CU*Online Newsletter
October 2001 

CU*ONLINE is the Web Design & Maintenance division of Alonzi Technical Consulting.
All Rights Reserved.

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Is your Site Meeting your Members' Needs?

New browser standards, P3P, 508... the criteria that makes a Web site "good" are changing constantly. Is your Web site meeting your members' current needs? Even if your site is only two years old, this is an important question to be asking. 

For example, if your Web site was designed for viewing on a monitor with an 640x480 pixel resolution, it's obsolete. Major computer manufacturers have been delivering monitors set at 1024x768 for over a year now and yes, it is VERY annoying to scroll down a Web page that occupies barely half your available screen space.

Consider performing a "CU*ONLINE Site Analysis" once a year. We'll review the contents of your site and point out any concerns. Not only will we talk about new trends, we'll also check your site logs to analyze your web traffic and its implications for online marketing.

To set up your CU*ONLINE Site Analysis, contact us at (952) 829-0819 ext.2 or at cumaster@cuonline.com. Let's make it an annual date!

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A note from Karen: New Clients and Referrals

Now that I'm a fully self-employed web designer in the credit union world, I need to add a few names to my client list. If you're pleased with the quality of my service, please jot off a quick note that I can use in my marketing material -- and tell your friends.

If you're not pleased, it's even more important that you contact me. Your satisfaction is very important!

Which leads to my next concern. (Yes, I do worry about these things at night!) Are these email/newsletters a nuisance? If so, simply reply to this email and ask to be removed from my mailing list.

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Hype your Site! Tips for Marketing your Web Site

If you've gone to the trouble of developing a Web site to do yourself proud, it's worth the extra effort to promote it like crazy to your target market. A Web site can only be effective if it gets viewed by prospective members. Here are a few things you can do right now to maximize every possible point of contact:

1. Put your Web address on your promotional materials -- business cards, letterhead, and brochures. Put it wherever you'd list your phone number, fax number or e-mail address. Add it to envelopes, invoices, catalogs, postcards, shopping bags and all directories in which you're listed.

2. Include Web site information on your voice mail. Let members on hold learn how to connect to your Web site for pertinent information. Encourage the people who answer your phones to give your Web address to every caller who identifies him or herself as an Internet user.

3. Put your Web address on store and office signs. Hang it on banners outside your building. Paint it on rooftops! Include it in interior signs throughout your lobby or office.

4. Link to other Web sites. Try to think beyond financial links, and look at your community. Offer links on your site to other quality business Web sites where your members shop or work. Then ask these sites to do the same. Referrals are the lifeblood of your credit union.

5. Go beyond outsourcing. If you provide online services such as banking, check reorders, bill payment or VISA account management, explain these services on your site and offer guidelines for their use that members can read BEFORE they are asked to sign in. Try to reassure new visitors that you understand their first-time fears, and their financial data will be secure.

No matter how well designed, your site can't bring in new business until it gets seen. Since most people still spend the majority of their time in the real world, not the cyberworld, it's important to promote your site using a mixture of both traditional and online marketing techniques.

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Copyright © 2001, CU*ONLINE. All rights reserved. To contact Karen Alonzi at CU*ONLINE, call or write to Alonzi Technical Consulting's new address at: