Do I need to be a CU*NorthWest core client to use marketing services?

No. CU*NorthWest's credit union marketing services are designed to work independently of any specific core system. The marketing plan uses business inputs, member insights, and available reporting that your credit union already has. If you are a CU*NorthWest core client, we can go deeper with your data and connect marketing strategy directly to what we see across the network. But it isn't required.

What's the difference between the Marketing Assessment and the full Marketing Plan?

The assessment is a quick diagnostic that evaluates where you are and recommends what comes next. It takes 2-3 hours and delivers a summary with priorities and a recommendation. The marketing plan is the full strategic foundation: target segments, product priorities, channel strategy, KPIs, and a 12-month direction with a 90-day roadmap. Most credit unions start with the assessment and move to the plan. If you already know you need a plan, you can skip the assessment.

How do I know which support level is right?

It depends on one question: does your team have someone who can execute marketing, or do you need CU*NorthWest to handle it? If you have a marketing-adjacent person who needs strategic direction, Advisory is the right fit. If you don't have someone to execute consistently, Managed provides that capacity. If you need a full marketing department, Embedded gives you dedicated operations. Your marketing plan includes a specific recommendation.

Can I start with just one Data-to-Action Program?

Yes. Programs can run as standalone initiatives without a full marketing plan or ongoing support level. If you're not ready for a bigger commitment, a single program is a practical way to see measurable results and decide how to move forward.

How is this different from hiring a credit union marketing agency?

Most credit union marketing agencies and marketing firms sell tactics: a campaign here, a social media package there, maybe a website redesign. CU*NorthWest starts with a marketing strategy and uses it to guide every deliverable, campaign, and report. You get one accountable partner who owns the plan and the follow-through, not a handoff to a different account team every time you need something. And because we already serve credit unions, we understand your operating reality in ways a general agency or marketing company can't.

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A strategic marketing partner for credit unions.

Strategic Marketing for Credit Unions

Q: What if my credit union already has a marketing person?

That's exactly who the Advisory level is built for. It gives your existing person strategic direction, a measurement framework, and an expert to talk through decisions with, without CU*NorthWest taking over execution. The plan gives them clarity. The Advisory cadence gives them a sounding board.

Most marketing partners that serve credit unions are built to execute. Send the email. Run the campaign. Post the social. CU*NorthWest is built to think. Where should this credit union focus next? What are the data, the members, and the market actually telling us? What strategy connects everything together? Strategy first, then the execution that proves it.

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CU*NorthWest credit union marketing consultants building strategy and growth plans

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How It Works

Marketing Assessment

Marketing Plan & Positioning Review

Strategic Marketing Solutions

Web & Digital Solutions

Paid Media

Don't Know Where to Start

Marketing FAQs

On This Page

How It Works

Marketing Assessment

Marketing Plan & Positioning Review

Strategic Marketing Solutions

Web & Digital Solutions

Paid Media

Don't Know Where to Start

Marketing FAQs

How CUNW’s Marketing as a Service Works

Strategic credit union marketing doesn't start with a tactic. It starts with the outcomes you're trying to reach, the data you already have, and the people doing the work. CU*NorthWest already knows your operation, your members, your products, and your team. That's the input strategy that is built from. Most marketing partners need a kickoff brief to understand what you mean when you say you need more deposits. We don't.

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Plan-First Approach

Outcomes Over Tactics

One Accountable Partner

Built for Credit Unions

Your engagement, in four phases

Every engagement follows the same arc. Where you enter depends on how ready your credit union is, and the marketing plan determines the actual work inside each phase.

Step 1: Understand

Start with a free 30-minute consultation. If there’s a fit, we move into a focused Marketing Assessment. You’ll get a clear picture of where your marketing stands today, and what to prioritize first. Yours to keep, whether you continue with us or not.

Step 2: Plan

The Marketing Plan becomes your strategic foundation. It defines target segments, product priorities, channel mix, KPIs, and a 12-month direction that encompasses a focused 90-day roadmap. The plan guides the work, not the other way around.

Step 3: Build and Execute

Ongoing support is shaped by your needs, not a fixed list of deliverables. Time, priorities, and cadence are driven by the plan, not a pre-set package. Monthly hours can flex as priorities and goals evolve.

Step 4: Measure and Evolve

KPIs are defined before the first campaign launches and tracked continuously. Quarterly reviews evaluate what’s working, what’s not, and what should change. Board-ready summaries are available when you need to demonstrate marketing ROI.

You don't need another marketing agency.
You need a strategy that fits your credit union and a partner who already understands how it runs.

Marketing Assessment

A focused diagnostic that gives your credit union a clear, honest picture of where your marketing stands and what to prioritize first. The findings are yours to keep and act on, whether you continue with CU*NorthWest or not.

