By Mario Toneguzzi, Calgary Herald; Postmedia News

Budget carefully and stick to a plan, university student advises her peers. Kelsey MacDonald, a fourth-year student at University of Alberta, hunts through financial books in the University of Calgary library. Through her daily blog MacDonald hopes to make financial planning and budgeting fun for young people.

Photography by: Ted Rhodes, Calgary Herald, Postmedia News, Calgary Herald; Postmedia News

Budgeting and financial planning are probably the last things students want to think about as they head back to school.

After all, they're really not fun and exciting topics for the 17-to 25-year-old crowd.

But it's something they need to seriously pay attention to so they don't fall into financial pitfalls they will end up paying for beyond their school days.

"Probably one of the biggest troubles we face is the fact that we love instant gratification. We love spending money. Impulse buying. And that's something that I believe we really need to control," says Kelsey MacDonald, a 20-year-old University of Alberta student in her fourth year studying human ecology while majoring in fashion.

The Calgarian is also spokesperson for Servus Credit Union's Young & Free program, which is creating a dialogue about financial issues and management among the 17-to-25 set.

"It's really important to have a plan. If you have a plan then it's way easier to stay on top of your finances and you can plan ahead. Will your summer job cover all your expenses for the year or will you need to get a part-time job part way through the year?" says MacDonald, who figures it will cost her roughly $10,000 to attend school in Edmonton this year.

"You just have to plan ahead and know what your expenses will be -- whether that will be tuition, rent, utilities, transportation, food -- and you can't forget the unexpected expenses because that always happens and that tends to be what will mess you up."

But planning and budgeting isn't an easy topic. MacDonald says it's "scary" for those in her generation.

They've tried it before but they don't stick to it. Through a daily blog and videos, MacDonald is hoping to reach her peers and make financial planning and budgeting and other financial issues fun -- or at least interesting.

"You have to look for any way that you can to save money and keep track of your receipts," adds MacDonald.

"If you keep track of your receipts, then you can look at them on a weekly basis and realize that you might be spending a little too much on lattes or things that might not be significant enough that you should be spending your money on. So it's not only a good habit to get into budgeting wise for now but also for the rest of your life."

A recent poll for RBC indicated the majority of post-secondary students (57 per cent) said they plan to work during the school year to help pay the bills.

Three-quarters of students (77 per cent) believe working part-time during school will impact their grades, while six in 10 expect to graduate with debt and 74 per cent don't use a budget. The survey found debt management and budgeting are challenging for students, with just half regularly monitoring where their money is going (52 per cent).

"The student experience brings new-found responsibilities like keeping good grades, living on your own and balancing a budget, which can be very stressful," says Kavita Joshi, director of student banking for RBC.

"Proper saving habits can lead to working fewer hours, thereby freeing up more time for studying and enjoying the university or college experience."

A TD Canada Trust Education and Finances Survey says students in Alberta are the most likely in Canada to stress about being able to afford the basics like rent, tuition and food.

It found that 28 per cent of students are stressed and another 31 per cent are anxious that it will be a challenge for them to manage.

The survey also revealed that 41 per cent of Alberta students are spending more money than they save.

Sixty-eight per cent project they will graduate with some debt and 20 per cent predict they will owe more than $25,000.

"Amassing enough money for post-secondary education can be a challenge, but it is much more economical to save ahead than to borrow at the last minute," says Carrie Russell, senior vice-president at TD Canada Trust. "That said, if students are heading to school in the near future and have not put away enough, they should pursue all potential avenues available, such as a part-time job, scholarships, bursaries and assistantships."

Kelsey McColgan, 21, is going into her third year at Mount Royal University's Bachelor of Communications program, majoring in information design. For this semester, she is spending $3,100 for a full-course load.

"Probably one of the biggest tips I think, especially for first-year students, is to pack your lunch every day. You'll save tons of money if you don't have to buy a lunch at school every day," she says.

"Take the bus because you have to pay for it anyway (through student fees). Or carpool.

"Budget your time wisely. I've held down a full-time job at Staples while going to school full time. So it is possible. Sometimes you have to make sacrifices in different areas of your life, but it is possible if you budget your time well enough. I always have a plan of my whole week before I start the week of when my homework time is, when I have to work and that's how I'm able to pay for school because I wouldn't be able to if I wasn't working. I would have a ton of student loans. I don't have any. It's all paid for."

