That's No Bull

CUNA – 2009 San Diego
Impressions of a first time sponsor
First San Diego was a perfect choice of venue what a beautiful place. Two thumbs up.. The week prior to going to SD Richmond had 10” of snow and 7 degrees. I was ready.

Upon arrival I realized that my on-line registration had not gone through. We’ll chalk it up to USER ERROR. The very calm and professional Bobbi Bischke said “No Problem” and proceeded to accommodate me. They found a space for my BDTOGO Kit and we were off.

The set up on Wednesday went well, the staff at the Business Center and the Hilton were very easy to work with. All of my stuff showed up when it was supposed to. Yeah! I was next to Erik and Matthew of CBSI Loyalty Solutions and Gary & John from inLighten Digital Signage. Great guys. They are the DS vendor for our client Call Federal.

So… Wednesday after setup we had the Welcome Reception. Rory the Rhino went up easy, CUNA (pronounced “KUNAH”) the Lion was a breeze, but for some reason Gerri the Giraffe just wasn’t happy. I think she didn’t have any trees to nibble on. Sorry to the guys in the next booth I think she ate some of your display. The Hilton folks did make one error in that they put the food out in the hall so a lot of attendees came in got a drink from the bar and went back out into the hallway. Still got a chance to meet a few folks, but for the most part the Welcome was not very welcoming. Stuff happens, move on.

The evening was fun. I got to spend time with Kelley Parks and her husband Matt, Janet and Kent Dicken of iDiz, and Stephanie from Maine, and friends of the Dicken’s from Indi. We had dinner at Los Fajitas in the Gaslamp Qtr. I think it stands for lost fish taco. Tin Fish has better fish tacos. Food was so so, but Antonio our waiter had a great baritone voice. Walked forever, which was good.

Thursday was the first full day of seminars and networking, but it started with Judson Lampleigh. Whom ever chose him gets four big stars.. How funny and interesting is that guy? The serious side of his message was that if we think of our lives aa choices that we and only we are responsible for then we will never view ourselves as victims in a life we have no control over. That’s deep. My stomach hasn’t hurt that much from laughing in a long time. I don’t honestly know how you top that.

I met some really interesting people at the conference. I would like to name a few. First and foremost Kent and Janet from iDiz. We have actually worked with them for years through Kelley at Call Federal. I had never taken the opportunity to really get to know them. This time I did, and am I glad. These two and their team of creatives have a wealth of experience. Instantly you know you are talking to someone with integrity (I’m just saying these things because they picked up the tab at Lost Fajitas). Honest. Anyway, they have helped Kelley an our group develop branding campaigns and programs that have translated into a more than 10% increase in asset base and a 15% membership improvement for Call Federal in Richmond. I’m glad they are part of the team and I look forward to working with them in the future.

The folks from AdQue, Terry, his wife and their daughter Elizabeth. I thought it was pretty cool how they run their business as a family. It seems to fit the CU way. I like the look and feel of their displays. Very clean with focus on the important stuff, CONTENT. I believe we can work with them in future as well. I will get back to the interesting people in a bit. Now I want to go on to the one subject that is a little difficult. Can you say “Delicious”, and laugh damn it. The only thing I want to say about this is that my wife refused to believe that I was calling women at the conference delicious without being slapped. Oh and to the gentleman in the back row at the “Good Bad and Ugly” I’m really sorry. If you must know it was uncomfortable for me as well. Enough said.

That afternoon was actually quite good. I met a lot of Marketing and BD professionals. Truthfully I never believed that anyone in CU world would be as nice as KP. It was very enlightening to experience such an intelligent nice group of people. It must be in the culture or maybe it was in those water bottles. Hmmmm? Took a lot of photos with Gerri the Giraffe( for those who posed for this your photos will be in the mail soon).

My impression was that a lot people liked what we had to offer with the BDTOGO. Many thought the price was too low. So we may increase it soon. Give the market what they want I say. We had a lot of comments about how light weight it is and that you can get everything you need for a membership drive or small trade show/fair in a rollable case. “No more 10 heavy boxes and no one to set up but me” was one comment. But enough about www.exhibitwarehouse.com where you can buy the BDTOGO for $795 through the end of March. Okay that’s the last shameless plug, for now.