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CU*NorthWest credit union marketing assessment team reviewing strategy and member data

What the assessment covers

Current marketing snapshot

What you're doing today, what's working, and where the gaps are. No judgment, just a clear picture.

Competitive scan

A quick read on how your credit union shows up against the banks and credit unions your members also consider.

Readiness evaluation

An assessment of your data access, team capacity, brand assets, and tracking. We’ll determine whether you’re ready for a full marketing plan, need foundational work first, or would benefit from a focused, scoped initiative.

What you get

A 5-10 page summary that captures your current state, outlines priority recommendations, and defines a clear path forward. Typically delivered within two weeks of kickoff, the assessment comes with no obligation, only clarity.

A 5-10 page summary with your current-state snapshot, priority recommendations, and a clear next step. Typically delivered within two weeks of the kickoff. The assessment doesn’t lock you into anything. It gives you clarity.

Marketing Plan and Positioning Review

The marketing plan is the strategic foundation on which everything else runs. It defines target audiences, product priorities, marketing mix, KPIs, and a 12-month direction with a focused 90-day roadmap. It also identifies foundation work needed before campaigns can be effective, like a functioning website, analytics, or brand assets, so we're not running campaigns that have nowhere to land.

Start With a Plan

Strategy Foundation

Outcomes-Led

90-Day Roadmap

Built on Your Goals

What credit unions are trying to achieve

Every plan is built around the outcomes your credit union is actually pursuing. Five outcomes consistently appear across the network:

Grow membership and reach new people

The number one ask from the network's credit unions. Most credit unions haven’t run true acquisition campaigns, and many lack product-specific landing pages to convert traffic. That’s the gap.

Deepen relationships with existing members

Members with only a checking account often should also have a card, a loan, and direct deposit. The data to identify these opportunities already exists in your core. What’s missing is activation.

Keep the members you already have

Re-engage dormant members, respond to competitive pressure, and proactively reach out when engagement drops. The signals are already in your data. The opportunity is acting on them.

Build a marketing foundation that works

Brand strategy, a high-converting website, analytics tracking, a content calendar, and regulatory-ready messaging templates. Most credit unions need this foundation before they need more campaigns.

Make better decisions with the data you already have

Translate leadership priorities into specific marketing campaigns. Connect marketing activity to financial outcomes in language your board cares about.

Strategic marketing starts with clarity on what you’re trying to solve. We then build the plan, and partnership, around the outcomes that matter most.

Strategic Marketing Solutions

Not sure where to start?

Most credit unions don't. Marketing isn't one thing, it's a dozen disciplines that have to work together to actually move the needle. Below is what we help credit unions with most often. Take a look, see what resonates, and we'll talk through what makes sense for your credit union.

Start the Conversation

CU*NorthWest data-to-action program helping credit unions drive measurable member growth

Member Engagement and Retention

Most credit unions are leaving money on the table with the members they already have. We help you find the members who should have a credit card but don't, the ones who came through a dealership and never came back, and the ones quietly drifting toward another institution. Then we build the campaigns, automation, and journeys that bring them back into active relationship.

Data, Insights, and Reporting

Your core has the answers. Most marketing partners can't read it. We translate member data into segments your team can act on, connect campaign activity to financial outcomes your board cares about, and build reporting that tells you what's working without burying you in dashboards. When leadership asks where the next loan is coming from, you'll have the answer.

Strategic Advisory

For credit unions that need a marketing leader without having to hire one. We provide ongoing strategic direction, run your annual planning, recalibrate quarterly, and build the board-ready summaries that connect marketing to the financial picture. We also help you make decisions about budget, vendors, and tools, the kind of work that adds up when no one's actively managing it.

Paid Media

Search ads, social ads, direct mail, SMS, retargeting, and geofencing. The channels you reach for when you need to move quickly or scale beyond your existing audience. We handle setup, audience targeting, creative, optimization, and reporting. Ad spend is a separate pass-through cost, so you always know what's funding the work versus what's funding the placement.

Marketing Foundation

Most credit unions are running marketing on a shaky foundation and don't realize it until campaigns underperform. The brand isn't clear, the website doesn't convert, and the tracking was never set up, so nobody knows what's actually working. We fix that first. By the time we're done, your credit union has a clear brand story, a website that converts visitors into members, real-time analytics that tell you what's happening, and templates that keep everything consistent. Every marketing dollar after that lands on something solid.

New Member Growth

Growing membership is the number one thing credit unions ask us about, and most have never run a real campaign to do it. The result is the same growth coming from the same places year after year, while the bank down the street keeps taking your members. We build campaigns that bring in new people: outreach to your field of membership, local search visibility, referral programs, and partnerships with employer groups and community organizations in your market. You end up with consistent membership growth you can actually measure.