McColgan's friend Amanda Howard, 23, is also in her third year in the same program. For the first two years, she had student loans.

"I found it was just enough money . . . It's just enough money to get you by and it seems it goes really fast. But for the next two years I've been saving and I'll be paying for them myself," she says.

"I'm a hardcore saver and also I work quite a bit. It's sacrifices and finding time for work and friends in school is really hard."

McColgan says she doesn't really make up a budget. She's just very, very frugal.

What it all comes down to is spending money wisely in a number of different areas and seeking deals wherever they can be found.

"Don't be stupid. That's one of the main things. A lot of people spend their whole year partying . . . and that can be expensive, like $100 a night. Just be wise," says Howard.

© Copyright (c) The Edmonton Journal

+ Original article

Postmedia News | By Mario Toneguzzi

Budgeting and financial planning are probably the last things students want to think about as they head back to school.

But it's a must if they want to avoid loan repayments that last far beyond their school days.

"Probably one of the biggest troubles we face is the fact that we love instant gratification. We love spending money. Impulse buying. And that's something that I believe we really need to control," says Kelsey MacDonald, a 20-year-old University of Alberta student in her fourth year studying human ecology while majoring in fashion.

The Calgarian is also a representative for Servus Credit Union's Young & Free program, which advises the 17-to-25 set about finances.

"It's really important to have a plan. If you have a plan then it's way easier to stay on top of your finances and you can plan ahead. Will your summer job cover all your expenses for the year or will you need to get a part-time job part way through the year?" says Mac-Donald, who figures it will cost her roughly $10,000 to attend school in Edmonton this year.

"You just have to plan ahead and know what your expenses will be -- whether that will be tuition, rent, utilities, transportation, food -- and you can't forget the unexpected expenses because that always happens and that tends to be what will mess you up."

Recent polls suggest upwards of 60 per cent of post-secondary students expect to graduate with some debt, even though more than 50 per cent plan to work during the school year to pay bills.

The polls also found that the vast majority of students going into university don't have a budget.

Kelsey McColgan, 21, is going into her third year at Mount Royal University's Bachelor of Communications program.

"Probably one of the biggest tips I think, especially for first-year students, is to pack your lunch every day. You'll save tons of money if you don't have to buy a lunch at school every day," she says.

"Take the bus because you have to pay for it anyway [through student fees].

"Budget your time wisely. I've held down a full-time job ... while going to school full-time. So it is possible."

© Copyright (c) The Vancouver Sun

+ Original article

Calgary Herald | By Mario Toneguzzi

Budgeting and financial planning are probably the last things students want to think about as they head back to school.

After all, they're really not fun and exciting topics for the 17-to 25-year-old crowd.

But it's something they need to seriously pay attention to so they don't fall into financial pitfalls they will end up paying for beyond their school days.

"Probably one of the biggest troubles we face is the fact that we love instant gratification. We love spending money. Impulse buying. And that's something that I believe we really need to control," says Kelsey MacDonald, a 20-year-old University of Alberta student in her fourth year studying human ecology while majoring in fashion.

The Calgarian is also spokesperson for Servus Credit Union's Young & Free program, which is creating a dialogue about financial issues and management among the 17-to-25 set.

"It's really important to have a plan. If you have a plan then it's way easier to stay on top of your finances and you can plan ahead. Will your summer job cover all your expenses for the year or will you need to get a part-time job part way through the year?" says MacDonald, who figures it will cost her roughly $10,000 to attend school in Edmonton this year.

"You just have to plan ahead and know what your expenses will be -- whether that will be tuition, rent, utilities, transportation, food -- and you can't forget the unexpected expenses because that always happens and that tends to be what will mess you up."

But planning and budgeting isn't an easy topic. MacDonald says it's "scary" for those in her generation.

They've tried it before but they don't stick to it. Through a daily blog and videos, MacDonald is hoping to reach her peers and make financial planning and budgeting and other financial issues fun -- or at least interesting.

"You have to look for any way that you can to save money and keep track of your receipts," adds MacDonald.

