The Boardcast

A New Credit Union Board Blog

The CreditUnion2Zero blog was launched on the Word Press platform on May 5th, 2008. The Boardcast would like to welcome the newest and (as far as we know) second credit union board directed blog. CreditUnion2Zero was developed and is maintained by Luis Barros who is a director at Merrimack Valley Federal Credit Union in Northeastern Massachusettes. Luis has launched this blog

...to advance the proficiency of Next Generation Internet (NGI) for Directors, Executives, Business Devleopment and Marketing Professionals in the Credit Union industry.

He has made a good start in his first two posts which describe Student Loan CUSOs (Credit Union Service Organizations) and revisits an article entitled "Ten Marketing Tends for Credit Union Boards" from a 2005 issue of CUNA's Credit Union Directors Newsletter.

The Boardcast is happy to have a blogging buddy in CreditUnion2Zero and we look forward to reading and commenting on the posts found on this innovative blog.

The Boardcast's Blog of the Week

You probably know by now that I am a "blog junkie". Don't get me wrong - I still read books and newspapers but I now rely on blogs and podcasts for much of my news and entertainment. What I like most about blogs is that they allow me to focus on the information that's most relevant in my life today. Blogs also uncover topics and issues that may not have come to light in other media.  Trent Hamm of The Simple Dollar provides information that is helpful to those of us who are trying to economize and save. He does this in an organizational style that helps me focus on what interests me and skip the rest.

The Simple Dollar has been online for a little over a year. The purpose of the blog, viewable from the home page, states that:

The Simple Dollar is for those of us who need both cents and sense: people fighting debt and bad spending habits while building a financially secure future and still affording a latte or two.

Scrolling down the page users just have to look at the sidebar to the right and they're given a summary of recent articles and categories. The blog includes detailed book reviews as well as Trent's reflections on any topic you can think of related to saving, spending and financial life skills. If you like your information via email, this blog has a way to order articles from The Simple Dollar and have them delivered to your email address.

Bookmark this blog and take a look at your leisure. You may find a tip that could mean money in your pocket.

The Boardcast's Blog of the Week

There are plenty of "Get Rick Quick" schemes floating around cyberspace. In fact, a simple google search will show just how many links are associated with "Get Rich Quick". I tried this experiment and up popped 25,000,000. Some of them warn against being entrapped by these schemes but many more are proponents of them. There is, however, one blogger who has developed an online following by taking an inventive approach that highlights the real source of financial growth and stability. This blog is called "Get Rich Slowly" and I'd suggest that Boardcast readers might want to take a look.

Get Rich Slowly has been online for 18 months (JD, the blog moderator, is hosting a contest this week in honor of this anniversary). In JD's own words, :

You will not find any get rich quickly schemes here. You will not find multi-level marketing fads or hot stock tips here. I am not pitching any product or book. (Yet.)

You will find daily information about personal finance and related topics. I’ll share stories about debt elimination, saving money, and practical investing. I will post occasional reviews of books, magazines, and software. I will scour the web for the latest personal finance tools and articles. I’ll also post news on related topics like simplicity, frugality, and personal development. (I believe that personal growth is systemic, that in order to improve financially, you have to improve in other areas of your life.)

A recent post included tips on how to save money when eating out at expensive restaurants. These tips included very sensible suggestions like ordering from the appetizer menu, eating a light snack before going out and sharing a dessert. This isn't rocket science. JD's posts often include practices and approaches used by the ordinary sensible consumer. As a whole, the blog encourages this "common sense" approach to debt reduction, saving and spending.

I've been delighted to see that JD has mentioned the value of using credit unions and our products and services. The September 7th post quoted a Consumer Reports article recommending that consumers look at credit unions when they want a credit card with a fair policy at a good rate. JD said:

The October 2007 issue of Consumer Reports contains a credit card roundup, including an overview of the best and worst cards based on responses from 36,000 readers. The best cards generally came from credit unions, and the worst from large banks. “Almost anyone can join a credit union these days,” the magazine says, “and it might be a good idea, if only for a good credit card.”

There are many internet sites vying for our attention. It seems to me that Get Rich Slowly encourages it's readers to take a balanced, sensible approach to saving and spending.

A Milestone for The Boardcast

As of today, The Boardcast has had 2000 visits. The Boardcast went live on January 1, 2007 and I am pleased to say that activity has grown steadily.

The Boardcast has attracted the attention of the credit union community throughout the country. I will be joining a panel at the Washington Credit Union League's State Convention to be held in September. Our panel will be discussing the use of social websites to encourage dialog among credit union members, board members and credit union personnel. My fellow presenters are William Azaroff who is the Interactive Marketing & Channel Manager at Vancity, Canada's largest credit union and Shari Storm, VP & CMO of Verity Credit Union in Seattle, Washington. William has designed a unique community powered site called Change Everything. Shari is the driving force behind Our Voices, the Verity blog. I'm excited about the opportunity to join these professionals for this presentation and see the "West Coast" view of our credit union family. Watch for updates on my travels to Washington.

New CUNA Blog

Dan Mica, president and CEO of the Credit Union National Association, and a former member of the U.S. House of Representatives, has launched a weblog. The Mica Minute is designed to give credit union staff, boards and members:

Thoughts about important issues facing credit unions and their critical financial service to millions of Americans from all walks of life.

The Mica Minute is a video weblog featuring short videos on topics of interest in the credit union world. The blog also gives viewers an opportunity to address questions and comments to a leader of the credit union movement.