This is a CU 2.0 Podcast first.
Never before, in almost 500 episodes, have we done this.
On the show is Crystal Zarse, a member of Interra Credit Union, a $1.7 billion Indiana based institution, and she is here to tell about her experience using the Prizeout Cashback+ debit card which rewards users with cashback often around 10% of purchase price, sometimes much more.
Focus on that. Here’s a member who has taken time out of her to tell what benefits she gets by using the Cashback+ debit card that Interra issued to her.
Also on the show is Joel Richard, an Interra senior vice president of member experience, and David Metz, CEO of Prizeout.
Metz has been on the show before and what got him a return visit was when his PR person, Andrea Holland, emailed me to offer up a credit union member who would talk about how Cashback+ makes her life better.
A big gong went off in my head. I had never before done this in a show…and yet credit unions trumpet that they are member focused. Credit unions are here to improve the financial lives of everyday people.
I had to do this show and, honestly, Crystal Zarse is everything I could have hoped for in a guest.
Message to other credit unions/fintechs: If you want on the show, grease your path by lining up a member to join the mix.
Like what you are hearing? Find out how you can help sponsor this podcast here. Very affordable sponsorship packages are available. Email rjmcgarvey@gmail.com
And like this podcast on whatever service you use to stream it. That matters.
Find out more about CU2.0 and the digital transformation of credit unions here. It's a journey every credit union needs to take. Pronto
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
SPEAKER_03 (00:00):
Welcome to the CU2.0 podcast.
SPEAKER_00 (00:05):
Hi, and welcome to the CU2.0 podcast with big new
ideas about credit unions andconversations about innovative
technology with credit union andfintech leaders.
This podcast is brought to youby Quillo, the real-time loan
syndication network for creditunions, and by your host,
longtime credit union andfinancial technology journalist,
(00:27):
Robert McGarvey.
And now, the CU 2.0 podcast withRobert McGarvey.
SPEAKER_03 (00:35):
This is a CU 2.0 podcast first.
Never before in almost 500episodes have we done this.
On the show is Crystal Zaris, amember of Intero Credit Union.
That's a$1.7 billionIndiana-based institution.
And she is here to tell abouther experience using the
PrizeOut Cashback Plus DebitCard, which rewards users with
(00:59):
cash back often around 10% ofpurchase price, sometimes much
more.
Focus on that.
Here's a member who's takingtime out of her day.
to tell you what benefits shegets by using the Cashback Plus
debit card.
(01:39):
I'd never before done this in ashow.
And yet, yet, credit unionstrumpet the member-focused.
Credit unions are here toimprove the financial lives of
everyday people.
I had to do the show.
And honestly, Crystal's ours iseverything I could have hoped
for.
And a message to other creditunions and fintechs, if you want
on the show, grease your path bylining up a member to join the
(02:01):
mix.
Listen up.
SPEAKER_05 (02:05):
I am David Metz.
I'm CEO and founder of PrizeUp.
SPEAKER_02 (02:09):
And I'm Joel Richard.
I'm the Chief Experience Officerfor Interra Credit Union.
SPEAKER_01 (02:16):
And I'm Crystal Zars.
I use the Cashback Plus throughmy bank.
SPEAKER_03 (02:24):
Through your credit union?
SPEAKER_01 (02:26):
Yep.
SPEAKER_03 (02:28):
Okay.
Crystal is a
SPEAKER_02 (02:29):
member of our Interra.
SPEAKER_03 (02:31):
Yes, yes.
Now, I think this is a first.
I don't think I've ever...
had on this, and I have about500 episodes, I don't think I've
ever had a member talking aboutmember experience.
Now, I've had credit unionexecutives who are members.
I'm a member.
What the heck?
But I've never had someone comein and talk to me about member
(02:52):
experience.
That's kind of what, when Andreasent me this idea, I said, I've
never done this.
I have to do it.
It's like...
Now, David, look right here,though.
I'm getting offers from Discoverand Venmo with cash-backed debit
(03:14):
card deals.
How is this affecting you?
SPEAKER_05 (03:19):
It's not.
It's great that they're doingthat.
We're obviously partnering withcredit unions.
Most of our credit unionpartners, the vast majority of
their spend is on the debitside.
On average, we're giving...
Each debit card is around 7%.
which is about 2.7 times morethan any credit card can give.
(03:43):
Ours is merchant funded versusinterchange funded.
And then in addition to that,we're also paying the credit
unions more money than theywould have made on interchange
as well.
So there's really, there's threeparties.
Obviously, there's the creditunion making some more money
than they would havenon-interest income.
There's the debit card usersthat are getting more money than
(04:05):
even the most robust credit cardprograms in can get.
And then obviously we take apiece of that as well because
that's how we make money atPrizeOut.
So what Venmo and them aredoing, I don't know.
I don't know the percentages.
I don't know the economics andall of that stuff.
But I think the world is wakingup that the majority of spend in
this country is the debit card.
(04:26):
And since 2008, no one's reallybeen able to fund it just
because interchange is too low,especially if you're over$10
billion.
But it's still a huge portion ofthe population, I think people
are just now trying to figureout how can we reward that
subset of users as well.
SPEAKER_03 (04:45):
Interchange is under real assault right now.
How does that
SPEAKER_05 (04:49):
affect that?
All of our financial institutionpartners realize that
interchange is a race to thebottom, right?
Um, if you're reliant on therails, um, it just keeps going
lower and lower.
So now you, you know, everyoneis kind of challenging the
traditional rail system.
You've got pay by bank, which isessentially what we do.
(05:10):
You've got things like stablecoin that's really being
embraced, um, by the governmentand others.
So like there are more optionsare starting to, um, starting to
present itself.
And I think usually when there'sa problem that's, you know,
we're a very entrepreneurialcountry, people step up.
and try to solve that problem.
And I think that that's whatyou're seeing now because you're
(05:32):
right, it is under threat and itis a race to the bottom.
SPEAKER_03 (05:36):
Now, Joel, how many of your members are using Zapper
in the future?