"If you keep track of your receipts, then you can look at them on a weekly basis and realize that you might be spending a little too much on lattes or things that might not be significant enough that you should be spending your money on. So it's not only a good habit to get into budgeting wise for now but also for the rest of your life."

A recent poll for RBC indicated the majority of post-secondary students (57 per cent) said they plan to work during the school year to help pay the bills.

Three-quarters of students (77 per cent) believe working part-time during school will impact their grades, while six in 10 expect to graduate with debt and 74 per cent don't use a budget. The survey found debt management and budgeting are challenging for students, with just half regularly monitoring where their money is going (52 per cent).

"The student experience brings new-found responsibilities like keeping good grades, living on your own and balancing a budget, which can be very stressful," says Kavita Joshi, director of student banking for RBC.

"Proper saving habits can lead to working fewer hours, thereby freeing up more time for studying and enjoying the university or college experience."

A TD Canada Trust Education and Finances Survey says students in Alberta are the most likely in Canada to stress about being able to afford the basics like rent, tuition and food.

It found that 28 per cent of students are stressed and another 31 per cent are anxious that it will be a challenge for them to manage.

The survey also revealed that 41 per cent of Alberta students are spending more money than they save.

Sixty-eight per cent project they will graduate with some debt and 20 per cent predict they will owe more than $25,000.

"Amassing enough money for post-secondary education can be a challenge, but it is much more economical to save ahead than to borrow at the last minute," says Carrie Russell, senior vice-president at TD Canada Trust. "That said, if students are heading to school in the near future and have not put away enough, they should pursue all potential avenues available, such as a part-time job, scholarships, bursaries and assistantships."

Kelsey McColgan, 21, is going into her third year at Mount Royal University's Bachelor of Communications program, majoring in information design. For this semester, she is spending $3,100 for a full-course load.

"Probably one of the biggest tips I think, especially for first-year students, is to pack your lunch every day. You'll save tons of money if you don't have to buy a lunch at school every day," she says.

"Take the bus because you have to pay for it anyway (through student fees). Or carpool.

"Budget your time wisely. I've held down a full-time job at Staples while going to school full time. So it is possible. Sometimes you have to make sacrifices in different areas of your life, but it is possible if you budget your time well enough. I always have a plan of my whole week before I start the week of when my homework time is, when I have to work and that's how I'm able to pay for school because I wouldn't be able to if I wasn't working. I would have a ton of student loans. I don't have any. It's all paid for."

McColgan's friend Amanda Howard, 23, is also in her third year in the same program. For the first two years, she had student loans.

"I found it was just enough money . . . It's just enough money to get you by and it seems it goes really fast. But for the next two years I've been saving and I'll be paying for them myself," she says.

"I'm a hardcore saver and also I work quite a bit. It's sacrifices and finding time for work and friends in school is really hard."

McColgan says she doesn't really make up a budget. She's just very, very frugal.

What it all comes down to is spending money wisely in a number of different areas and seeking deals wherever they can be found.

"Don't be stupid. That's one of the main things. A lot of people spend their whole year partying . . . and that can be expensive, like $100 a night. Just be wise," says Howard.

mtoneguzzi@theherald.canwest.com
© Copyright (c) The Calgary Herald

+ Original article

VAAA Art Blog

DEADLINE: SEPTEMBER 3, 2010

If you dare to dream, we want to hear about it! Servus Credit Union is excited to announce the new Young & Free Scholarship Program. We’ll be awarding thirty $1,000 scholarships to students who dare to dream and make a difference.

Create a 60-second-or-less video that showcases how your dreams, ambitions and vision can make your community and/or the world a better place. If making a video isn’t your thing, then submit a 300–500 word essay on the same topic. Download the full instructions to the right. 

+ Original post

GlobalTV Calgary

Interview with Kelsey on GlobalTV Calgary.

+ Visit GlobalTV Calgary

RED DEER ADVOCATE | By Brenda Kossowan

Lofty goals — like reaching or surpassing the accomplishments of Harry Potter creator J.K. Rowling — help some people rise above the crowd.

