Public Relations
Case Study:
Post-Hurricane Katrina investment and communications campaign garners $15 million for interest-free loans
After Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast, one corporate credit union knew its members needed help funding loans to families hit hard by the storm. To help ensure ample liquidity for the storm-ravaged credit unions – liquidity to make zero-interest loans to their members in need – MJB Public Relations Group launched a communications campaign to assist the southern-based corporate, in attracting investments from credit unions located in areas that were unaffected by the storm.
The need was great: Most credit union members in hurricane-affected areas did not have flood insurance, and if they did, their coverage was inadequate. To help rebuild their homes (and their lives), these members looked to credit unions along the Gulf Coast for millions of dollars in disaster-related loans. But such a demand for liquidity would be impossible to meet without an influx of new funds.
To generate this additional financial support, MJB assisted with the development of a comprehensive communications plan, one that encouraged investment in the corporate credit union while reassuring regulators, member credit unions and other key audiences of the corporate’s safety and soundness. To help the corporate maintain contact with affected and non-affected members, MJB associates developed a series of Web site communication pieces, member voicemail responses and faxed/e-mail messages. MJB also wrote news releases, coordinated media interviews, guided management on talking points, and solicited support from non-affected members through letters and phone calls.
In addition to the securing several trade press stories, MJB’s communication tactics resulted in a total of $15 million in new investments for the corporate from credit unions throughout the country, and, most importantly, $8 million in zero-interest loans made to member credit unions in hurricane-damaged areas.
