Celebration Ideas

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Each year International Credit Union (ICU) Day® brings people from credit unions worldwide together to celebrate their cooperative history and achievements while promoting the international credit union movement. Here are some of the ideas that credit unions around the world have successfully used to celebrate and promote ICU Day.


Get Social with Members Online—use #ICUDay on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn!

  • Build hype around this celebratory day at least one week beforehand! For example, sponsor a contest on your credit union's website or social media networks that encourages members to share photos and/or videos that show why they love their credit union.
  • Share your photos, videos, stories and marketing materials with the world by posting or tweeting using the hashtag: #ICUDay
  • Get together with your colleagues and take an #ICUDay "selfie."
  • Have a "dress up" day at work representing your credit unions' community pride and share a group photo on your social accounts.
  • Take videos of your staff celebrating and tweet them throughout the day. Post it to your social media networks, feature it in your electronic newsletters, play it in branch lobbies and send it out to staff. Don't be afraid to get creative!
  • Re-tweet other credit unions' content on Twitter who are also participating in #ICUday—reinforcing the idea that credit union members are part of one global community.
  • Post trivia questions about your credit union on your social media networks in exchange for giveaways (e.g., gift cards, special prizes).
  • Connect with World Council on Facebook, Twitter, InstagramLinkedIn and YouTube.

Plan a Festive Week in Your Credit Union

  • Hold an open house at the credit union and branch offices. Conduct tours and serve refreshments. It is a great opportunity to build relationships with members and discuss your products and services.
  • Invite your elected officials to a "meet the members" day.
  • Get the word out about the worldwide credit union movement by displaying posters and offering international foods.
  • Hold a "guest day" at the credit union where members can bring guests for refreshments and learn more about the credit union.
  • Let members "meet their credit union" by displaying your employees' and board members' photos and biographies.
  • Have your annual meeting in conjunction with International Credit Union Day.

Implement Community Projects

  • Take part in a summer paint-a-thon to help older members or anyone else in your community who is physically unable to paint their own home. Take a variety of photos of your team and publicize your activities.
  • Plant a tree in a nearby park or on the credit union grounds. Coordinate a local beautification program. Sponsor a community cleanup effort or other charitable events.
  • Hold a bicycle safety clinic for young people and donate helmets to needy children.
  • Adopt a social service agency for the day or week and recruit staff and members to help out with tasks like serving meals, painting and cleanup.
  • Collect business clothes to donate to a local organization that helps people get back into the workplace.
  • Join forces with other credit unions in your area to sponsor a run/walk team for a good cause, such as purchasing new technology for local schools. Provide members of your team with T-shirts to identify them as credit union staff and members.
  • Invite a local school to perform a musical concert at your ICU Day event.

Support International Credit Union Development Work 

Promote Products and Services

  • Sponsor a membership drive to see how many new members you can get. Remind current and potential members what makes credit unions unique—the fact that you are an owner of your credit union. Consider incentives or special offers to encourage people to join. Member service is important year round, but ICU Day is a reminder that credit unions exist to serve their members.
  • Offer loans or new share draft accounts for the same fees that the credit union charged the year it opened.
  • Work cooperatively with other local credit unions to purchase advertising space on different media. When a group of credit unions contribute toward the cost, advertising becomes more affordable. 

Focus on Education

  • Offer your credit union as an elementary/primary school field trip destination. Give teachers an opportunity to build real-world experience into their students' math lessons.
  • Offer a series of lectures on basic finance in the evenings or over the lunch hour for your members. Topics can include managing a checking account, building good credit, shopping for a mortgage, handling credit cards and saving for college/university.
  • Distribute financial self-help information in your lobby and at the drive-up windows. Don't forget to insert statement stuffers and articles in your monthly newsletter.
  • Set up a booth at a local shopping mall, community center or special event. Offer personal finance information and brochures that emphasize the credit union difference.
  • Provide a program for staff on how credit unions alleviate poverty internationally. 

Focus on the Credit Union Difference

  • Organize a fun event to teach your staff and members about credit union history and philosophy. Set up booths featuring information on philosophy and operations. Punch a ticket at each booth and offer small prizes and awards.
  • Coordinate efforts at the chapter level to produce a historical view of credit unions in the area. This could be a traveling poster display or a slide presentation shown throughout the year.
  • Sponsor an essay or art contest for young members or your entire membership. A short essay (100 words or less) about why the credit union is special or how has the credit union has helped your family could be essay topics. Publish the winning entries in your newsletter or in the local newspaper.
  • Reward employees for exceptional service to members. Recognize members for exceptional service to the community.
  • Deliver good news (and good food) to the media. For example, deliver cakes decorated with the words "Happy International Credit Union Day" to the local media. Sometimes volunteers receive free airtime to talk about International Credit Union Day.
  • Organize an event with your legislators.

Learn More about the Global Credit Union Movement