SITUATION:

The Ehrhardt Group joined forces with the LCUL in 2000, assisting the organization with a member survey, media relations, issues management and public relations.

In 2003, The Ehrhardt Group worked with the League to develop and implement a statewide television and radio advertising campaign to raise the public’s awareness about the benefits of credit unions. The League raised more than $250,000 to place advertisements in 7 markets across Louisiana for a total of 8 weeks.

STRATEGIES:

1. Negotiate value-added placements with network affiliates in each market to extend the League’s advertising dollar.

2. Target primetime programming to reach the broadest audience in the shortest amount of time.

3. Flight the advertising schedule into 2, four-week schedules to generate awareness by compressing the number of times a consumer sees or hears an ad, increasing likelihood that the consumer will react.

4. Conduct a pre- and post-campaign telephone survey to gauge the campaign’s success.

RESULTS:

1. The number of people who were aware of credit unions increased by 40% between the beginning and end of the campaign. Key demographic categories saw an average increase in awareness between 45 and 50%.

2. The Ehrhardt Group turned the League’s $250,000 investment into more than $375,000 of actual advertising airtime.

3. More than 5,500 consumers logged on to the campaign website and nearly 700 consumers called the 800-number, with nearly 1,800 consumers finding a credit union that they could join.