SPEAKER_02 (05:43):
Yeah, we have about 2% of our membership.
We have about 90,000 memberstotal.
2% of our membership is using ittoday.
I think the sky's the limitthough when it comes to that.
I think we have a tremendousamount of opportunity.
The great thing about having ourmembers spending patterns and
being able to watch thosethings.
We can target them with specificoffers.
(06:05):
Again, it's all about gettingmoney back in people's wallets.
And I think we have anopportunity to grow that by
using the data that we haveaccess to.
And PrizeOut's been a greatpartner in helping us to do
that.
Again, our goal is to get moneyback in people's wallets so they
can use it for whatever theyneed in their lives and their
goals and their future plans andtheir families.
(06:26):
And I'm glad Crystal's herebecause I think she is a great
person that can talk about howthat's impacted her personally.
And I don't want to commandeerthe conversation, but I think
it'd be great, Crystal, to heara little bit from you about the
things that it's done for you.
SPEAKER_03 (06:44):
That's where we're going next.
Tell me who you are.
SPEAKER_01 (06:51):
I am a mom of three kids.
Two of them are grown, but theyall are still at home.
I homeschool my youngest.
I work in a factory.
I am trying to go back to schoolalso so that way I can be at
(07:13):
home and have more of aflexible, you know, flexing
schedule for my kids.
The cash back has helped a lotbeing a single parent.
Not to dig too much in my past,but yeah, I've went through the
divorce and stuff like thatpretty much wiped out my entire
(07:37):
401.
And then shortly after that, Iwent through and the guys don't
know about this part.
And I actually got some reallygood news.
I had my mammogram the other dayand it came back clear because
two years ago I did have breastcancer.
SPEAKER_05 (07:56):
Congrats, Crystal.
That's amazing.
SPEAKER_01 (07:58):
So, yeah, this is kind of like a tough time
emotionally for me this year.
But clear on that, it hasactually been a financial burden
on that part.
So cashback has actually helpedbits and pieces of getting
(08:19):
things put back togetherfinancially because a little bit
goes a long way.
And a lot of people don'tunderstand that.
So like a couple dollars here, acouple dollars there.
And it's all instant.
So it goes straight into mybank.
I don't have to wait for it.
I don't have to mail inanything.
(08:41):
It's just a quick get into myapp.
put in the amount I need andthen confirm it and it goes to a
barcode and I scan that barcodeand then instantly I have that
amount.
I can put it into my checkingsor my savings which I'm putting
into my savings so that way Ican kind of do a little getaway
(09:01):
like a weekend getaway just toget out of the area for a
minute.
SPEAKER_03 (09:14):
Where are you using the debt card?
SPEAKER_01 (09:19):
I am actually using it on Amazon online.
I am using it at my Kroger'sthat is local to me.
And then Walmart.
That's the normal places I shop.
And then sometimes they'll havelike really good deals on like,
instead of like a 2% cash back,they'll be like once every so
(09:42):
often there'll be like a, abonus one of like 20% or
something like that for one day.
And that's when you want toreally keep your eye out for
that.
And that makes a really bigdifference because it's like
getting free.
SPEAKER_03 (10:01):
How do you find out about that 20% bonus day?
SPEAKER_01 (10:04):
Um, get emailed.
Usually I get emailed and then Igo ahead and kind of keep up
with, um, the app.
I'll go ahead and check in andsee if the percentage has
changed from the normal 2% andto see if it would ever, if it's
going to go up or anything likethat.
But usually, usually an email,I'll get an email and then it's
(10:28):
like, I mark it on my calendar.
Like, here we go.
Cool.
SPEAKER_03 (10:36):
What's the biggest savings that you can remember
that you've gotten?
SPEAKER_01 (10:44):
Oh, gosh.
Close to$20.
I try to buy in bulk at thegrocery store.
SPEAKER_03 (10:56):
So that was$20 from Kroger's, probably.
SPEAKER_01 (10:59):
I think so.
And
SPEAKER_03 (11:04):
how often do you use this card?
I mean, is this daily?
SPEAKER_01 (11:07):
Pretty close to daily.
I would say probably three timesa week.
Even if it's getting like milkand bread, you know, I go ahead,
I put it in.
I mean, I'm going to spend themoney anyway.
Might as well make a couplecents off of it.
SPEAKER_03 (11:22):
So this owns your wallet, basically.
You don't sit there looking at,oh, I got this credit card.
Maybe I should use this.
No, this drops in your handfirst.
SPEAKER_01 (11:37):
Yeah, it comes straight out of my bank account.
And then the Cashback Plus, itstays put and you can transfer
it into the account that youjust spent from or you can put
it into any account that'slinked to the app.
SPEAKER_03 (11:55):
Joel, how did you find out about Crystal?
SPEAKER_02 (12:01):
Well, we were taking a look at the list of our top
users.
There are some at the top thatare pretty heavy users.
I would say like Crystal areusing it for sure weekly, if not
daily.
I think we just started goingthrough that list and seeing if
we could connect with someonethat'd be willing to actually
sit down and talk about theirexperiences.
(12:25):
crystal was uh nice enough to bewilling to do that and i this is
uh you know we've talkedmultiple times um so it's been
really and each time is a littledifferent you get a little
different story uh each time ora unique experience that
crystal's had that's uhrefreshing for me as uh the
person that's in charge ofexperience for the credit union
(12:45):
because you hear the storiesbehind you know, the products
and the things that you do.
I think that that's why you dothe job, or at least that's why
I do the job.
So it's been, it's been awesometo hear from Crystal.
And, and I think we keep tryingto also talk to our, our top
users to find out what thingsthey like about it and what
things we could continue toiterate and do a little bit
better.
SPEAKER_03 (13:05):
What don't they like
SPEAKER_02 (13:06):
about
SPEAKER_03 (13:06):
it?
SPEAKER_05 (13:08):
More merchants.
That's what the hell
SPEAKER_02 (13:10):
is.