Reaching Rowling’s level of achievement is the long-term goal driving Ami Price-Gagnon, a graduate of Notre Dame High School in Red Deer who is now working on her third year toward a business degree from the University of Alberta.

Price-Gagnon, 20, was recently named one of the three finalists in Servus Credit Union’s search for a youth representative. Young and Free Alberta is part of North America-wide campaign, Young and Free Spokestar, that recruits young adults to spend one year helping members of their generation connect with sponsoring credit unions through blogs, YouTube videos, public speaking engagements and other media.

Being named Alberta’s first Young and Free Spokestar comes with an iPod, an Apple laptop computer and a salary of $36,000, says Price-Gagnon, who learned about the contest while researching student bursaries.

Pumped as the “Ultimate Job,” the Young and Free Spokestar Competition was narrowed from 22 applicants to three finalists, including Price-Gagnon’s university roommate, Kelsey MacDonald, 20, of Calgary. MacDonald is taking her third year of human ecology at the U of A.

Rounding out the field is barista Madison Kerr, 18, of Edmonton, who focuses her creative endeavours on photography.

Price-Gagnon said she and MacDonald support each other, but don’t discuss each other’s campaigns.

The winning entry, to be announced April 22, will be decided on two major factors, she said. Fifty per cent will be based on the number of votes each of the finalists is able to capture by April 11. The balance will be based on performance, including media coverage of their campaigns.

Please visit www.youngfreealberta.com to learn more.

+ Original article

Millennial Marketing Blog | By Carol Phillips

Millennials are a high potential target for banks and credit unions.

According to a September 2009 report by Mintel on “Echo Boomers and Finance,” just 56% of 18-24 year olds own any banking product, usually a savings account (41%). But this figure jumps to 70% among those 25-29.

Credit Unions have been making the most of their historic opportunity to attract Millennials.

According to Mintel, several credit unions have launched “Young & Free” sites. These sites feature young spokespeople and include blogs, listings of “free items” or promotions available in the credit union’s local area. They also provide calendars of events, and financial literacy tools on topics thought to be of special relevance to Echo Boomers. These topics include:

• car buying versus leasing
• establishing and maintaining good credit scores
• saving money tips
• finding an apartment.

It only took a quick Google search to turn up several of these “young and free” initiatives, like this one in Alberta from Servus Credit Union. The site features spokesperson, Myles Peterson, who tweets, blogs and creates videos all focused on what’s happening in Alberta and with the Young and Free account at Servus. The site seems to have done its Gen Y homework: it is up to date, provides useful information and apps in a Millennial-friendly format.

There are other Young and Free efforts in Alabama (Listerhill Credit Union), South Carolina (South Carolina Federal), and Texas (TDECU). While the format is similar, each has its own spokesperson and unique content. There is substance as well. For example, South Carolina Federal offers special deals for 18-25 year olds:

• fee refunds—the idea is that young people make mistakes with managing their checking accounts and the credit union gives them one free fee refund per quarter in recognition that they are still learning how to manage their accounts
• online budgeting tools
• mobile access
• debit cards
• no monthly maintenance fees
• additional dividends on deposits.

Analyst, researcher and Millennial, Dane Coalson on CreditUnion.com provides a “Personal Gen Y Perspective” on which features are most meaningful:

Personal recommendations: “The first place I turn to before I purchase a product or utilize a service would be my friends and family for recommendations. I want feedback directly from someone who can tell me about their personal experience, and I’m not alone.”

Help establishing credit: “Helping us build credit is a great opportunity for credit unions to actually differentiate themselves and provide a service that Gen Y needs!”

A fresh, well-designed web site: “If your website looks like it is stuck in the past, this can leave a bad impression.” (Duh!)

Plain English: “Don’t get wrapped up in using what you consider to be the coolest, hippest jargon. Gen Y does not want to be pandered to, they just want easy access to straightforward, clear information.”

Details matter: "I believe that younger members can be easily swayed by seemingly insignificant details such as the ability to exert some control over how their personal card looks.”

Financial Institutions will never be ‘cool’ – this should not be your goal: “Instead, focus on showing them how you can provide better rates, help them build their credit, and actually are an honest institution that genuinely has their best interests in mind. Like anyone else, younger individuals are simply looking for a safe, efficient, non-problematic institution that they can trust with their money.”