Thursday was a free evening, and by then I had been in SD for three nights, so I was ready. Walked over to Horton mall for dinner with some folks from CT. Mongolian, pretty good.

Friday breakfast was not as well attended as Thursday, though they had the silent auction. That seemed to go over well. The Washington update was interesting. It seems as though, , the Senior Lobbyist is on the ball. I enjoyed going to the sessions. There is a lot of lingo in this industry there are still a few I don’t get. I picked up things like segs, regs, and kegs. I think the last one is not in the official CU handbook.
I attended the Good Bad and Ugly session which was well done. Not a person left the room glad they were not Jim, but admiring his fortitude in sticking with his CU over an incredibly challenging period. Leigh and Kelley did a fantastic job showing people how to maneuver through change inside and outside of their CU. Make friends and allies where you and pick your battles.

There were more photos of Gerri (the Giraffe) with CUers from Memphis, Georgia, the great state of Kansas, and D.C. then had lunch with the ladies from the Pelican State. I’m sorry they are just plain crazy, and you know who you are…

I got a chance to catch up with Greg Crandell of Digital Mailer. I don’t know but I would think everyone would use his group to do their electronic statements and other communication. There didn’t seem to be as many companies like his at the conference. The digital signage industry was well represented. Clearly there is a lot of demand for this. Next after a special session the AWARDS.

I realized that day how much you guys like to drink, yikes. There was a Sponsor Thank You at 4pm, and nothing says thank you more than wine and beer. Then at 5pm a pre-Awards reception, again with open bar. Thank God they had food at the Awards, and of course a post wrap party. No ticky no drinky. The Awards Dinner was fun. I was very impressed with the level of creativity in the campaigns I saw. We see creative work all the time and this was great stuff. I still can’t get the “Don’t Dance Around your Bills” images from my head. It would be interesting to take a few of the campaigns that had big results and highlight those just to see how many new members or the asset growth they triggered. A lot of the Virginia contingent sat together. Everyone of them received at least one award. KP peacefully, not forcibly, transitioned her throne and her hair brush to this year’s winner of the MPotY. No that’s not pronounced “M Potty” Its “ M POTY “ kind of like the Michael Jackson song. You guys are lucky to have someone as talented as Patrick in your midst. I was amazed at his closing the next day. 45 minutes straight with only loose PPT to guide him.

On Saturday there was this loud sucking sound, and most headed to the airport. There were about 90-100 faithful, or more hung over than the others and didn’t realize their flights were leaving, that attended the closing ceremony. It was a good wrap up. As someone who is not day to day in this industry I can see and feel the change that’s happening and taste the opportunity ahead for CUs. In talking with Janet and Kent of iDiz we think there might be an opportunity to symbolize this unique time and the stark differences between banks and other financial institutions and Credit Unions. Actually, they didn’t say that I’m just using their names to gain street cred. It reminds of the book What Would Google Do. The days of secrecy, control, and ownership are fading (and maybe gone, after AIG, Bear Stearns, and the many many more on wall st.). A new day of openness, being more community and people focused are upon us. Personally I believe Credit Unions have the opportunity to define an icon and a common mission (I noticed almost every CU has a different mission) what if they were all the same so that your ever expanding membership base could get on board, something that is new and fresh that symbolizes this historic turn of events and tell that story to financial consumers. If anyone has a comment on this please enter it in to this or the CUNA blog. Maybe that’s a job for the i3 group? Don’t you love armchair QBs?

Finally, all in all it seems as though fun and learning was had by all. I just want to thank Kelley Parks for encouraging me to sponsor this year. I am thankful to have her as a client. She keeps us on our toes and keeps pushing the envelope of what we can do to help her communicate better with her members. She is a gem. To all of you that I met, I will be following up after I expunge all of the alcohol from my body and can dial a phone and type an email or text again. Next year is D.C. my back yard. Hope to see you there.

Oh look ketchup!

P.S. Gerri the Giraffe, CUNA the Lion, and Rory the Rhino were all donated to San Diego Children’s Hospital thanks to Bobbi, Cheryl, Cindy and the Hilton Staff.

P.S.S. More photos to come. Check back tomorrow…