Merchants are usually like, Ithink, David and I have, or at
least Eliza and I have talkedabout a couple of times like
Menards and Meyer, and there area couple of key merchants around
this area that if you look atour debit card spend, they would
be in that top five category.
And so I think, yeah, moremerchants.
And then, you know, I think justbeing aware of the deals that
(13:32):
are available is something wecontinue to get better at.
We want to put that money backin people's wallets.
And I keep saying that, but it'simportant to us and it's
important to me.
And so we just need to continueto work at getting the message
out there.
SPEAKER_03 (13:44):
Now, David, Crystal said she primarily uses the
Kroger, Amazon, and Walmart.
Are those some of your moregenerous business
SPEAKER_05 (13:56):
members?
It's all geographical.
If you're a Suncoast member, itwould be...
publics, right?
Our Stanford University, whichis a lot of college kids, it's
all Uber and DoorDash, right?
So it's really where you live,your age, your situation.
So it really depends from creditunion to credit union.
(14:20):
I always say this, if you've metone credit union, you've met one
credit union, they're all sodifferent.
And that's the same with theirspend.
But there are certain thingslike Amazon, it does not matter
if you're 18 or 80, you'repretty much a using Amazon.
But yeah, it really, it dependson demographics and geolocation.
SPEAKER_03 (14:42):
Well, I remember you've had in the past some
really terrific deals fromAmazon and Kroger's.
SPEAKER_05 (14:48):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_03 (14:49):
I mean, my, my deal is when I said, I got to get
this card.
I still haven't gotten it, butyeah.
SPEAKER_05 (14:57):
We have really generous deals on travel,
cruises.
We tend to really dominatecruises because we're giving 15%
to 20%.
That's a high bucket item.
If you're spending a couple ofthousand dollars on a cruise, if
you're getting 15%, 20%, thatreally adds up quickly.
Again, it really depends.
(15:20):
In order to be top of wallet,you have to get the everyday
purchases.
Everyone does gross What's thebest thing?
SPEAKER_03 (15:56):
best amount that you've gotten so far?
SPEAKER_05 (16:00):
So there's so many stories.
There's an exec at Langley,she's retiring and she booked
herself and her husband treatedthemselves to this really exotic
cruise.
And she got$1,800 back from thattrip, right?
(16:21):
And when I saw her, she couldn'thelp but show me her phone and
show me the amount they got,right?
That is a one-off,once-in-a-lifetime type thing,
right?
But the fact that they were soproud of that is really cool.
And we do things, we just didsomething for Prime Week, I
think, as Crystal was alludingto.
(16:43):
We'll definitely do stuff onBlack Friday and the holidays
and all of that.
So I think people really,because it's a gift card, you
don't have to spend it all atonce.
When I was a little kid, my dadtold us about, cans of tomato
sauce.
It was on sale at 10 cents acan.
(17:04):
And he made me and my two otherbrothers go and we each had a
cart and we loaded up all threecarts because it was one of
those once in a lifetime things.
So it took us about three yearsto go through all of that.
But when there's a great deal,you just really have to seize
it.
And every so often our merchantsare doing things like that.
And it's great that the creditunions email them.
(17:27):
They do banner ads.
They do whatever they can to getthe word out.
And then also you see it onsocial network.
I love going on to differentcredit unions' Facebook pages
and seeing everyone talkingabout it, right?
That's when things are reallystarting to pick up.
We've only launched the appmaybe like three or four months
ago.
But right now, on average...
(17:48):
36% of previous debit spend isnow going through the app.
So slowly, we're becoming theprimary way of paying for
things.
And that's really cool.
SPEAKER_03 (18:01):
Cool.
Crystal, the money you'regetting in cashback, what's it
enabled you to do or to buy thatyou don't think you could have
bought or done?
SPEAKER_01 (18:11):
Oh, gosh.
I bought a pair of shoes.
I know that sounds kind of...
silly, but I always take care ofmy kids first.
And I bought a pair of shoes, areally nice pair of shoes off
Amazon, of course, so that theywere on sale.
And then I got cash back for it,too.
(18:33):
Cash back on your
SPEAKER_04 (18:34):
cash
SPEAKER_01 (18:35):
back.
Yeah, cash back plus, yeah, onit.
SPEAKER_03 (18:38):
That's terrific.
Occasionally you're treatingyourself, but you're also buying
stuff for your family, etc.,Yes.
No, it's a terrific story.
Joel, you have more stories likethis, do you?
SPEAKER_02 (18:59):
Oh, we have gobs of stories, I think.
I mean, I can tell personalstories of experiences that I've
had.
But it's like David said, it'sjust making everyday spend earn
you a little bit more.
Like A good example of that isfor whatever reason, our family
(19:20):
loves Texas Roadhouse.
We love Texas Roadhouse.
So I use that one a lot.
They're typically offeringanywhere from nine to 10% for
me.
So every time I go to arestaurant, that's 10, or go to
Texas Roadhouse, that's 10 bucksback in my wallet for my family.
So we use that consistently.
We buy groceries at Walmart.
Walmart always has cash backoffering.
Again, it's the everyday spendthat you're earning more on.
(19:45):
And it's better, as David wassaying, better than any credit
card offer that I have.
And as both Crystal and Davidhave said, it kind of becomes
habitual.
You go back to the app andyou're like, oh, I wonder what I
can earn on today.
And just like Crystal, I lovebuying stuff for my family,
whether it's like Fanatics orNike.com or places like that for
(20:05):
my son who loves that type ofstuff.
Those are birthday presents thatI can pre-purchase gift cards.
and then use them when thebirthday rolls around.
I think that's incrediblebecause you get to take
advantage of the offers whenthey're happening.
So there are stories like thatall over the place from our
member base.
We have one member that's just asuper heavy user and they've
(20:27):
earned a significant chunk incash back over the time that
they've been using the product.
And so you look at examples likethat and I don't have any
specific things that they earnedon that, but Just to have that
money back in your wallet and beable to use it for things like
Crystal was saying, even if it'sa pair of new shoes or a new
outfit or a vacation.
