed

immediately and effectively.”

ORNL FCU has a crisis communications plan in place, and it

provides for a wide variety of scenarios. “Our plan includes

a protocol for determining the extent of a crisis, designated

spokespeople and chain of communication to different

platforms and publics,” says Emert. “We have contingencies

and messaging for data breaches, robberies, natural disasters,

branch closures and other potential key risks. You need to

be conscious of what’s around you. You need to update your

plan frequently. And, you need to watch others and learn from

others—what they did right and what they did wrong.”

A crisis can have its upside, too, as Emert explains: “The data

breaches that seemed to begin with Target in December 2013

gave us the opportunity to share with the community what we

were doing to protect their accounts and what they can do to

protect themselves.”


Content and engagement is king. Content must be timely and relevant. It’s a key part of what builds your reputation today. And, because social media is a 24/7 channel, we post often—though there is a balance to how often we post, because posting too often can turn people off. Engagement is critical, and effective content, timing and number of posts all play a role in success.Robin McKenzie Senior Vice President, Marketing & Communications Redwood CU

BE THERE. BE MORE

Sometimes routine business errors can come to the attention

of members or the media. In such cases, “You need to

be ready to communicate quickly—provide a complete

explanation of what happened, and how you fixed it,” says

Fernandez. “It is also important to provide your staff with

talking points—they’re often the last people you think of—so

they can communicate effectively with members.”

Don’t Forget Your Staff

That last point about staff is worth its own best practice

subhead. Communicating to staff is important—but public

relations is a two-way form of communications. Staff also

needs to be heard.

“We are careful to keep in touch with our branches,” says

Fernandez. “We don’t want to be guilty of running off and

doing something without checking with them. We need their

front line input. I take the ‘communication’ of ‘corporate

communications’ very seriously. We need to treat our

colleagues as a ‘public’ as much as we do our members.”

Media Relations—Still a Core Function

Public relations was originally thought of by many as “press

agentry.” It has certainly progressed well beyond that, yet

media relations—both handling inquiries from the press

and proactively reaching out to the media—remains a core

function of the practitioner.

The credit unions interviewed for this paper, in fact, have

a surprising level of interaction with all forms of media,

especially television requests to visit branches. “People in line

at a teller window make for good video when TV stations are

doing an economic-based story,” says Fernandez. “They like

to interview members at such times. We work with the media

to help them speak with members if they are comfortable

speaking with a reporter. Of course, we work with the media

not to approach them prior to completing the transaction they

came into the branch to do.”

Fernandez notes that all credit union employees know to

route media inquiries to him. He will then either handle the

spokesperson duties himself, or line up the appropriate

subject matter expert, according to a chart/roster the credit

union maintains. Fernandez provides talking points to the

staff member prior to being interviewed. All the credit unions

we spoke to follow these protocols, and Fernandez takes the

additional—and not unusual—step of being present during all

media interviews.

Should credit unions accept all media inquiries? Emert notes,

“You don’t have to accept every opportunity.” Still, “We can’t

be picky with what type of media we are included in.” Again,

public relations is an integrated corporate function—if the

opportunity aligns with corporate goals, it should be accepted

readily. Then the planning—already in place—kicks into a

specific case of preparation.

ORNL FCU, Redwood CU and Navy Federal CU have all

performed media training for media spokespeople. As Mack

notes, “Cultivating your subject matter experts through

media training is the next level of corporate storytelling. We

identify our SME’s and then help them hone their storytelling

abilities. The key is to provide talking points and then training,

training, training!”

McKenzie is of a like mind: “We prepare talking points, and

when the press deadline allows, we prepare our internal

interviewees via mock interview sessions, followed by the live

interview with the media.”

One important way to prepare for a media interview is to

“become familiar with the reporter, media outlet and relevant

past news coverage,” according to a “Media Training” paper

prepared by Wetherhead Communications of Roswell, Georgia,

for the 2013 PRSA International Conference. McKenzie

believes this should be a constant task of the public relations

professional—not just when an interview is pending. “Build

relationships with the media,” says McKenzie. “They are

important people in your community. Don’t be afraid to

reach out to reporters and editors; educate them about your

business, get to know them and, because the news industry

is very fluid these days, be ready to start all over with a new

person when they move on.”


