Educational Resources

• Accelerate Your Credit Union’s Auto Loans (Blog Post)
  With over 12 million Americans still out of work, it should come as no surprise that consumers are hanging on to their cars for three to four years longer than they did in pre-recessionary times. Yet America’s long-standing love affair with cars continues — and that presents plenty of opportunities for credit unions. Read more of this NAFCU Services Blog post.
• It’s time for a change! Learn new strategies in merchant funded rewards. (Webinar)
  

  Interested in a merchant-funded rewards program for your members?  Confused by the many technologies and providers in the market? Learn about new strategies and best practices in merchant funded rewards and how to increase account acquisition, spend and loyalty through a turnkey, low-cost solution with this recorded webinar.

• Three Steps to Foolproof Member Engagement (Podcast and Presentation)
  

  To create a successful marketing strategy for member engagement, there are key factors credit unions should take into consideration. How do you define your target audience? How should you refine your marketing efforts? How do you refocus your strategy to take advantage of those opportunities? Each generation of consumers makes different purchasing decisions and is therefore more receptive to certain marketing efforts. By understanding who your target audience is and their demographic, credit unions will be able to craft specific marketing strategies to become more profitable. 

• Accelerate Your Credit Union Auto Loans (Article)
  

  Mr. Conte guest-writes the "Inside NAFCU Services" column, reserved for the organization's Preferred Partner experts. This column provides evidence that demand for auto purchases is rebounding in America. This column also provides actionable items for credit unions to maximize this area of expanding opportunity. 

• Minding the Gap: How to Protect Your Members in a Service Economy (Webcast)
  The best way to help members is to educate them on programs that they can benefit from. In this webcast, you will learn how members are saving for unexpected events. Joining us in this webcast on this all too important topic is Wayne Conte with Affinion Group. Wayne will go into more detail why your members need AD&D Insurance while reviewing case studies from other financial institutions.
• The Best of the Best – 2012 NAFCU Services Innovation Awards (Blog Post)
  Innovation can be hard to define, but you can think of it as “the successful application of new ideas.”  ‘Application’ is the key word there – new ideas are the easy part – figuring out which are the good ones, and then applying them successfully, is more difficult. Read more of this NAFCU Services Blog post.
• Protecting Your Members on the Social Web (Webcast)
  Protecting your members while they engage on the social web is becoming more important. The recent password hacking incident with LinkedIn showcased the dangers of the social web today. With these dangers, it is important that you safeguard your members. This webcast will teach you how to do just that.
  
• Data Breach Preparation and Response (Podcast and Presentation)
  Has your credit union considered how member relations, legal compliance and brand reputation might be affected during a data breach? In this 2012 NAFCU Technology & Security Conference session recording you will learn about the risks of data breaches and how they could impact your credit union.
  
• Data Breach Preparedness and Response – A Handy “How-To” (Blog Post)
  With the recent headlines about yet another data breach affecting credit unions and their members, I wanted to point you to a resource that might help you respond effectively. Because this isn’t the first data breach and it certainly won’t be the last. Read more of this NAFCU Services Blog post.
  
• Striking the Right Balance: Free vs. Fee Checking Account Strategies (Webinar)
  To help address challenges of replacing lost fee income, maximizing member value and attracting new members, credit unions are reevaluating their account structures. They are taking a close look at free checking programs and other account benefits and pricing strategies through the retail channel. Watch a recently recorded webinar to learn strategies that leading credit unions are employing that are not only profitable for the credit union, but meet the needs of members as well.
• On-boarding and Delighting New Members (Webcast)
  Credit unions spend a lot of time and energy on finding and acquiring new members, but what they do once they get those new members deserves just as much attention. In this webcast, we discuss the initial interactions that your credit union has with new members and how those interactions are critical to building trusting and lasting member relationships.
• Designing Accounts to Deliver Member Value (Webcast)
  

  With recent financial reform regulations, credit unions have been faced with some tough decisions when it comes to their product and service offerings. Among those is the question of offering free or fee-based checking accounts.

• Evolution of Identity Theft and Ensuring Your Members' Protection (Webcast)
  There have been nearly 50 million cases of id theft in the last five years and almost 20 million in the last two years. This equates to a cost of about $56 billion annually or $6,000 per person on an anual basis. In this webcast we are joined by Todd Werner, VP Marketing for Affinion Group, to discuss the evolution of identity theft including disturbing examples of how easy it is to steal someone's identity.
• Trends in Identity Fraud (Webcast)
  It is nearly impossible to go a full week without opening up the newspaper and seeing a story about some case of identity theft or breach of a security system due to identity theft. In this webcast we are joined by Todd Werner, VP, Marketing for Affinion Group as he reviews recent research findings on identity theft from several sources and offers insight into ways credit unions can help members prevent and detect identity theft.
• Best Practices for Member Engagement (Webcast)
  It is no surprise that credit unions face critical challenges in attracting new members, retaining their existing members and, in particular, building and maintaining trust in their organization as a financial institution. At their core, each one of these challenges require a high level of member engagement. In this webcast you will learn about what member engagement is as well as best practices to maximize member engagement at your credit union.
• Engaging Members in Tough Times (Article)
  In the July/August issue of The Federal Credit Union Magazine , Wayne Conte of Affinion Group helps credit unions understand how to engage members in a tough economy.
• The Changing Landscape of Identity Theft (Podcast)
  For credit unions, maintaining the most up-to-date online security is like playing a game of cat and mouse. Every time one problem is solved, another one pops up. This is no different in helping to protect members against crimes of identity theft.
• Beyond Lock-downs: Comprehensive Strategies to Protect Your Members from ID Theft (Podcast)
  An astounding 264 million pieces of individual personal information were exposed by either identity theft or fraud in 2007. Odds are that your personal information will at some point be compromised, either by something you do or by something that someone you do business with does.
• Learn Best Practices for Profitable Deposit Acquisition (Podcast)
  Everyone wants to grow, the question is how, particularly when today's financial services environment poses tremendous competitive challenges. This podcast features an interview with Todd Werner, Vice President of Marketing at the Affinion Group, who will discuss what other credit unions are doing successfully to grow their deposits from an expert in the field, and how you can apply it to yours.

