Picatinny Federal Credit Union began in 1939 as a small credit union with one branch location, serving the employees of the United States Army’s Picatinny Arsenal. Today, Picatinny FCU is a full-service financial institution with five Branch Offices serving all of Morris County.
Challenge
As the credit union has evolved, so have the banking needs of its member community. Picatinny Federal Credit Union charged R&J Strategic Communications with the task of redesigning its website, replacing an outdated design with a refreshed site, reflective of the credit union’s full suite of financial services.
Before
The project began with a discovery process, interviewing key stakeholders in the organization to ensure that our new design was reflective of the credit union’s brand messaging and technical requirements. A member survey was also conducted, to ensure that the redesigned site also reflected the needs of the member community. From this process the following project requirements were identified:
- The site must be easy to navigate, with the prominent display of current rate information, and seamless integration with the transactional online banking tools supported by third-party financial services vendors.
- The site must be responsive—and remain easy to use across desktop web browsers, as well as tablets and smart phones. As part of the website relaunch, the credit union was also implementing new mobile apps. So the R&J team was required to work with the credit union’s financial services partner to provide a branded skin for the mobile banking apps that matched the branding for the new website.
- As the credit union’s online banking tools were also being upgraded it was necessary for R&J to deliver a project plan so the new website and the new banking tools could launch simultaneously, providing members with a new interface across the entire suite of banking services in a seamless, coordinated user experience.
- The site should reflect the credit union’s position as a local Morris County business, highlighting its strong ties to the community and reinforcing its robust service offerings, while also differentiating itself from the impersonal commercial banks it competes with.
- New language needed to be drafted, to reflect the credit union’s position as a friendlier alternative to commercial institutions, as well as its deep ties to Morris County.
- Photography on the site needed to move from stock art, instead offering images of actual members and real locations from throughout Morris County that would resonate with a local audience. Complicating this challenge, the COVID-19 pandemic required that any photo shoots were reflective of social distancing mandates and protections for members. Images created for the site also needed to reflect the credit union’s commitment to member safety.
Action
In selecting R&J Strategic Communications for its website relaunch, Picatinny Federal Credit Union was able to leverage our extensive experience across a wide array of the agency’s disciplines to deliver a new online experience for its members, on time and on budget.
Creative & Digital Services
Our creative team delivered a visually engaging and responsive website design across desktop and mobile browsers, and online banking apps. In addition to an attractive, branded color scheme, refined logos, and site navigation, we delivered engaging photos of employees and members across each of the credit union’s branches and in familiar Morris County locations.
Development Services
After
Our web developers delivered a state-of-the-art website that is fast, secure, and integrated with the credit union’s financial services tools. We worked hard to ensure that the complex array of features—including loan applications, new account enrollment, and online banking tools—remained easy to access and use by the member community.
Copywriting Services
The R&J public relations/content team worked directly with the credit union’s marketing team to develop and enhance PFCU’s messaging to reach their target audiences. Working to appeal to both current and new members within Morris County our team made sure their brand’s voice as clear, consistent, and welcoming to all who: live, work, or worship within the county.
Account Management Services
Our account services team managed our internal resources and coordinated with the credit union’s financial services vendors to ensure that the project was delivered on time and on budget, and that our launch and the launch of the new banking tools were coordinated, as required, so that their integration was invisible to the member community.
Results
The new Picatinny Federal Credit Union has been an incredible success. The refined navigation and simplified access to the new suite of mobile and online banking tools has been well received by both the credit union’s staff and members. And importantly, the new website and its supporting marketing and communications campaign have made a measurable difference in driving potential new members to the website. For the first quarter of 2021, the number of new visitors to the credit union’s website comprised a full 60% of its audience. This is particularly remarkable when you consider that, with its transactional services, this is the type of site most users can be expected to visit regularly, in the management of their personal finances.
In building a fast, modern website, and representing its position as a community-focused business servicing Morris County, and communicating the launch through a coordinated communications and messaging strategy, Picatinny Federal Credit Union is attracting significant attention from non-members, and has made significant inroads to the credit union’s continued growth.
Conclusion
Utilizing resources from across our service areas, the R&J team successfully launched the redesigned PFCU website on time and within budget. Leveraging our team’s expertise in copywriting, design, development, as well as our account management services, the Picatinny Team relied on R&J as a trusted partner in this critical site relaunch. On our client’s behalf we coordinated and implemented the website’s visual design, technical infrastructure, integration with third-party applications. If you have a website project you would like to discuss with the R&J team, please reach out to Tim Gerdes, our Vice President of Digital and Creative Services to see how we can make a difference for your brand.