Focus on what could draw Millennials into a financial institution today: “High interest products include direct deposit and bill pay,  good rates on individual product offerings, such as an auto loan, CD, high-interest checking or savings accounts.”

This is great advice for any marketer, not just financial services.

Coalson concludes by emphasizing his belief that there is “a window of opportunity” to attract members as they leave college.  But cautions that “once they start their jobs, set up multiple accounts, and become comfortable, it becomes much harder to entice them to switch.”

Kudo’s to Credit Unions for getting ahead of the curve.

+ Original post

2020 Social Blog | By Mohit

Common Wealth Credit Union (Groundswell Award Winner, 2008)

To positioned itself as a progressive and transparent financial institution with heart, Common Wealth Credit Union launched an online community for Alberta’s Generation “Y”. A lifestyle platform for youth to self express and support called Young & Free. Its a fully integrated marketing campaign combined with a spokesperson search to find the voice of Alberta’s under 25 crowd.

Common Wealth embraced the power of the social web by tapping into popular sites like YouTube, Facebook, Flickr and Twitter to create an immersive experience where compelling user-generated content takes centre stage. To position it as a democratic, transparent organisation they launched a yearly campaign to find  “Young & Free Alberta Spokesperson”.

The winner from the contest became a paid employee of the credit union, working full time with the job description: talk, type and tell good stories – essentially a full time blogger for the credit union for one year.

+ Original post

Grand Prairie Daily Herald-Tribune | by Darrel Winwood

A hearty congratulations goes out this week to Grande Prairie's Youth Emergency Shelter Society which operates Sunrise House. Regular readers might remember that more than a month ago I told you about a contest GPYESS was engaged in via Twitter.

The shelter was trying to win a $500 donation from Servus Credit Union for being the first to get 500 votes in their favour through Twitter accounts. The contest was part of a program run by Servus called Young and Free Alberta which promotes banking to consumers under age 25. That program was originally created by the Common Wealth Credit Union which had branches here in Grande Prairie before it was taken over by Servus in a merger more than a year ago.

Long story short, GPYESS won the contest over youth shelters in Athabasca and Lloydminster which were also competing. I personally voted for the shelter and so the did the Daily Herald-Tribune. They were only two votes, but for anyone else who saw the votes and decided to follow suit, well done. It was an easy vote to make and at a youth shelter $500 can do a lot.

+ Original article

Grand Prairie Daily Herald-Tribune | by Darrel Winwood

As its presence continues to grow on the Internet, more and more businesses, non-profit agencies, and government organizations are learning the value of using social media websites to reach out directly to people and it’s a growing trend in Grande Prairie.

Media agencies, including the Daily Herald-Tribune, have been using social media for several years to stream news and headlines to readers in a different format, but this newspaper has been joined in the last several weeks by several other local businesses. It’s interesting to see how individual groups and companies adapt to the technology and use it different ways.

One of the more interesting ways is to use a company’s Twitter or Facebook account (to name the two most popular sites) to run specific online contests. We did this recently at the newspaper, giving away six pairs of tickets to last month’s Drag Wars event. Contest winners had to respond to specific messages we posted on our own Facebook and Twitter accounts to win the tickets and it didn’t take long. Within one hour we had given away the six sets of tickets, proving that in even in a smaller city such as Grande Prairie, the online community can be very active.

But that’s chump change compared to one contest being run by the Servus Credit Union which could benefit Grande Prairie’s youth shelter, Sunrise House. The credit union runs a program called Young & Free which targets young adults and teens, trying to attract their business. Each year it runs a contest to select a youth spokesperson. This year it’s Myles Peterman and he’s issued a challenge to supporters of youth shelters in Grande Prairie, Lloydminster and Athabasca.

Basically, whoever starts following Peterman’s account can ‘tweet’ their support for each community’s shelter and whoever gets to 500 supporters or tweets first that shelter will receive $500 from the credit union.

It’s a fun promotion that attracts attention to the credit union, its youth programs, and it offers a chance for a local charity to win a donation.

I already cast my vote for Sunrise House and if you’re on Twitter why not follow the account named YoungFreeAB and vote for our local youth shelter as well.