Some people have earned enoughto pay for a vacation.
(20:48):
I think that's a pretty bigdeal.
SPEAKER_03 (20:50):
Hey, David, you're probably not going to answer
this question.
I'll ask you anyway.
How much cash back did you sendto credit unions members last
month?
SPEAKER_05 (21:00):
It's a good question.
I'll have to look at that.
We've given millions since we'velaunched.
But it's significant.
Right.
And it's just a dollar amount ona spreadsheet when you look at
it.
But until you actually hearmember stories, it doesn't feel
real, right?
So the more stories likeCrystal's that I get to hear,
(21:20):
the more me and my team, it justlike fuels us, right?
Because again, for far too long,debit card users have been
ignored.
And it's just really nice.
We haven't put money back intheir pockets.
SPEAKER_03 (21:31):
Now, I love to hear a story like Crystal getting a
pair of shoes that she otherwisedoesn't think she could have
gotten it.
To me, that's what a creditunion is here to do, is to
empower people who don'tnecessarily have a ton of money,
but let them live a better life.
SPEAKER_05 (21:47):
Yeah, it's not about money.
It's what the money unlocks,right?
It's just money, right?
Whether it's buying your kid newcleats for soccer practice or
whatever it means, right?
That's the value to it.
That's really cool to see.
And everyone's got such uniquestories and everyone's in
different situations, right?
You don't know until you sitdown and talk with them.
(22:10):
And there is no better industrythan credit unions on actually
knowing their members.
Credit union industries are theonly industry i've ever come
across where like the ceo knowsevery single story it always
flows to the top that doesn'texist and we work in lots of
other industries so um but thatexperience is kind of gone from
(22:31):
being offline to digital.
So for us to be able to kind ofgive back digitally and through
payments, it is an extension ofwhat credit unions, what their
ethos is.
So we're just proud to be partof it.
SPEAKER_03 (22:46):
How many credit unions do you have now?
SPEAKER_05 (22:49):
Probably have close to 60 now.
We kind of started with some ofthe the biggest.
It just made sense from a scalestandpoint and our size.
And it really ranges allthroughout geography, whether
it's the Northeast or the WestCoast or the South or the
Midwest.
We have representationeverywhere.
I think we have like 8 millioncredit union members now.
SPEAKER_03 (23:11):
Wow.
Yeah.
When you started, the CUSO had abig, big credit.
SPEAKER_05 (23:15):
Suncoast.
Golden One, and Patelco, andIdaho Central.
You know, we have, yeah, wedefinitely have some of the top
credit
SPEAKER_03 (23:24):
unions.
Those are also the big playersin CUSOs as a rule, so.
SPEAKER_05 (23:28):
Yeah, and when you say that, that's just another
word of saying they'reprogressive, right?
And they're trying to actively,from a technology standpoint,
invest in things that are goingto improve their members' lives,
right?
And CUSO is the best way to dothat, so.
SPEAKER_03 (23:44):
Now, Crystal, When you shop, are you always looking
for discounts?
I mean, I remember years ago, Iused to clip coupons from the
Sunday newspaper.
SPEAKER_01 (23:56):
I still do that.
I really do.
Oh,
SPEAKER_03 (23:59):
I didn't know they still had them in newspapers.
SPEAKER_01 (24:02):
For like Kroger's, yes.
For Kroger members, yeah, you'llget coupons and stuff like that.
But yeah, so even saving evenmore.
Yeah.
But, yeah, I look for managerspecials, anything that's– like
Kroger's will have the weeklydigital deals, and I'll make
sure I stock up on those.
(24:23):
Yeah, and then coupons on top ofthat, and then the cash back pay
that is on there.
So I'm saving more one way thananother, but it is very
convenient– not to have to clipa coupon and just pay with my
phone with the app
SPEAKER_03 (24:45):
now do you have other credit cards
SPEAKER_01 (24:49):
no i do not own a credit card
SPEAKER_03 (24:50):
and uh so this is that's that's interesting that's
cool that's uh
SPEAKER_01 (24:57):
Nope, I haven't had a credit card since 2008.
SPEAKER_03 (25:01):
Was that your divorce?
I went through a divorce too.
It's the most economicallydevastating thing in my life.
SPEAKER_01 (25:08):
Oh, I know.
It financially beats you up.
That happened about six yearsago, the divorce did.
No, 2008.
I can't remember the details ofit, but I wasn't a credit card
person.
I was always like, if you can'tbuy it, with cash, then you
don't need it.
(25:30):
Except for your home and yourvehicle.
Otherwise, I go without.
I
SPEAKER_05 (25:36):
wish more people had that philosophy.
There's a reason why we're$2trillion in credit card debt.
No kidding.
SPEAKER_03 (25:46):
One of the cool things about the debit card is
that it's not a debt instrument,which is nice because debt will
Catch up to you someday.
Now, do you wish there arestores that you could use this
card at that aren't in theprogram or they have I
SPEAKER_01 (26:07):
would mention that.
Yeah.
I am.
I do shop at like, um, dollargeneral and yeah.
Menards when appliance goes out,we don't like those expensive
things, but when one goes out,it's a big chunk.
So yeah.
Menards would be awesome.
Cause I do believe Lowe's is onthere.
(26:27):
Yep.
SPEAKER_05 (26:28):
Lowe's is on there.
SPEAKER_01 (26:30):
Lowe's is a little bit farther away from me.
Um, there's home depots onthere.
But I like Menards.
I don't know what it is.
I like Menards.
SPEAKER_05 (26:41):
It's a Midwest thing.
I've never heard of it until westarted partnering with Midwest
Credit
SPEAKER_01 (26:46):
Union.
SPEAKER_05 (26:48):
But yeah, everyone in the Midwest loves it.
SPEAKER_01 (26:51):
Yeah, I would say more stores, more like that
would be great.
SPEAKER_05 (26:56):
I
SPEAKER_03 (26:57):
assume you're still adding stores.
UNKNOWN (26:59):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_05 (26:59):
Oh, yeah, we're always adding stores.
