08/25/2009

Young & Free update: new websites are here and multiple launches are just around the corner!

By Tim McAlpine

New website design

We originally designed the first Young & Free microsite in 2006. Needless to say the social web has progressed in the last three years and we have learned a tremendous amount from running three Young & Free programs. This experience has influenced a total redesign of the Young & Free sites. Here are some highlights:

• The new header prominently displays the regional hex logos, colors, textures and Young & Free Spokesters and better illustrates what the program is all about.
• During the Y&F Spokester's term, the blog is now the home page instead of a secondary page. This will ensure that visitors are greeted with daily fresh content. Visit the new Texas and Alberta home pages to see what I am talking about.
• We are using the new Disqus (pronounced Discuss) blog comment platform. Disqus enables visitors to login through their Twitter, Facebook, Seesmic or Open ID accounts. Participants can automatically tweet their comment, update their Facebook status with their comment and subscribe to further comments by e-mail. Disqus has the ability to accept video comments through Seesmic and will automatically add any tweets that link to a post.
• During the annual Y&F Spokester search or during a special promotion like the Young & Free SC Last Band Standing competition, the new site design features a promotional homepage. During these periods, the blog moves to the first secondary page.
• We have a new and improved right sidebar with:
  • A permanent spot for our new Living Young & Free Show
  • Greater visibility of our monthly prizes
  • A real-time search widget to highlight activity on Twitter
  • A latest blog comments widget to highlight active commenters, recent activity and popular posts
• The base of the site has a much larger product ad, more Flickr photos and readily accessible links to corporate pages and all of the other Young & Free sites.
• The top navigation bar has been reorganized to better highlight videos, financial information, events and a new forum.

Young & Free in the near future

Since going public in June 2008 with our plan to offer one courageous credit union in each state and province an exclusive license to run a Young & Free program, we have had tremendous interest. In fact, more than 150 credit unions and leagues have filled out our form requesting further information.

Although interest is extremely high from US credit unions, the economy and especially the NCUA Corporate Stabilization Program have had a tremendous impact on most credit unions' ability to move forward with an aggressive 52-week program like Young & Free. Having said that, we are extremely excited to announce that our fourth Y&F region will be live in one month and number five and six are launching at the end of January 2010 and June 2010 respectively.

Thanks for everyone's continued interest and support in Young & Free. Please let me know what you think of the new websites!

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08/17/2009

Still think social media is a fad?

By Tim McAlpine

Nice video by Socialnomics called the Social Media Revolution. We hear all these big numbers over and over again, but this short video really puts it into perspective. Take some of the stats with a grain of salt though—there is quite a discussion going on in the comments of the original creator's blog.

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08/12/2009

Cooperative advocate Carol Schillios is living on a roof until she raises $1 million!

By Tim McAlpine

In Edmonds, Washington, there is a really nice credit union and cooperative advocate living on a roof with a simple dream: raise $1 million to support women and their families in developing countries. And she won't come down until she makes it. Her name is Carol Schillios and here is her campaign website.

Carol is asking everyone to donate $1 each to her Fabric of Life Foundation in conjunction with a small act of kindness. Read some of the amazing things that her foundation has accomplished to date.

Since going up on the roof on July 31, Carol has raised about $7,000, so she definitely needs everyone's help if she plans to get down anytime soon! Here's what you can do:

1. Donate a dollar (or more) and perform a small act of kindness
    
2. Tweet your one small act, along with this link to Carol’s site http://bit.ly/qQaec and the hashtag #imupontheroof. For example: “Brought coffee and donuts to the office today for my coworkers. http://bit.ly/qQaec #imupontheroof”

Carol is online and will see your tweets if you use the hashtag #imupontheroof. This will remind her that there are a bunch of people with her in spirit. Also, please encourage everyone you can to do the same by e-mailing, tweeting, blogging, Facebook(ing), etc.

Let's get Carol off that roof pronto!

Thanks,

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08/06/2009

Living Young & Free Show 003: Summer Jobs, Wedding Gifts and Saving for Retirement

By Tim McAlpine

Episode 003 is all set for your viewing and learning pleasure!

1) Myles from Alberta shows you a few ways to make money during the Summer

• Lawn care
• Landscaping
• Performing
• Car washing and detailing

2) Cheryl from Living Young and Free shows you how to do wedding gifts on the cheap

• Use your talents
• Give a themed gift

3) DeAndre' from Texas talks about saving for retirement

• Start early
• Make regular investments
• Be patient

Like what you see? Got ideas for future episodes? Leave a comment.

You can also watch episode 001 and 002.

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08/04/2009

We helped Verity Credit Union launch a search for a wildly creative, funny and talented Seattle-area mom today!

By Tim McAlpine

I am thrilled to unveil Verity Mom for Seattle's Verity Credit Union. I'm so excited because:

• It's a new social media program aimed at connecting and learning from Seattle-area moms. Moms are a segment of the population that we feel credit unions have tremendous potential to attract.
• At the center of the program is a public search for a part-time mommy blogger. We think this is a really compelling story and the chosen mommy blogger has the potential of creating fantastic content. And, our experience running four successful Young & Free Spokester searches will help us greatly.
• We are working with social media pioneers. Shari Storm and her team at Verity Credit Union launched the first corporate blog by a financial institution in North America. Their experience will undoubtedly add to the success of this program.
• Another one of our challenge marketing concepts is now live and will help in fulfilling our purpose. Simply put, it is our purpose to help credit unions deepen their relationships with members and to persuade bank customers to become credit union members. We feel that the Mommy Blogger Challenge has the potential to attract thousands of new members to the credit union movement and Verity Credit Union is the ideal partner to launch with.

Here are some of the pieces

Verity Mom microsite

Video: Are you our Verity Mom?

Clockwise from top left: branch posters, floor decals, print ads, beach balls and staff info sheets

Here's what Shari Storm, Verity Credit Union’s Chief Marketing Officer, had to say, “Moms make most of the spending decisions in a family and they hold the most influence over where their children will eventually do their banking. We are looking at this as a multi-generational strategy. Our intention is to build a place where moms meet, talk and we have a chance to ask more questions and learn more about them. Currency Marketing provides the perfect platform for this.”

When we began talking with Shari and her team about this concept, it was obvious that Verity Credit Union has a passion to understand and serve families and offer the products and services those families need most. We worked with Verity to tailor our Mommy Blogger challenge marketing program to match their brand, launch an exciting blogger search and introduce Verity’s Cartwheel Checking account to new visitors. This account is perfectly suited for moms.

Here's how the program works:

• Moms will visit veritymom.com and fill out an application
• Everyone can watch and participate as the applicants are narrowed down to three finalists
• Site visitors will vote for the finalist they think should be the winner
• The winner will receive a part-time blogging contract worth $20,000 per year, a MacBook Pro computer and a Flip Mino HD video camera
• Prizes will be awarded to the other two finalists as well

Please take a moment and visit the Verity Mom microsite. For more information, download our press release.

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