Member Engagement and Retention

Most credit unions are leaving money on the table with the members they already have. The member with just a checking account should have a card and a loan. The auto loan borrower who came through a dealership and never came back. The dormant account that's one good campaign away from coming back to life. We use the data already in your core to find those members and run the campaigns that bring them back into active relationship, including seasonal product pushes, cross-sell journeys, reactivation campaigns, and the email and social work that keeps members engaged between transactions.

Data, Insights, and Reporting

Without reporting that connects the dots, marketing is guessing, and you have nothing to show the board when they ask whether the spending is working. We build reporting that shows the whole funnel, from impressions and clicks all the way through to loans, deposits, and new members, so you can see exactly how marketing is moving the bottom line. Every campaign is tied to a measurable outcome, and when leadership asks whether the spend is paying off, you have the answer.

Strategic Advisory

Most credit unions can't justify a full-time marketing leader, but every credit union needs one. Without that strategic perspective, marketing becomes reactive, budget gets spread thin across things that don't connect, and the board ends up with reports nobody can act on. We provide the ongoing strategic direction, the annual planning rhythm with quarterly check-ins to adjust as things change, and the board-ready summaries that connect marketing activity to the financial picture. Your credit union ends up with a marketing leader's perspective without the salary, and leadership ends up with the kind of clarity that makes decisions easier.

Whether you need one piece or the full system, the work is designed to fit together, and deliver results that build over time.

Web & Digital Strategy

Campaigns don't perform without the strategy and infrastructure behind them. The website has to convert. The tracking has to be accurate. The path from first click to funded loan has to make sense. This is the work that makes everything else pay off.

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Website Strategy, Content & Creative Direction

our website is where most prospects decide whether to apply or move on. We audit the site, fix the navigation, and write content that turns visitors into applications. We also direct the content and visuals across blog, social, email, print, branch materials, and signage, so everything looks like it's coming from the same credit union. Best for: sites that aren't converting and brands that feel inconsistent across channels.

Search engine and AI visibility

Paid ads bring traffic when you turn them on. Search and AI visibility bring traffic that keeps coming after. Keyword research, local SEO, Google Business Profile management, and content built to show up in AI-generated answers from tools like ChatGPT and Google's AI Overviews. Best for: lowering long-term cost per lead and showing up where people are actually searching.

Analytics and measurement framework

Before any campaign launches, the tracking has to be right. GA4, Tag Manager, call tracking, and clearly defined KPIs, set up so you can actually see what's working. Best for: marketing running without clear measurement or tracking, or with gaps.

Strategy before tactics

We don't run campaigns until the strategy is clear and the tracking is in place. It saves money and makes every campaign work harder.

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Paid Media

Paid media is how credit unions reach new members. Done well, paid media is the fastest way to move the needle on a specific outcome. Done poorly, it's the easiest way to waste a marketing budget. The difference is strategy, targeting, and measurement, all of which we handle.

Talk About Paid Media

Search advertising

Google Ads campaigns that put your credit union in front of people actively searching for banking products. The fastest path to qualified loan applications and new member sign-ups, because the intent is already there. Best for: refinance campaigns, mortgage and HELOC pushes, auto loans, and any product where members search before they apply.

Paid social

Targeted advertising on Meta and LinkedIn that reaches the right people based on geography, life stage, employer, interests, and behaviors. Strong for both acquisition (reaching people who don't know your credit union exists) and retention (keeping members engaged with relevant offers). Best for: new-member campaigns, life-event marketing, employer-group outreach, and product launches.

Display and retargeting

Ads that follow your website visitors across the web, so the people who showed interest don't forget about you. Effective for high-consideration products like mortgages, auto loans, and HELOCs, where members research for weeks before they apply. Best for: keeping your credit union top of mind through long decision cycles.

Geofencing

Location-based mobile advertising that targets people in specific physical areas, like at a competing bank's branch, at a local employer, in a community your credit union is trying to grow into, or at a sponsored event. Best for: targeted local growth, competitive conquest, and SEG outreach.

Direct mail

Targeted, data-driven direct mail with response tracking that connects every piece to a measurable outcome. Still one of the highest-performing channels for credit union acquisition, especially when paired with a digital follow-up. Best for: pre-screened loan offers, new mover campaigns, and member milestone outreach.

SMS and text programs

Permission-based messaging for the campaigns where speed and immediacy matter most. Built with regulatory awareness for credit union compliance requirements. Best for: rate alerts, time-sensitive promotions, payment reminders, and member service communications.

Channels work better together

Measurement comes first

CU*NorthWest doesn't start any paid campaign until we know how to measure it. Tracking, success criteria, and reporting cadence are defined and standing up before a single ad runs. If your credit union's tracking foundation needs work, we build that as part of the plan, then activate. No campaign launches into a measurement vacuum.

Don't Know Where to Start?