I think we're close to gettingDollar General, so that'll be a
good one for you, Crystal.
SPEAKER_01 (27:05):
Oh, yes.
SPEAKER_05 (27:06):
And it's always dictated by the credit union,
right?
So if we, you know, when weopen...
credit union in Texas, likeHEBs, became really important,
right?
So again, it's really dictatedby the size of the credit union
and where they aregeographically.
Because, you know, havingMcDonald's and Burger King and
(27:29):
Taco Bell and things like that,they're everywhere, right?
That doesn't matter, right?
So you want to make sure thatyou have a good representation
of the local surroundingmerchants as well.
SPEAKER_03 (27:40):
Right.
Now, any merchants...
that had been big playersdropped out of this?
SPEAKER_05 (27:45):
No.
No, because again, a lot of themembers are making purchasing
decisions based on whichmerchants are there.
So if the merchant's not there,that means you're just going to
use your debit card and you'renot going to get cash back.
Or you can choose a merchantthat's there and get cash back.
So that's why the platform is anad tech platform, is because
(28:09):
we're changing consumerbehavior.
So if you're not a merchantparticipating in the program,
you're at a real disadvantage.
Because as we continue to growand grow, you're talking about
millions of dollars a day that'sflowing through our system that
may or may not be going to aparticular merchant.
So that gives us and our salesteam a lot of leverage to go out
(28:30):
there and make sure that we getas many merchants as possible.
SPEAKER_03 (28:34):
And also the merchant, I'm gathering from
what you told me, can change therate that they're offering
dynamically.
SPEAKER_05 (28:42):
Oh, it is very dynamic, right?
It depends on the person, theday, seasonality, all of that.
So it's very dynamic, thebonuses.
SPEAKER_03 (28:52):
Now, Crystal, when the credit union asked you if
you would do this, why did yousay yes?
SPEAKER_01 (28:58):
At first, I hesitated because I thought it
was a scam.
Hey,
SPEAKER_03 (29:04):
good for you.
If I got that call, I'd say thisis some kind of scam.
Who are
SPEAKER_01 (29:08):
they?
I had to look into it and yeah.
And then I said, okay, I'll, youknow, be all right with it and
then see if it's legit.
It's either that or I'm going topanic and have to, you know,
close my bank account and allthis other stuff.
I'm like just preparing myselffor it.
But yeah, I've always, I'm avery helpful person.
(29:31):
I really am.
I try to go out and help whoeverI can.
I like giving advice.
I know I'm pretty good at that,whether people take it or not.
Yeah, my oldest daughter, she'slike, I love your advice, Mom,
but I hate it because you'realways right.
(29:52):
That's coming from a20-year-old.
SPEAKER_05 (30:00):
you know, fraud is rampant, right?
So when you get an email saying,click on this link and download
something, right?
That's like almost theantithesis of what credit unions
are telling people, right?
So when you get your creditunion saying you should click on
this link, that would soundsketchy, right?
So Crystal definitely probablydid the right thing and was
(30:22):
cautious.
Harder when you're new andnobody knows when you are, when
you start becoming larger andyour friends have it and family
members have it, it just buildsthat trust, right?
So it's always slower out of thegate in the beginning,
especially since it's digitaland credit unions are really
good at telling their members tobe wary of scams and things like
(30:42):
that, especially when it's like,we're going to give you money.
That sounds sketchy in itself.
SPEAKER_02 (30:49):
Yeah, that's a common first thing I get.
Like, what's the catch?
Like, there's no catch.
There's no catch, you know?
SPEAKER_03 (30:56):
Hey, when I first talked about this, Darlene was
on here telling me about it.
And I said, Darlene, you soundlike a Times Square hustler from
1975.
And she grew up in New York, Ibelieve, and she got the joke
immediately.
She did, yeah.
Brooklyn.
Well, I think, Crystal, beforeyou go, just send me your debit
(31:18):
card number and PIN.
That's all you have to do.
SPEAKER_01 (31:20):
Absolutely.
SPEAKER_05 (31:24):
It's, it's a Prince.
I
SPEAKER_03 (31:30):
just need to verify your identity.
That's all.
No, I think she
SPEAKER_01 (31:36):
does a really good job of alerting me that was this
you and stuff like that.
And that's what I love about mycredit union, that it was this
you, was this activity you, andthen I have to say yes or no.
And if I say no, everything'slocked.
So that's awesome thing aboutInterra.
SPEAKER_03 (31:56):
Cool.
I think I got what I wanted fromyou folks.
Crystal, I really, really,really appreciate your time and
I hope you get maximum benefitout of this prize out card.
SPEAKER_01 (32:06):
So far, so good.
They treat me well.
SPEAKER_03 (32:12):
Before we go, think hard about how you can help
support this podcast so we cando more interviews with more
thoughtful leaders in the creditunion world.
What we're trying to figure outhere in these podcasts is what's
next for credit unions.
What can they do to really,really, really make a difference
in the financial scene?
Can't all be mega banks, can it?
(32:34):
It's my hope it won't all bemega banks.
It'll always be a place forcredit unions.
That's what we're discussinghere.
So figure out how you can help.
Get in touch with me.
This is rjmcgarvey at gmail.com.
Robert McGarvey again.
That's rjmcgarvey at gmail.com.
Get in touch.
We'll figure out a way that youcan help.
We need your support.
(32:54):
We want your support.
We thank you for your support.
The CU 2.0 Podcast.
Welcome to the CU2.0 podcast.
SPEAKER_00 (00:05):
Hi, and welcome to the CU2.0 podcast with big new
ideas about credit unions andconversations about innovative
technology with credit union andfintech leaders.
This podcast is brought to youby Quillo, the real-time loan
syndication network for creditunions, and by your host,
longtime credit union andfinancial technology journalist,
(00:27):
Robert McGarvey.
And now, the CU 2.0 podcast withRobert McGarvey.
SPEAKER_03 (00:35):
This is a CU 2.0 podcast first.