News

• Affinion Benefits Group Adds More Than 50 Credit Union Clients in 2012 (March 13, 2013)
  Washington - Affinion Benefits Group (ABG), a NAFCU Services Preferred Partner, added nearly one new credit union client each week in 2012, continuing its strong growth trend from 2011, and the appeal of their solutions for driving credit union revenue growth and enhancing member services. This rapid pace of growth has accelerated into 2013, with twelve new credit union clients already added to the roster.
• NAFCU Services and Affinion Group Host Free Webinar on Award-Winning Merchant-Funded Rewards Programs (September 21, 2012)
  Washington - NAFCU Services Corporation (www.nafcu.org/nafcuservices) and Affinion Group will host a free webinar educating credit unions about new strategies and best practices for building and maintaining a merchant-funded loyalty program on Tuesday, September 25, at 2:30 p.m. EDT.
• Affinion Group, Deluxe and Discover win NAFCU Services 2012 Innovation Awards (July 24, 2012)
  NASHVILLE — NAFCU Services Corporation (www.nafcu.org/nafcuservices) today announced the winners of its 2012 Innovation Awards at NAFCU’s 45th Annual Conference & Exhibition at the Gaylord Opryland Resort and Convention Center in Nashville. Each year, NAFCU Services recognizes three of its Preferred Partners for outstanding, innovative solutions recently introduced to the credit union market.
• Affinion Group, Allied Solutions and Insuritas Win NAFCU Services’ 2011 Innovation Awards (June 27, 2011)
  SAN FRANCISCO — NAFCU Services Corporation today announced the winners of its 2011 Innovation Awards at NAFCU’s 44th Annual Conference & Exhibition at the Moscone Convention Center in San Francisco. Each year, NAFCU Services recognizes three of its Preferred Partners for outstanding, innovative solutions recently introduced to the credit union market.
• NAFCU Services and Affinion Group Provide Free Webcast on Trends in Identity Fraud (October 7, 2010)
  

  NAFCU Services Corporation today posted a free webcast for credit unions titled “Trends in Identity Fraud” with its Preferred Partner, Affinion Group. The webcast reviews recent research findings on identity theft from several sources and offers insight into ways credit unions can help members prevent and detect identity theft.

• NAFCU Services and Affinion Security Center Unveil New Identity Theft PSAs for Credit Unions (July 21, 2010)
  WASHINGTON — NAFCU Services Corporation (www.nafcu.org/nafcuservices) and Affinion Security Center today announced that two new customizable public service announcement (PSA) videos are now available for NAFCU members free of charge to be used on local television, online and in other venues to deliver tips on preventing identity theft to their local communities.

• Deluxe, Affinion, and Securian Receive NAFCU Services 2009 Innovation Awards (July 6, 2009)
  WASHINGTON —NAFCU Services Corporation today announced the winners of its 2009 Innovation Awards, which recognize excellence and innovation in Preferred Partner solutions for credit unions and enhance their ability to compete in a crowded financial services marketplace.
• NAFCU Services and Affinion Release Educational Podcast on Changing Landscape of ID Theft (February 11, 2009)
  

  WASHINGTON — NAFCU Services Corporation and Affinion Security Center, NAFCU Services’ preferred partner in providing identity theft solutions to credit unions, recently released a free podcast that offers the latest information on identity theft, the fastest growing crime in America.

• Affinion Wins Innovation Award From NAFCU Services (August 5, 2008)
  Affinion Group, a leading global affinity marketer, has received the inaugural 2008 Innovation Award from NAFCU Services Corporation, recognizing excellence and innovation in Preferred Partner solutions for credit unions, and enhancing their ability to compete in a crowded financial services marketplace.
  
• Affinion and NAFCU Services Release Free Podcast: 'Beyond Lockdowns: Comprehensive Strategies for ID Theft Protection' (May 27, 2008)
  Affinion Group (a NAFCU Services Preferred Partner) and NAFCU Services Corporation have unveiled a free podcast discussing the best ways for credit unions to protect their members for a variety of ID theft scenarios.

Contact Affinion Group

Lisa Hardin | 800-251-2148
http://www.affiniongroup.com
Lisa.Hardin@affiniongroup.com