• by April 8, 2009

Freedom and flexibility often go hand in hand. Case in point -- an ad campaign based on the concept "Freedom Is ...," whose flexible format has helped a Colorado Springs, Colo.-based credit union weather the economic storms. 

In Southern Colorado, one of the rare markets where credit unions predominate over banks, Ent Federal Credit Union reigns as the leading financial institution of any kind -- with around 25% market share in the Colorado Springs metro and a presence in 40% of households. Ent has a smaller presence in Pueblo -- where it launched two years ago this month -- and in Denver, which came on board last June. At the end of 2008, it was the 30th-largest credit union in the nation.

Nearly a year ago, Ent launched the "Freedom Is ..." campaign, whose fill-in-the-blank ending provided the flexibility to explain the credit union to its new communities, while in Colorado Springs, it explained "how committed we are to the community and the membership," says Victoria Selfridge, Ent's director of marketing and ecommerce. And, she notes, the credit unions' existing tagline, "where you belong," could also be incorporated, as in "Freedom is a credit union where you belong."

"Freedom Is ..." replaced a strictly brand-centric campaign that had been celebrating Ent's 50th anniversary, says Lisa Wiesner, account supervisor at Vladimir Jones, the independent Colorado Springs agency behind the campaign. While "Freedom Is ..." was also predominantly image-based at first, its flexibility allowed expansion into security and trust themes as the nation's economic crisis worsened, she says.

"It was fortuitous from a timing viewpoint," adds Joe Hodas, the agency's senior vice president of brand communications, to have the Freedom Is ... campaign already underway as the financial crisis deepened. "It allowed us to respond to some significant changes in the specific messages we needed to put out to the market," seconds Jim Moore, Ent's senior vice president of communications and development.

As the campaign progressed, Ent's different product lines -- such as small business, commercial and insurance -- were also able to start using the format, said Moore.

The "Freedom Is ..." campaign has used outdoor in the form of bus shelters and billboards; online via local news sites; radio in Colorado Springs and Pueblo; print via area magazines and newspapers in Colorado Springs and Pueblo, and via the Denver Business Journal, since the only two locations in that sprawling metro are downtown.

"Freedom Is going wherever and whenever I feel like it," reads a sample print ad featuring an outdoorsy guy. "Freedom is planning for her future," blares an outdoor ads billboard showing a baby.

Credit unions, to be fair, have not been immune from the nation's banking crisis. Just last month, two major wholesale credit unions that serve smaller institutions like Ent were seized by the National Credit Union Administration, a federal agency that functions as the industry's FDIC-type watchdog and insurer. As a result of those seizures and an earlier $1 billion credit union bailout, Ent in March took nearly $20 million in charges against 2008 earnings, reducing its annual income by 90%, according to the Colorado Springs Gazette.

But Ent still has $2.8 billion in assets. And before the charges, it had reported a record $26 million in 2008 income.

"Through February, we were ahead of budget in virtually every category," says Moore. That includes mortgage lending, which is going so well that ads promoting loans have given way to ads promoting "safety and soundness." As recently as six to eight months ago, he notes, it didn't matter whether financial institutions marketed safety and soundness, but now those are necessities.

And as a result of its success, its flexibility and the times, "Freedom Is ..." has perhaps also gained itself some freedom from extinction. "I think [the campaign] has pretty good legs," Moore says, predicting a minimum run of two years. "We'll probably reassess it in the fall," but "with the economy the way it is, it's so strong a message -- for people to gain control and have confidence in us."