But contests aren’t the only way to use Twitter to attract buzz and interest for a cause or company. Social media can be a low-budget way to reach out to people directly. Two other notable groups have started using the medium in the past month in Grande Prairie.

The first is local municipal government – yes you can now get the latest news on our municipality directly on Twitter. The city began streaming news releases and promotional information earlier in the summer and so far has attracted (as of Wednesday) 131 people to its account. It’s a small but growing number and city marketing manager David Olinger said it’s part of the city’s overall communication plan.

“The city has examined a number of ways to reach out to citizens ... we’re really looking for ways to engage residents.”

The value of the service showed up in the summer when a chlorine leak at Bear Creek Pool forced the evacuation of the pool and shut it down for more than a day. One of the first places news of this leak showed up was on Facebook from residents forced out and the city was soon issuing updates on Twitter which spread and were rebroadcast.

“It’s a fascinating study in how news travels,” said Olinger.

I couldn’t agree more as every day I see how stories from this newspaper can travel across the Internet. Olinger also said that demographic studies from Stats Canada have shown that 75% of the city’s population is aged 45 or under, which leads more people being connected online.

The Grande Prairie Storm hockey club started up its own Twitter account in the past few weeks, streaming live updates on game scores, player moves and still to come will be ticket promotions and information on community events that Storm players are involved with, said marketing manager Echo Ross, who was quick to credit team ‘‘music man’’ Randy Kleist as the person behind the Storm’s Twitter account.

“It (idea) first came up a few weeks ago and we need to keep going forward with new technology,” said Ross.

And here’s the shameless plug – if you’re online you can follow this newspaper on Twitter by searching for gpheraldtribune or the Grande Prairie tag #gpab, on Facebook search for Daily Herald-Tribune.

Darrell Winwood is the DHT’s online and special sections editor.

+ Original article

Credit Union Times | By Myriam DiGiovanni

The Young & Free world just got a little more connected with the launch of the Living Young & Free Show.

Currency Marketing Program Manager and Living Young & Free Community Manager Cheryl Weins will host a bimonthly coordinated show. Each episode will feature three, two-minute educational segments from Y&F spokespeople Myles Peterman (Alberta), Josh Sutherland (South Carolina) and DeAndre Upshaw (Texas). New episodes will be produced every two weeks and will be posted on each of the Young & Free sites as well as the Living Young & Free central site (livingyoungandfree.com).

According to Currency Marketing President/Creative Director Tim McAlpine, the move to grow a loyal audience through syndicated shows rather than posting random videos hoping for a viral sensation makes sense considering 24 hours of new video is posted on YouTube every 60 seconds.

McAlpine said the Living Young & Free Show will also be distributed on Blip.tv, iTunes as a video podcast, the Y&F YouTube channels, Y&F Facebook fan pages and “anywhere else we can post it. The more places we can get it seen the better.”

The Young & Free program is a financial management package designed to engage 19- to 25-year-olds toward effectively managing their money through nontraditional mediums, such as a microsite, Facebook, Flickr, Twitter and YouTube.

» Original article

CU Newswire | By Donna-Lane Nelson

Eric Dillon, COO Servus CU of Alberta, Canada, talked about the Young & Free Aberta program that his CU developed and also is being operated in Texas and South Carolina.

Under 25s vie for a one-year job to be the spokesperson for the CU for their generation. The job comes with car, computer and salary. Candidates post videos, blogs and use other social media entries. Then people vote for the candidates. The program brought in over 2600 accounts, Dillon said. In fall they will start looking for their third spokesman.

When the idea was first proposed, no one knew if it would work, but they decided to risk it. Dillon disputes that getting wallet share is enough for a CU. He believes that it is necessary to also find new members as well and not rely on current members.

+ CU Newswire website

CU Times | By Myriam DiGiovanni

The Young & Free world just got a little more connected with the launch of the Living Young & Free Show.

Currency Marketing Program Manager and Living Young & Free Community Manager Cheryl Weins will host a bimonthly coordinated show. Each episode will feature three, two-minute educational segments from Y&F spokespeople Myles Peterman (Alberta), Josh Sutherland (South Carolina) and DeAndre Upshaw (Texas). New episodes will be produced every two weeks and will be posted on each of the Young & Free sites as well as the Living Young & Free central site (livingyoungandfree.com).