Most credit unions don't. Marketing isn't one thing, it's a dozen disciplines that have to work together to actually move the needle. Below is what we help credit unions with most often. Skim through, flag what sounds familiar, and we'll talk through what makes sense for your credit union.

Start the Conversation

Marketing FAQs

How is this different from hiring a marketing agency?

Agencies start with campaigns. CU*NorthWest starts inside your operation. Your data, your members, your team’s constraints, and your goals are the inputs we already have. Strategy comes first, and execution maps to it.

What if my credit union already has a marketing person?

Many do. Most engagements give your existing person strategic direction and supplemental execution capacity, not a replacement. The plan defines what your team handles versus what CU*NorthWest handles.

What’s the difference between the Assessment and the Plan?

The Assessment is a focused diagnostic that tells you where you stand and what to prioritize first. It’s yours to keep with no commitment. The Plan is the strategic foundation for ongoing work, built once you decide to move forward. Some credit unions skip the Assessment if they’ve already had discovery conversations and are ready to commit.

How do I know which engagement pattern is right?

The plan includes a recommendation. Foundation, Growth, and Full Partnership describe where credit unions typically start, not preset packages. Hours and scope flex with priorities, recalibrated quarterly.

Can I start with just one initiative?

Yes. A single scoped initiative is a practical way to test the relationship and see measurable results before committing to a full plan. The work itself becomes the proof for a bigger conversation.

Does this only work for CU*NorthWest core clients?

No. Core clients get a faster start because we already know the data and the operations. For non-core credit unions, MaaS is a strategy-led alternative to agencies that don’t understand credit union operations. The plan-first approach and credit union expertise are the differentiators.

Ready to start a marketing plan?

A 30-minute consultation is the starting point. No pitch, no commitment. We'll talk through where your credit union stands, what would actually move the needle, and whether there's a fit. If there is, we recommend a path forward. If there isn't, we say so.

Start the Conversation

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Online Membership & Applications

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Digital Forms

E-Signatures & Digital Documents

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Ongoing Upgrades

Conversion FAQs

Training Services

Live Training

Conversion Training

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How We Support You

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Disaster Recovery & Business Continuity

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Marketing FAQs

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About CU*NorthWest

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CU*Answers University

CU*Answers on Demand

Schedule Training

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Consulting Services Request

CU* Answers Store

Contact

Due Diligence

Core Systems

CBX Core Capabilities

Member Service & Teller

Lending & Collections

Accounting & Back Office

Digital Banking

Reporting & Automation

Payment & Cards

Security & Compliance

Security & Disaster Recovery

Account Opening

CBX FAQs

CBX Core Value-Add Ons

Online Membership & Applications

Document Imaging & Storage

Digital Forms

E-Signatures & Digital Documents

Compliance & Audit Monitoring

Core Support

Conversions & Upgrades

The Conversion Process

What's Included

Ongoing Upgrades

Conversion FAQs

Training Services

Live Training

Conversion Training

Self-Service Resources

Training FAQs

Support & Escalation

How We Support You

Escalation Path

Compliance & Risk Management

Disaster Recovery & Business Continuity

Support FAQs

AnswerBook

Consulting Services

Core Optimization & Consulting

Core Optimization Review

Core System Health Check

Custom Reporting Subscription

Reporting Automation Projects

Member Rewards Tier Program

FAQs

Marketing Services

How it Works

Marketing Assessment

Marketing Plan

Support Levels

Data to Action Programs

Plan Enhancements & Activations

Marketing FAQs

Training & Resources

Self-Service Training

CU*Answers University

CU*Answers on Demand

Schedule Training

Documentation

Release Documentation

CBX Reference Documentation

Digital Banking Documentation

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Consulting Services Request

CU* Answers Store

About

About CU*NorthWest

Meet the Board of Directors

Careers

Contact

Due Diligence

Strategic Marketing for Credit Unions

How CUNW’s Marketing as a Service Works

Your engagement, in four phases

You don't need another marketing agency. You need a strategy that fits your credit union and a partner who already understands how it runs.

Marketing Assessment

What the assessment covers

What you get

Marketing Plan and Positioning Review

What credit unions are trying to achieve

Strategic marketing starts with clarity on what you’re trying to solve. We then build the plan, and partnership, around the outcomes that matter most.

Strategic Marketing Solutions

Whether you need one piece or the full system, the work is designed to fit together, and deliver results that build over time.

Web & Digital Strategy

Website Strategy, Content & Creative Direction

Search engine and AI visibility

Analytics and measurement framework

Strategy before tactics

Paid Media

Search advertising

Paid social

Display and retargeting

Geofencing

Direct mail

SMS and text programs

Don't Know Where to Start?

Marketing FAQs

You don't need another marketing agency.
You need a strategy that fits your credit union and a partner who already understands how it runs.