CUNA News
  • LOG IN
  • Create Account
  • Sign Out
  • My Account
  • LOG IN
  • Create Account
  • Sign Out
  • My Account
  • Topics
    • Community Service
    • Compliance
    • Credit Union Hero
    • Credit Union Rock Star
    • Credit Union System
    • Directors
    • Human Resources
    • Leadership
    • Lending
    • Marketing
    • Operations
    • Policy & Issues
    • Sales & Service
    • Technology
  • Credit Union Magazine
    • Buyers' Guide
    • COVID-19
    • Digital Edition
    • Credit Union Hero
    • Credit Union Rock Star
    • Subscribe
    • Advertise
    • Contact
  • Advertise
  • Awards
    • Nominate Credit Union Hero
    • Nominate Credit Union Rock Star
  • Podcasts
  • Videos
  • Jobs
  • Contact

News

Home » Dedicated to Marketing
Marketing CU Rock Stars 2015
Dustin Bagstad

Dedicated to Marketing

Bicycle program builds relationships with college students.

October 6, 2015
No Comments
Dustin Bagstad

DUSTIN BAGSTAD had been at $58 million asset Governmental Employees Credit Union, a one-branch establishment in La Crosse, Wis., for almost 15 years when he became marketing director last May—the first dedicated marketing person in the credit union’s history.

He jumped in immediately, starting with a revamp of the credit union’s Facebook strategy. “We weren’t really using it correctly. We were posting on it only occasionally. I started us [adding] at least one or two fresh posts per week, alternating between product information and fun facts.”

Then he recruited staff in the effort, inviting them to ask their Facebook friends to post “likes” on the credit union’s updated Facebook page.

Bagstad also introduced ticket giveaways to a local minor league baseball team, as well as silent auctions online. “We received bids from as far away as New York and Rhode Island.”

Another successful outreach was his Cute Pet Contest on Facebook. He’d expected perhaps a dozen cute pet photo submissions, but wound up with four times that number.

“It cost us about $100 to put it on,” he says. “The main expenses were some Visa gift cards. Our Facebook engagement went through the roof from that one.”

Bagstad says his marketing chops come from his parents, who taught him how to comfortably interact with people and approach them in a friendly way. “When I’m out and about, I’ll see some of our members on the sidewalk, and greet them: ‘Hi, Joan’ or ‘Hey, Steve!’ ”

Another of Dustin’s innovations is a bicycle loan program he designed to build relationships with college students. “We have 20,000 students here in a metro area of 100,000—a huge number in an area where bicycling has grown by leaps and bounds. We offer loans from $300 to $10,000 with a 3.99% interest rate.”

The credit union has partnered with two local bike shops to publicize the effort. “The loans are a way to get into college students’ heads with a positive experience, taking out what for many of them is the first loan they’ve sought on their own.”

Even in private life Dustin knows how to use technology to persuade. A piano tutor who first learned to play the instrument at age five, he had one very reluctant fifth-grade student who came alive once Dustin realized how much the boy engaged with his iPad.

“I had him download an app that let him play a simulated piano on the iPad. He took to it immediately. Now he’s one of my best, most dedicated students.”
 

KEYWORDS Credit Union Rock Stars

Post a comment to this article

Report Abusive Comment

Credit Union Magazine: Winter 2022

Winter 2022

Credit Union Magazine’s Winter 2022 issue highlights data-driven marketing, the board’s role in cybersecurity, elder abuse scams, credit unions’ auto lending advantage, and more.
Digital Edition •  Subscribe

Trending

  • House passes CUNA, League-led board modernization bill

  • CFPB issues CUNA-opposed proposal on credit card late fees

  • Key committee leaders supportive of credit union priorities

Tweets by CUNA_News

Polls

Vote for the 2023 CU Hero of the Year

View Results
More

Champion for the Credit Union Movement

Credit Union National Association is the most influential financial services trade association and the only national association that advocates on behalf of all of America's credit unions. We work tirelessly to protect your best interests in Washington and all 50 states. We fuel your professional growth at every level and champion the credit union story at every turn.

More CUNA

  • Membership
  • Contact Us
  • Careers

Resources for

  • Credit Union Advocates
  • Leagues
  • Press
  • Providers

Our Affiliates

  • American Association of Credit Union Leagues (AACUL)
  • Credit Union Awareness
  • Credit Union House
  • CUNA Strategic Services
  • National Credit Union Foundation
GET CUNA UPDATES
© 2023 Credit Union National Association | ADA Compliance Notice & Legal
Email Us