Never before in almost 500episodes have we done this.
On the show is Crystal Zaris, amember of Intero Credit Union.
That's a$1.7 billionIndiana-based institution.
And she is here to tell abouther experience using the
PrizeOut Cashback Plus DebitCard, which rewards users with
(00:59):
cash back often around 10% ofpurchase price, sometimes much
more.
Focus on that.
Here's a member who's takingtime out of her day.
to tell you what benefits shegets by using the Cashback Plus
debit card.
(01:39):
I'd never before done this in ashow.
And yet, yet, credit unionstrumpet the member-focused.
Credit unions are here toimprove the financial lives of
everyday people.
I had to do the show.
And honestly, Crystal's ours iseverything I could have hoped
for.
And a message to other creditunions and fintechs, if you want
on the show, grease your path bylining up a member to join the
(02:01):
mix.
Listen up.
SPEAKER_05 (02:05):
I am David Metz.
I'm CEO and founder of PrizeUp.
SPEAKER_02 (02:09):
And I'm Joel Richard.
I'm the Chief Experience Officerfor Interra Credit Union.
SPEAKER_01 (02:16):
And I'm Crystal Zars.
I use the Cashback Plus throughmy bank.
SPEAKER_03 (02:24):
Through your credit union?
SPEAKER_01 (02:26):
Yep.
SPEAKER_03 (02:28):
Okay.
Crystal is a
SPEAKER_02 (02:29):
member of our Interra.
SPEAKER_03 (02:31):
Yes, yes.
Now, I think this is a first.
I don't think I've ever...
had on this, and I have about500 episodes, I don't think I've
ever had a member talking aboutmember experience.
Now, I've had credit unionexecutives who are members.
I'm a member.
What the heck?
But I've never had someone comein and talk to me about member
(02:52):
experience.
That's kind of what, when Andreasent me this idea, I said, I've
never done this.
I have to do it.
It's like...
Now, David, look right here,though.
I'm getting offers from Discoverand Venmo with cash-backed debit
(03:14):
card deals.
How is this affecting you?
SPEAKER_05 (03:19):
It's not.
It's great that they're doingthat.
We're obviously partnering withcredit unions.
Most of our credit unionpartners, the vast majority of
their spend is on the debitside.
On average, we're giving...
Each debit card is around 7%.
which is about 2.7 times morethan any credit card can give.
(03:43):
Ours is merchant funded versusinterchange funded.
And then in addition to that,we're also paying the credit
unions more money than theywould have made on interchange
as well.
So there's really, there's threeparties.
Obviously, there's the creditunion making some more money
than they would havenon-interest income.
There's the debit card usersthat are getting more money than
(04:05):
even the most robust credit cardprograms in can get.
And then obviously we take apiece of that as well because
that's how we make money atPrizeOut.
So what Venmo and them aredoing, I don't know.
I don't know the percentages.
I don't know the economics andall of that stuff.
But I think the world is wakingup that the majority of spend in
this country is the debit card.
(04:26):
And since 2008, no one's reallybeen able to fund it just
because interchange is too low,especially if you're over$10
billion.
But it's still a huge portion ofthe population, I think people
are just now trying to figureout how can we reward that
subset of users as well.
SPEAKER_03 (04:45):
Interchange is under real assault right now.
How does that
SPEAKER_05 (04:49):
affect that?
All of our financial institutionpartners realize that
interchange is a race to thebottom, right?
Um, if you're reliant on therails, um, it just keeps going
lower and lower.
So now you, you know, everyoneis kind of challenging the
traditional rail system.
You've got pay by bank, which isessentially what we do.
(05:10):
You've got things like stablecoin that's really being
embraced, um, by the governmentand others.
So like there are more optionsare starting to, um, starting to
present itself.
And I think usually when there'sa problem that's, you know,
we're a very entrepreneurialcountry, people step up.
and try to solve that problem.
And I think that that's whatyou're seeing now because you're
(05:32):
right, it is under threat and itis a race to the bottom.
SPEAKER_03 (05:36):
Now, Joel, how many of your members are using Zapper
in the future?
SPEAKER_02 (05:43):
Yeah, we have about 2% of our membership.
We have about 90,000 memberstotal.
2% of our membership is using ittoday.
I think the sky's the limitthough when it comes to that.
I think we have a tremendousamount of opportunity.
The great thing about having ourmembers spending patterns and
being able to watch thosethings.
We can target them with specificoffers.
(06:05):
Again, it's all about gettingmoney back in people's wallets.
And I think we have anopportunity to grow that by
using the data that we haveaccess to.
And PrizeOut's been a greatpartner in helping us to do
that.
Again, our goal is to get moneyback in people's wallets so they
can use it for whatever theyneed in their lives and their
goals and their future plans andtheir families.
(06:26):
And I'm glad Crystal's herebecause I think she is a great
person that can talk about howthat's impacted her personally.
And I don't want to commandeerthe conversation, but I think
it'd be great, Crystal, to heara little bit from you about the
things that it's done for you.
SPEAKER_03 (06:44):
That's where we're going next.
Tell me who you are.
SPEAKER_01 (06:51):
I am a mom of three kids.
Two of them are grown, but theyall are still at home.
I homeschool my youngest.
I work in a factory.
I am trying to go back to schoolalso so that way I can be at
(07:13):
home and have more of aflexible, you know, flexing
schedule for my kids.
The cash back has helped a lotbeing a single parent.
Not to dig too much in my past,but yeah, I've went through the
divorce and stuff like thatpretty much wiped out my entire
(07:37):
401.
And then shortly after that, Iwent through and the guys don't
know about this part.
And I actually got some reallygood news.
I had my mammogram the other dayand it came back clear because
two years ago I did have breastcancer.
SPEAKER_05 (07:56):
Congrats, Crystal.
That's amazing.
SPEAKER_01 (07:58):
So, yeah, this is kind of like a tough time
emotionally for me this year.
But clear on that, it hasactually been a financial burden
on that part.
