First impressions are everything. More often than not today, your credit union website is your first impression for members and potential members. Think about the impression you’re giving them through this lens (per Invoca): 81% of loans and mortgage consumers did not have a brand in mind when they performed their web search. That amounts to a tremendous opportunity for your credit union to earn their business.
Because consumers will leave a poorly designed website to find what they’re seeking elsewhere. While website designers know the nuts and bolts, your team’s knowledge of your membership is vital to a successful credit union website design.
Think of your credit union’s website as the inbound version of a ‘cold caller’ that warms up leads for your team. What questions do you most often get in your chat bot or call center? How can you make those members’ lives – and your member service reps’ lives – less stressful by leveraging your website? Outsourcing a redesign of your credit union’s website is a worthwhile investment financially when your credit union’s team also prioritizes the time investment to ensure the best outcome for your credit union and your members.
Credit union website design preparation
To get started on the right foot, key team leaders must be committed to actively engaging with each other and the web designer on a regular basis about the project for optimal results. Designate a single point of contact from the credit union and funnel all communications through this person to avoid confusion and conflicting direction to your designer. Keep in mind, this isn’t just about your credit union’s website but most consumers’ first impression of your credit union as a whole, so focus on the credit unions’ brand holistically, and how that might translate to your website.
The credit union team assigned to this project should each to collect four to five websites they really like and then share why they like them. Collectively consider why the various sites are appealing and winnow this collection down to the best results for your credit union’s business purposes and bring those examples to the web designer to help them see your vision.
Getting started with your website redesign
An experienced web design partner will share progress on the site build in stages. This is a critical phase of the design process, requiring attention to ensure everyone’s thinking on the website is aligned. Initially, you’re likely to see the home page and frameworks for other pages.
Dig in and be direct in your feedback about what you’re seeing at this point, from branding to functionality. When the credit union is not engaged in the feedback loop on a regular basis, it creates headaches and aggravation for all involved – and a poor outcome.
We assisted Mint Valley Federal Credit Union earlier this year with its website redesign. The team at this $24.6 million credit union was highly involved, providing thoughtful feedback on the design and testing all the buttons and links. The resulting website captured their vision for the brand and functions without friction for users. Mint Valley is definitely punching above its weight class with its website, building confidence with its website users and members.
We’re here to help answer the questions you may have about the process.
Your new credit union website is live – now what?
While it’s recommended that businesses redesign their websites every two years to present a modern brand, some changes needed along the way. Items like savings and loan rates need updating, promotional images will need replacing and other elements that come along in the normal course of a credit union’s business. At uncommn, we provide a much or as little support as you need. Some of your teams are drowning in task saturation, and we’re happy to help. For others, we’re just as happy to provide documentation that outlines how the most common changes to a credit union’s website can be made and be there just when our clients need us. One client recently needed assistance with something that wasn’t included in the documentation, and thanks to that feedback, we added it. Why? Because uncommn was born out of our CEO’s frustration dealing with credit union website design firms that nickel and dimed credit unions while also taking way to long for simple updates. Our mission is to be the preferred web development partner for innovative credit unions seeking to control their online presence.