BE THERE. BE MORE

Clearly, the public relations professional cannot simply be a

gatekeeper, waiting for the media to come beating a pathway

to their doorstep. Outreach is critical—but how? Utah-based

public relations consultant Michael Smart suggests at least the

following key points in pitching the media:

GET ON THE MEDIA’S RADAR: Find key outlets that move your publics; find the right reporter within that outlet, and begin a relationship.

DETERMINE WHAT TO PITCH: Create newsworthy angles.

MAKE THE PITCH: Make your story easy to cover; do the legwork for the reporter. (Remember “capability of audience”—the seventh C of the 7 C’s of Communication).

APPLY UPDATED P.R. WRITING TECHNIQUES: Be brutally brief. (Remember what they told you about writing your resume—nobody wants to read your book.)

CREATE COMPELLING CONTENT: • Offer a story people actually want to read. • Provide multimedia: Images, video if you have it. • Provide sources: Experts and “real people.”

Finally, Emert reminds us not to forget the credit union trade

media as an important public. “The trades let our colleagues

know of our progressive, community-involved character,” says

Emert. “They also let our colleagues in on possible ideas they

can pursue themselves—and of course, we can learn from our

colleagues as well through the trades.”

It’s Unanimous—Community Involvement Is the Best P.R.

Every credit union we spoke to is deeply involved in

community outreach, and it plays a central role in each

institution’s public relations program.

When asked for a single best practice, Rodriguez responded:

“I would suggest focusing on community outreach. It’s

probably the best and simplest way to promote your brand and

establish your organization as a concerned corporate citizen.

It’s also a great way to increase visibility and helps build a

positive corporate brand identity. After all, ‘People Helping

People’ is the very core of the credit union movement.”

The opportunities here are as broad and diverse as the nation

in which these credit unions are based.

Rodriguez’s Security Service FCU does community outreach

year-round though its Volunteer Corps program, among

others. The program is made up of more than 800

employees, who continuously help community organizations

to feed families, build houses, serve military families and

other activities.

ORNL FCU supported

the 2014 “Shop for

Miracles” program

sponsored by CUNA

and Credit Unions for

Kids. Navy Federal CU

focuses on the needs

of military personnel

and families, who spend

long periods separated

from one another.

Redwood CU has had a strong relationship with the Redwood

Empire Food Bank. “Our partnership provides us mutually

beneficial media opportunities, too,” says McKenzie. “For

example, we recently got called to be the featured company

at the food bank when they were contacted by KGO-TV,

a San Francisco ABC affiliate, who wanted to do a live

broadcast there during Thanksgiving. We were able to have

our team of volunteers featured on the broadcast, and we

were interviewed about our relationship with REFB and our

commitment to solving hunger issues in our community.

So, the lesson is—don’t just write checks, find a way to

truly partner with local nonprofits and community groups,

which can include creating earned media stories and

opportunities together.”

Virginia CU is committed to being a leader of financial

education in the Richmond area it serves. “We have a

financial education director on our staff,” says Birch. “We are

continually out in the community conducting financial literacy

seminars, such as how to manage personal budgets. That has

been very important to our credit union and our P.R.”

Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals


BE THERE. BE MORE

It’s all very logical, and fits perfectly with the second of the

“7 C’s”: context (a program must square with reality). “We

authentically made financial education for our community a

top priority, and that has worked out very well for us,” says

Birch. “It fits so neatly with our purpose, what we are about

and supports those who we are trying to serve.”

The credit union doesn’t stop there. It also supports its local

Children’s Miracle Network Hospital—Children’s Hospital

of Richmond at Virginia Commonwealth University. “Our

employees’ support for the hospital is supplemented with

a program tied to the success of the VCU Rams basketball

teams,” says Birch. “We add to our support for every assist

the Rams make. The program, called VACU Assists, is

helping our community support initiatives get noticed.”

Millennials—Part of the Total Picture, But Also a Unique Public

Many of the best practices and initiatives described in this

white paper incorporate outreach to the future of the credit

union movement—the Millennial generation, consumers born

after 1980. But this is a public that must also be addressed

uniquely.

Navy Federal CU has invested in third-party research to

better understand this consumer group. As Mack says,

“We need to know where they are in their financial lives—

particularly as Millennials make up a very large percentage

of the military. We have been able to utilize this data in

many different ways, including pitching stories, which has

resulted in earned media.”

Emert has already acknowledged the importance of social

media in reaching Millennials. Mobile communications is

another platform commonly associated with this generation.

The experience of Virginia CU in this area is a testimony to

the need for “continuity and consistency” in communication.

“When we initially launched mobile deposit ahead of other

financial institutions in our market, we pitched the story to

the media without much traction,” says Birch. “But later, the

media did come back to us—they recognized it was a story.

So, outreach is important. It will come back to your benefit.”

CO-OP AS A RESOURCEIn this survey of public relations best practices, there are at

least two in which CO-OP Financial Services can function as a

key resource for credit unions as they seek to “up their game

today.” Specifically, CO-OP has programs that can help credit

unions enhance their community involvement programs and

address the need to communicate effectively to Millennials.

Miracle Match by CO-OP

During 2013, more than 150 credit unions participated in

Miracle Match by CO-OP, raising $3 million for Children’s

Miracle Network Hospitals, $1 million of which was matching

funds from CO-OP.

The credit union fundraisers benefited 98 different children’s

hospitals in 34 states. More than 100 fundraisers were

first-time events by the sponsoring credit union and nearly

half of the participating credit unions—about 70—were new

to CO-OP’s Miracle Match program.

The 2014 program figures are expected to be similar to 2013.

Credit unions interested in applying for match grants in 2015

may do so by visiting www.co-opfs.org/miracle-match.

“Empowering People. Amplifying Dreams”

CO-OP’s “Empowering People. Amplifying Dreams” initiative is

designed to help Millennials develop greater financial literacy,

including education on credit unions.

Empowering People. Amplifying Dreams is an integrated

content marketing and social media campaign developed

on behalf of CO-OP clients to help consumers—especially

Millennials—better understand how credit unions empower

individuals to achieve their financial goals. It is also intended

as a resource for all credit unions—they are welcome to use it

for their own outreach.

The content from CO-OP’s Empowering People. Amplifying

Dreams campaign focuses on the “how-to’s” of establishing a

long-term, secure financial future. This includes education on

the products and services of credit unions as well as on the

mission and values of the entire movement.


To learn more, visit www.co-opfs.org,

email [email protected] or call 800.782.9042, option 2.

BE THERE. BE MORE

CO-OP provides content on its own platforms, including the

campaign website and three consumer social media channels,

as well as through editorial and advertising on digital channels

managed by online publishers (such as bloggers) and business

partners. The content is intended to be “portable”—available

for repurposing or linking-to by these additional sources.

The Empowering People. Amplifying Dreams website at

http://co-opcreditunions.org serves as the initiative’s content

hub, and provides convenient access to the CO-OP Credit

Unions Twitter feed—@innovatebanking—in addition to icons

leading to Facebook and Tumblr.

The website includes a wide variety of content for consumers

considering their financial options, including a locator

for credit unions, a growing library of “People Like You”

testimonials from Millennial credit union members and a blog.

CREDIT UNION PUBLIC RELATIONS FOR A NEW CENTURYAs described at the beginning, the origin of public relations

goes back to the beginning of the last century. Here we are in

the next century, and public relations seems to be hitting its

stride at last in the credit union movement, whether it’s media

relations, community outreach or government advocacy (an

important element of the daily tasking of the practitioners at

Virginia CU and ORNL FCU).

A key asset of public relations is that it can develop

meaningful content via news and feature stories in a wide

variety of earned platforms. The credibility that comes

with it is crucial for any credit union as it competes in the

financial services marketplace.

So, what will public relations look like in the credit union

industry going forward? Perhaps really not much different

than in the past. As Emert says, “The best practice of all is

to plan and be proactive. Be consistent in messaging. Be

honest and transparent. That’s how you build trust—without

trust we wouldn’t exist.”

About the Author

Bill Prichard is Senior Manager, Public Relations and Corporate Communications, for CO-OP Financial

Services, Rancho Cucamonga, California (www.co-opfs.org). Prichard holds the Accredited in Public

Relations (APR) designation from PRSA, of which he has been a member since 1989. He is a former

President of the Orange County (California) chapter of PRSA (2002), and a recipient of its highest honor,

the Distinguished Service Award (2007). With CO-OP since 2009, Prichard can be reached at

[email protected] and (800) 782-9042, ext. 3450.


public relations for credit unions

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