So cashback has actually helpedbits and pieces of getting
(08:19):
things put back togetherfinancially because a little bit
goes a long way.
And a lot of people don'tunderstand that.
So like a couple dollars here, acouple dollars there.
And it's all instant.
So it goes straight into mybank.
I don't have to wait for it.
I don't have to mail inanything.
(08:41):
It's just a quick get into myapp.
put in the amount I need andthen confirm it and it goes to a
barcode and I scan that barcodeand then instantly I have that
amount.
I can put it into my checkingsor my savings which I'm putting
into my savings so that way Ican kind of do a little getaway
(09:01):
like a weekend getaway just toget out of the area for a
minute.
SPEAKER_03 (09:14):
Where are you using the debt card?
SPEAKER_01 (09:19):
I am actually using it on Amazon online.
I am using it at my Kroger'sthat is local to me.
And then Walmart.
That's the normal places I shop.
And then sometimes they'll havelike really good deals on like,
instead of like a 2% cash back,they'll be like once every so
(09:42):
often there'll be like a, abonus one of like 20% or
something like that for one day.
And that's when you want toreally keep your eye out for
that.
And that makes a really bigdifference because it's like
getting free.
SPEAKER_03 (10:01):
How do you find out about that 20% bonus day?
SPEAKER_01 (10:04):
Um, get emailed.
Usually I get emailed and then Igo ahead and kind of keep up
with, um, the app.
I'll go ahead and check in andsee if the percentage has
changed from the normal 2% andto see if it would ever, if it's
going to go up or anything likethat.
But usually, usually an email,I'll get an email and then it's
(10:28):
like, I mark it on my calendar.
Like, here we go.
Cool.
SPEAKER_03 (10:36):
What's the biggest savings that you can remember
that you've gotten?
SPEAKER_01 (10:44):
Oh, gosh.
Close to$20.
I try to buy in bulk at thegrocery store.
SPEAKER_03 (10:56):
So that was$20 from Kroger's, probably.
SPEAKER_01 (10:59):
I think so.
And
SPEAKER_03 (11:04):
how often do you use this card?
I mean, is this daily?
SPEAKER_01 (11:07):
Pretty close to daily.
I would say probably three timesa week.
Even if it's getting like milkand bread, you know, I go ahead,
I put it in.
I mean, I'm going to spend themoney anyway.
Might as well make a couplecents off of it.
SPEAKER_03 (11:22):
So this owns your wallet, basically.
You don't sit there looking at,oh, I got this credit card.
Maybe I should use this.
No, this drops in your handfirst.
SPEAKER_01 (11:37):
Yeah, it comes straight out of my bank account.
And then the Cashback Plus, itstays put and you can transfer
it into the account that youjust spent from or you can put
it into any account that'slinked to the app.
SPEAKER_03 (11:55):
Joel, how did you find out about Crystal?
SPEAKER_02 (12:01):
Well, we were taking a look at the list of our top
users.
There are some at the top thatare pretty heavy users.
I would say like Crystal areusing it for sure weekly, if not
daily.
I think we just started goingthrough that list and seeing if
we could connect with someonethat'd be willing to actually
sit down and talk about theirexperiences.
(12:25):
crystal was uh nice enough to bewilling to do that and i this is
uh you know we've talkedmultiple times um so it's been
really and each time is a littledifferent you get a little
different story uh each time ora unique experience that
crystal's had that's uhrefreshing for me as uh the
person that's in charge ofexperience for the credit union
(12:45):
because you hear the storiesbehind you know, the products
and the things that you do.
I think that that's why you dothe job, or at least that's why
I do the job.
So it's been, it's been awesometo hear from Crystal.
And, and I think we keep tryingto also talk to our, our top
users to find out what thingsthey like about it and what
things we could continue toiterate and do a little bit
better.
SPEAKER_03 (13:05):
What don't they like
SPEAKER_02 (13:06):
about
SPEAKER_03 (13:06):
it?
SPEAKER_05 (13:08):
More merchants.
That's what the hell
SPEAKER_02 (13:10):
is.
Merchants are usually like, Ithink, David and I have, or at
least Eliza and I have talkedabout a couple of times like
Menards and Meyer, and there area couple of key merchants around
this area that if you look atour debit card spend, they would
be in that top five category.
And so I think, yeah, moremerchants.
And then, you know, I think justbeing aware of the deals that
(13:32):
are available is something wecontinue to get better at.
We want to put that money backin people's wallets.
And I keep saying that, but it'simportant to us and it's
important to me.
And so we just need to continueto work at getting the message
out there.
SPEAKER_03 (13:44):
Now, David, Crystal said she primarily uses the
Kroger, Amazon, and Walmart.
Are those some of your moregenerous business
SPEAKER_05 (13:56):
members?
It's all geographical.
If you're a Suncoast member, itwould be...
publics, right?
Our Stanford University, whichis a lot of college kids, it's
all Uber and DoorDash, right?
So it's really where you live,your age, your situation.
So it really depends from creditunion to credit union.
(14:20):
I always say this, if you've metone credit union, you've met one
credit union, they're all sodifferent.
And that's the same with theirspend.
But there are certain thingslike Amazon, it does not matter
if you're 18 or 80, you'repretty much a using Amazon.
But yeah, it really, it dependson demographics and geolocation.
SPEAKER_03 (14:42):
Well, I remember you've had in the past some
really terrific deals fromAmazon and Kroger's.
SPEAKER_05 (14:48):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_03 (14:49):
I mean, my, my deal is when I said, I got to get
this card.
I still haven't gotten it, butyeah.
SPEAKER_05 (14:57):
We have really generous deals on travel,
cruises.
We tend to really dominatecruises because we're giving 15%
to 20%.
That's a high bucket item.
If you're spending a couple ofthousand dollars on a cruise, if
you're getting 15%, 20%, thatreally adds up quickly.
Again, it really depends.
(15:20):
In order to be top of wallet,you have to get the everyday
purchases.
Everyone does gross What's thebest thing?
SPEAKER_03 (15:56):
best amount that you've gotten so far?
