Congressional Federal Credit Union Website Redesign and Social Media Strategy

About the Project

The Congressional Federal Credit Union (CFCU) website is one of the primary ways that the organization markets its products and services. It is a vehicle to serve current members as well as to attract new members.  In the first phase, the credit union needed a new website to present seamless branding with offline initiatives. The organization also wanted to leverage the latest technologies for a terrific user experience and the most efficient use of staff resources. After several months, CFCU decided to refresh the site to make it work even better for its users. The second phase focused on giving CFCU opportunities to engage users and to facilitate frequent maintenance tasks.

The Balance Interactive solution included:

Focus on the Customer

The site is built with customers in mind. The navigation is structured around the products and services that the credit union offers and uses words that clients use. The most frequently accessed information is placed on the home page and at the highest levels of the navigation.

The second phase of the project extended the focus on the customers, making frequent user tasks easier to accomplish with a set of quick links in the upper right. Balance also replaced the original flash slideshow with a dynamic slideshow and created new places for banners throughout the site that allow CFCU to quickly include calls to action, highlight promotions and present important news about the organization.

Present the Brand

The website is completely cohesive with the current CFCU branding strategy. During the initial development of the site Balance worked closely with CFCU’s marketing staff members to translate and expand the defined look and feel and messaging to create a dynamic website. From mailings, to posters in branch libraries to the website, current and potential customers are presented with consistent branding from Congressional.

Content Management with Ektron

The Ektron content management system was implemented to manage the new web presence. The system allows Congressional staff members to easily add and update content. The navigation can be changed with a click of the mouse. New images and ads for the latest promotions can be added easily. Seasonal information can be stored in an inactive state and activated at the appropriate times on the website editorial calendar without having to be re-entered. Loan and certificate rates can be entered as structured content and are displayed in dynamically generated tables throughout the site. Further, when CFCU modified their brand to incorporate a redesigned logo in the second phase of the project, the Ektron templates made the switch quick and painless.

Social Media Strategy

Balance Interactive developed a custom social media strategy for Congressional Federal Union. The strategy factored in the organization’s online and offline marketing efforts, listening to what customers and potential customers are saying in the social media space, and CFCU’s available resources. The strategy outlined the timeline and tasks needed for CFCU to effectively engage in relationships on blogs, Twitter, referral sites like Yelp, event sites like Yahoo! Upcoming, LinkedIn, Facebook and more.