According to Currency Marketing President/Creative Director Tim McAlpine, the move to grow a loyal audience through syndicated shows rather than posting random videos hoping for a viral sensation makes sense considering 24 hours of new video is posted on YouTube every 60 seconds.

McAlpine said the Living Young & Free Show will also be distributed on Blip.tv, iTunes as a video podcast, the Y&F YouTube channels, Y&F Facebook fan pages and “anywhere else we can post it. The more places we can get it seen the better.”

The Young & Free program is a financial management package designed to engage 19- to 25-year-olds toward effectively managing their money through nontraditional mediums, such as a microsite, Facebook, Flickr, Twitter and YouTube.

+ Original article

Credit Union Central of Canada

HALIFAX - Credit Union Central of Canada presented its annual National Credit Union Awards for outstanding achievement during a ceremony Wednesday that wrapped up its annual conference.

The National Credit Union Innovation Award was won by Servus Credit Union Ltd. of Edmonton for its Young & Free Alberta program that was developed by Common Wealth Credit Union, which last November merged with Community Credit Union and Servus Credit Union.

The program took an innovative approach to reaching younger members by developing an online presence using blogs and videos posted on YouTube.com. It engaged younger members in an interactive discussion about their financial needs and led to dramatic growth in new accounts by members in the 17 to 25 age group.

+ Original press release

Enterprise Magazine | By Diane Luckow

Jumping into online social networking to promote your credit union can feel a bit like embarking on an African safari

Now that even Tibetan monks are twittering on iPhones (check out the blog noboundaries.org), should credit unions be tweeting on Twitter? Blogging? Setting up a Facebook page? Posting videos on YouTube?

Does embracing social networking make sense as part of a financial services marketing strategy?

Absolutely, according to Miss604.com, aka Rebecca Bollwitt, a prolific Vancouver blogger. Profectio.com, a website catering to Canada’s ‘connected’ media and public relations community recently ranked her amongst the 10 most influential social media individuals in Canada. Bollwitt is also the co-founder of Sixty4Media, which offers social media consulting, services, and training.

Credit union blogs, says Bollwitt, can help people better understand the financial services industry and its communities. And Twitter is good for engaging with a new audience – if you maintain the conversation. “Make sure you write updates that are not personal but have personality,” she says. And don’t forget to monitor other social networking sites and respond to what is being said about your institution. “That shows excellent customer service,” Bollwitt adds.

While few credit unions are using Facebook, Twitter or blogs to reach members and the public, lots say they’re thinking about it. Perhaps the best-known credit union blogger is Larissa Walkiw, spokester for the Common Wealth Credit Union product, Young & Free Alberta (Y&F) and its corresponding microsite youngfreealberta.com. Walkiw’s blogs, vlogs and podcasts won awards and cultivated a youth following, increasing Common Wealth’s 17-to 25-year-old account holders by almost 10 percent in one year.

Kim Crockett, manager of the Y&F initiative for the credit union, which has since merged into Edmonton-based Servus Credit Union, says Walkiw generated between 300 and 1,000 visitors a day to the website, while her videos attracted almost 40,000 viewers.

Tim McAlpine, president of Currency Marketing in Chilliwack, BC, is the creative brain behind youngfreealberta.com. He says using social media has to involve more than just “online hugging.”

For example, Servus recently used a Facebook ad to recruit a new Y&F spokesperson. Since Servus would select its next spokesperson based on online voting, applicants had to create blogs, Facebook pages, YouTube videos and podcasts to draw attention to their campaign as well as Y&F. Handing out a challenge like this – with significant benefit or prize – generates a high degree of interest, says McAlpine. “It’s not just a blog about five reasons to save for retirement.”

Toronto Electrical Utility Credit Union blogged throughout 2008, growing its monthly visitors to 6,400 by October from 189 in January. Podcasts offering lifestyle advice on how to plan a wedding or ‘green’ your life attracted thousands of monthly visits. At the beginning, says CEO Diane Kocet, members only made commentaries online but now are discussing the site when they come into the branch.

