5 Things Paris Hilton Taught Me About Credit Union Marketing

Posted by Tony

July 16, 2007

This last weekend I was flipping channels and I came across the E! channel. Once again I was assaulted with coverage of the latests happenings of Paris Hilton. How does this vapid and untalented girl keep getting positive press? Even when it seems her world is falling to pieces, she seems to come out on top. I took out my handy dandy notebook and sat in my thinking chair and began to collect the clues to learn the secrets Ms. Hilton’s success. This is what I learned.

Find one thing that you are good at, and get someone to write about you doing it.
What does she do? She parties, she gets falling down drunk, she “acts” and she makes fun of people who fall out of favor with her. These are not great techniques for credit unions to emulate. However, Ms. Hilton does what she loves to do and gets paid obscenely for it. And you can do the same. Are you the credit union that touts yourself to be “Your Community Credit Union” or “Making a Difference” or even “Your Friend in the Credit Union Business”? How do you act on these promises? Are you hosting community events? Are you actively sending out great press releases to build buzz (Ms. Hilton have expensive publicists who do this for her). Are you working with community leaders to get regular exposure by working on their projects with them? Are you living up to your own hype? Are you “Making a Difference”?

Paris has positioned herself as a trendsetter. L.A. Clubs pay her $100,000 to show up for one night and get falling down drunk with her friends so that the club can establish itself a “Celeb Hangout”. They use her to reinforce their brand. Are you inviting young members in for special parties? Do you have a Youth Council of young “trendsetters” to tell you how to serve your youth market?
All Exposure is Good Exposure Unless you get caught doing something wrong.
Leave it to Paris to turn a video of a private encounter into marketing gold. She (or her agency) is a genius. She rolled a potentially damaging video into a legitimate film career. After the release of that private video, she picked up 3 film contracts and months of national exposure. She has been the talk of the country and mentioned on every late night show and comedians comedy set. She did this by acknowledging the film, accepting all the press and turn the distributer into a villain. Even though she was an active participant in the video, the distribution was not her fault. This made her sympathetic in the eyes of the public (after the initial giggles).Now Paris is free from jail where she was serving time due to charges relating to multiple DUI charges and arrests. She committed a crime that some people hold right below spousal abuse and murder. Yet, as she is arrested, tried, incarcerated and released - sympathetic news coverage fills every outlet. Even while some is “Tongue in cheek” it is still positive in light of the charges she was convicted of.

Credit Unions have been getting a lot of bad press about personal information being released. Some credit unions have tried to hide the exposure. Some have tried to “Lawyer Up” to protect themselves from those whom they serve. And some have come out, without shame and fully accepting responsibility for the breach. On Larry King, Paris proclaims “I have learned a lot through this ordeal” and accepted her punishment as right and just. She says that she has learned her lesson. She seems to have been frgiven by the public. And though we laugh behind her back - we still tune in to perpetuate her celebrity.
Put your name on everything!
She does. She is singly the most brand focused individual that I think I have ever seen. She has her fragrance, clothing line, video game and even her own line of hair extensions. She is so completely focused on maintaining her identity (brand) that even in the face of adversity - she stays on message. Her catch phrase “That’s Hot” has been picked up by the likes of Carl’s Jr. and has been used in relation to her persona. It has been branded so well that one can barely say “That’s Hot” without invoking Paris.Once you truly know what branding is, no one can argue its effectiveness. Think the next time you make a shopping and write down Kleenex instead of facial tissues or Ziploc bags instead of zip top bags. That is branding.

Are you immediately attached to your brand? When people say “The Best Credit Union”, is it immediately followed by the name of your credit union? Maybe it’s not easy. There is a lot of competition. But if you ever doubt that its possible - think about the next time you are at the store grabbing the store brand of swabs off the shelf and cross Q-Tips off your list. Branding is everything. If Paris can do it - so can you.
Know who pays the bills and keep them close to you.
Paris knows who butters her bread. Mommy and Daddy. She maintains a very close relationship with the parents. When typical teenagers are running amok and rebellious - she is throwing birthday parties for her folks. Now granted, she might not be the perfect child - but she knows who pays the bills. She keeps them very close.Your members are what keeps you in business.

When was the last time you did something really special for your members? When was the last time you really reached out and gave your members something great? Your members are everything. Never forget it. Paris doesn’t. When she gets into a jam, she knows she can count on her family to pull together and get her out. If your credit union got itself into a jam by releasing private information - would your members circle the wagons or hold you out to the wolves? Be honest with yourself. If you don’t love your members with all your heart, they will stop being family and start being customers. And customers will drop you like a hot potato when the going gets rough.
Be careful who you are seen hanging out with.
Paris is seen running with the hottest celebs in Hollywood. The “Young Elite” is her entourage. Minor celebrities try to get close to her and major celebrities want her number on their cell phones. But even the heiress will make a mistake from time to time and she will pay for it. Paris found herself in a relationship with a young man named Rick Solomon. He is the enterprising fellow who saw a market for a personal video encounter. This video cost Paris a great deal in legal fees and general embarrassment.

Sometimes a relationship seems like a good idea at the time. Maybe you found a company who will perform the “same” services at half the price. Ask yourself “How can they do it for so much less? What are they not doing? What am I sacrificing by using the lowest bidder? Why are all the other bids so similar and this one is so much less” Sometimes you can find a deal. Sometimes you will find yourself in a great relationship for a year or two. Until it happens and your dirty laundry is hanging out there for everyone to see. When establishing your identity and your brand - it is best to stick with the best. They may be a little more expensive, but very often, you get what you pay for. I am not suggesting that you should always use an agency or even my agency. I am suggesting that you be cautious with who you work with. We have seen dozens of cases in the past year where 3rd party vendors have damaged the credit unions that they serve. Not all of these companies were the lowest bidders - but you do hedge your risk of exposure by working with someone that you can trust.

So that’s it. Paris, the brand phenom and what she has to contribute to the credit union world. I hope you have enjoyed my random musings on an otherwise unspectacular individual. Learn from her accomplishments and her failures. Your credit union will be better for the experiment.