October 19, 2023

How to Help Your Members Be ‘Credit Smart’

How to Help Your Members Be Credit Smart

 

As a credit union, providing your membership with resources to boost their credit health should be a priority. Here are some tools and activity ideas your CU can use to help current and future members be ‘credit smart.’

 

Offer Online Resources

Your website probably has a page about credit cards, interest rates, card benefits, and how to apply. Some other information you may want to present on this page – or redirect users to may include:

  • How to check your credit card balances with your CU’s home and mobile banking platform
  • How members can get a free credit score through your CU, as well as what credit score ranges are
  • Information on the minimum payment for cards
  • What personal information they will need to have on hand when applying for a card

Ensure this page is up-to-date and provides as much helpful information as possible.

Also, include a “Contact Us” link so your members can reach out with any questions. If you have enough money, an AI chatbot can always help your members without hiring more staff. You can pre-program questions and answers to help your members understand credit and the application process.

Suppose you’re on an advanced core, like Sharetec, with an Open API. You can use Glia’s audio and video chat with AI to help members and representatives. To learn more about Glia and our digital communication tools, contact your Sharetec Account Relationship Manager.

 

Blog Ideas

Your Blog is a great place to answer the question, “What is credit?” Here are some trending blog topic ideas that will help boost your members’ credit knowledge:

  • Paying off student loans
  • Getting the right car loan
  • How to apply for a HELOC
  • Steps to paying off debt
  • The importance of making timely monthly payments

Be sure to check with your compliance department on what you can and cannot share. You’ll want to focus more on credit cards and how to use them rather than improving scores, as CU’s aren’t technically credit advisors.

 

Provide Youth Financial Education Activities

Some CUs offer in-person financial education for young people, whether it’s going to local elementary schools to discuss the importance of saving money or visiting high schools to ensure students know how to write a check and budget for adult life. It’s never too early for kids to learn about financial literacy. Here are some activity ideas for each age group:

  • Elementary School
    • Set up an annual meeting with elementary school math classes where you discuss when to start saving, the importance of setting financial goals, how to open a youth savings account, and other basic financial literacy topics.
  • High School
    • Create a hands-on program that shows graduating teens the importance of budgeting, saving money, paying their bills, using credit cards properly, and having a good credit score.

 

Give Your Members Control Over Their Credit

As a Sharetec partner, your CU has access to several amazing integrations that benefit your membership. The best way to help your members be ‘credit smart’ is by offering them monitoring tools, such as SavvyMoney! With SavvyMoney, your members can take control of their credit by having instant access to their scores, reports, personalized money-saving offers, and financial education tips.

Learn about SavvyMoney’s ROI by seeing how one of our partners made $9.3 million in loans using the tool.

 

 

Do you want to learn more about this topic or SavvyMoney and Glia? Then contact your Sharetec Account Relationship Manager today!

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