Robert Leaker, vice president of emerging markets and business innovations at Ontario’s Meridian Credit Union, says that blogs, Facebook, and Twitter are all ways to solicit feedback and direction from members and non-members. That’s why he’s using a personal Facebook page and blog to create a conversation around new financial products and concepts. Within three weeks of starting the blog, justbankme.ca, Leaker attracted more than 150 followers.

The value in such social media, adds Leaker, is in “making a credit union’s brand more personal.”

+ Enterprise Magazine website

The Happy Minimalist Book

We recently came across the book The Happy Minimalist. Larissa Walkiw's Difference Between Banks and Credit Unions - Part 1 YouTube video is listed in the Appendix!

+ Book website

The Razor Report | By Stephen Brander

I found out about Young & Free Alberta while viewing the 2008 Forrester Groundswell Awards Winners. Since we do work with a local Credit Union, this really caught my interest.

Young & Free Alberta started when a credit union in Alberta created a campaign to generate more young customers. They conducted a contest to find a young spokesperson, who then used a blog, YouTube, and Facebook to connect with other young people in Alberta. Result: 2 million impressions, 2,300 new accounts, and $4 million Canadian in new deposits. Pretty impressive. The judges at the GroundSwell Awards thought so too.

Read more about Young & Free Alberta here - or visit the actual Young & Free site.

+ See original post

Online Marketing Banter Blog | By James Duthie

The social goodiness in the financial sector doesn’t end with our accounting friends. Commonwealth Credit Union (CWCU) joined in on the act, creating a multi-layered social campaign for…**drum roll**… a checking account. How Hollywood is that…? Convinced the Gen Y segment was being underserviced (and smelling the opportunity of lifetime value), CWCU created a checking account exclusively for the under 25′ers. Perhaps pessimistic of their ability to connect authentically with the Gen Y audience, they decided instead to create an ambassador role for an under 25′er to take up the challenege and spread the message to the people.

Entries to become the ambassador were submitted via video, with the audience themselves deciding who got the job. Once appointed, the ambassador’s role was to connect with the youth and discover what they wanted from their financial institution (duh… money). This was predominantly done via the Young & Free web site, where the ambassador used tools such as video, blogs and podcasts to connect with Gen Y. The results are impressive with 80,000 YouTube views and almost a thousand blog comments. Most important however was the 960% growth in new account openings in the 19 to 25 age group.

Boring product yes… but you can’t argue with those results!

+ See original post

Credit Union Journal

Lloydminster, Alberta - The introduction of a program called “Young & Free” has brought more than 1,000 new members to one credit union here.

Introduced in late 2007, the Young & Free program from Common Wealth Credit Union turned out to be an effective driver of membership during 2008 from a demographic many CU’s struggle with attracting. The financial management package targets young Albertans, includes a package of free, unlimited financial services, along with an online microsite that includes financial hints, polls, blogs and trivia.

Common Wealth CU has made something of a celebrity out of the spokesperson it has named to be the voice of the 17-to-25-year olds, and attracted publicity with each search. Each year a new spokesperson takes over the role, and travels around the province attending and speaking at events, producing and posting audio and video podcasts, and writing regular blog entries on everything from finance to pop culture.

Since it’s inception, 30% of the new members who have joined the 56,000 member CWCU have been young members, according to Kim Crockett, Young & Free manager.

“This translated into adding 1,000-plus new youth members to the 4,800 we had at program launch,” he said. Today there are 2,736 Young & Free account-holders with $3,924,220 on deposit for an average balance of $1,608. “These Young & Free members also have loans totaling $26,592,816 and investments totaling $1,409,003 with the credit union after just 12 months,” Crockett said.

Since launch, traffic to the Young & Free website has included 95,021 visitors with 285,440 page views. Those visitors have posted 1,381 blog comments and 128,014 You Tube videos.

The credit union estimates that the Young & Free program has also received more than $425,000 in unpaid media coverage to date, Crockett said. The initiative is marketed through the Internet on sites such as MSN, Flickr and YouTube.

+ CU Journal website

Newcap News at Six

Servus Credit Union's Young & Free Brand Manager Kim Crockett talks about winning the Forrester Groundswell Award

+ Newcap News at Six website