Joyce Moed | Business Samples

Entering Into Television With An Advertisement
By Joyce Moed

TAMPA, Fla.– GTE FCU here has entered into television with an advertisement not just focusing on the GTE itself, but on the credit union movement as a whole.

The spot begins in the days of the Great Depression then moves to the signing of the Federal Credit Union Act in 1945 by President Franklin Roosevelt and the creation of GTE FCU in Tampa in 1935. The ad also notes that the birth of the not-for-profit financial cooperative system allowed credit unions to give citizens with common interests a place to save and borrow their money. Then the narrative and images shifts to GTE FCU specifically.

Doug Richardson, senior vice president of marketing, said the credit union felt that now was the perfect time to raise awareness of why credit unions were created, and to emphasize their stability–especially with the growing number of Tampa Bay residents experiencing challenges because of the economy.

"We wanted to step back to remind people about what makes credit unions so unique," he said, "to go back to the time credit unions were created, until now. But the core element of us being here for you in tough times continues. It’s really the story behind what a credit union is."
He said the commercial really reached "two brands," one being the credit union movement itself, and the other being GTE Federal Credit Union.

Its 60-second spot has aired on TV stations in the Tampa Bay market from Jan. 30 through Feb. 1 during local and national news programs. The commercial aired before and after the Super Bowl.
Richardson said the Monday following the commercial, the CU received 20-30 emails from its board members and employees raving about it.

"It will run for three weeks, take a break, and then run for three weeks more in March," he said.
The commercial took about six weeks in total to produce.

"We had a local production firm, and we tossed scripts back and forth," Richardson said. "The words were mine. We literally got it to the station at noon on Thursday, before it ran on Friday."
While the point of the commercial was to build awareness of credit unions in general, Richardson said future TV ads will expand on the broad range of financial products and services available through GTE FCU.

"Future commercials will be a call to action to join," he said.

Total production for the commercial was a little more than $15,000, Richardson said. Everyone in the commercial was a GTE FCU employee.