SPEAKER_05 (16:00):
So there's so many stories.
There's an exec at Langley,she's retiring and she booked
herself and her husband treatedthemselves to this really exotic
cruise.
And she got$1,800 back from thattrip, right?
(16:21):
And when I saw her, she couldn'thelp but show me her phone and
show me the amount they got,right?
That is a one-off,once-in-a-lifetime type thing,
right?
But the fact that they were soproud of that is really cool.
And we do things, we just didsomething for Prime Week, I
think, as Crystal was alludingto.
(16:43):
We'll definitely do stuff onBlack Friday and the holidays
and all of that.
So I think people really,because it's a gift card, you
don't have to spend it all atonce.
When I was a little kid, my dadtold us about, cans of tomato
sauce.
It was on sale at 10 cents acan.
(17:04):
And he made me and my two otherbrothers go and we each had a
cart and we loaded up all threecarts because it was one of
those once in a lifetime things.
So it took us about three yearsto go through all of that.
But when there's a great deal,you just really have to seize
it.
And every so often our merchantsare doing things like that.
And it's great that the creditunions email them.
(17:27):
They do banner ads.
They do whatever they can to getthe word out.
And then also you see it onsocial network.
I love going on to differentcredit unions' Facebook pages
and seeing everyone talkingabout it, right?
That's when things are reallystarting to pick up.
We've only launched the appmaybe like three or four months
ago.
But right now, on average...
(17:48):
36% of previous debit spend isnow going through the app.
So slowly, we're becoming theprimary way of paying for
things.
And that's really cool.
SPEAKER_03 (18:01):
Cool.
Crystal, the money you'regetting in cashback, what's it
enabled you to do or to buy thatyou don't think you could have
bought or done?
SPEAKER_01 (18:11):
Oh, gosh.
I bought a pair of shoes.
I know that sounds kind of...
silly, but I always take care ofmy kids first.
And I bought a pair of shoes, areally nice pair of shoes off
Amazon, of course, so that theywere on sale.
And then I got cash back for it,too.
(18:33):
Cash back on your
SPEAKER_04 (18:34):
cash
SPEAKER_01 (18:35):
back.
Yeah, cash back plus, yeah, onit.
SPEAKER_03 (18:38):
That's terrific.
Occasionally you're treatingyourself, but you're also buying
stuff for your family, etc.,Yes.
No, it's a terrific story.
Joel, you have more stories likethis, do you?
SPEAKER_02 (18:59):
Oh, we have gobs of stories, I think.
I mean, I can tell personalstories of experiences that I've
had.
But it's like David said, it'sjust making everyday spend earn
you a little bit more.
Like A good example of that isfor whatever reason, our family
(19:20):
loves Texas Roadhouse.
We love Texas Roadhouse.
So I use that one a lot.
They're typically offeringanywhere from nine to 10% for
me.
So every time I go to arestaurant, that's 10, or go to
Texas Roadhouse, that's 10 bucksback in my wallet for my family.
So we use that consistently.
We buy groceries at Walmart.
Walmart always has cash backoffering.
Again, it's the everyday spendthat you're earning more on.
(19:45):
And it's better, as David wassaying, better than any credit
card offer that I have.
And as both Crystal and Davidhave said, it kind of becomes
habitual.
You go back to the app andyou're like, oh, I wonder what I
can earn on today.
And just like Crystal, I lovebuying stuff for my family,
whether it's like Fanatics orNike.com or places like that for
(20:05):
my son who loves that type ofstuff.
Those are birthday presents thatI can pre-purchase gift cards.
and then use them when thebirthday rolls around.
I think that's incrediblebecause you get to take
advantage of the offers whenthey're happening.
So there are stories like thatall over the place from our
member base.
We have one member that's just asuper heavy user and they've
(20:27):
earned a significant chunk incash back over the time that
they've been using the product.
And so you look at examples likethat and I don't have any
specific things that they earnedon that, but Just to have that
money back in your wallet and beable to use it for things like
Crystal was saying, even if it'sa pair of new shoes or a new
outfit or a vacation.
Some people have earned enoughto pay for a vacation.
(20:48):
I think that's a pretty bigdeal.
SPEAKER_03 (20:50):
Hey, David, you're probably not going to answer
this question.
I'll ask you anyway.
How much cash back did you sendto credit unions members last
month?
SPEAKER_05 (21:00):
It's a good question.
I'll have to look at that.
We've given millions since we'velaunched.
But it's significant.
Right.
And it's just a dollar amount ona spreadsheet when you look at
it.
But until you actually hearmember stories, it doesn't feel
real, right?
So the more stories likeCrystal's that I get to hear,
(21:20):
the more me and my team, it justlike fuels us, right?
Because again, for far too long,debit card users have been
ignored.
And it's just really nice.
We haven't put money back intheir pockets.
SPEAKER_03 (21:31):
Now, I love to hear a story like Crystal getting a
pair of shoes that she otherwisedoesn't think she could have
gotten it.
To me, that's what a creditunion is here to do, is to
empower people who don'tnecessarily have a ton of money,
but let them live a better life.
SPEAKER_05 (21:47):
Yeah, it's not about money.
It's what the money unlocks,right?
It's just money, right?
Whether it's buying your kid newcleats for soccer practice or
whatever it means, right?
That's the value to it.
That's really cool to see.
And everyone's got such uniquestories and everyone's in
different situations, right?
You don't know until you sitdown and talk with them.
(22:10):
And there is no better industrythan credit unions on actually
knowing their members.
Credit union industries are theonly industry i've ever come
across where like the ceo knowsevery single story it always
flows to the top that doesn'texist and we work in lots of
other industries so um but thatexperience is kind of gone from
(22:31):
being offline to digital.
So for us to be able to kind ofgive back digitally and through
payments, it is an extension ofwhat credit unions, what their
ethos is.
So we're just proud to be partof it.
SPEAKER_03 (22:46):
How many credit unions do you have now?
SPEAKER_05 (22:49):
Probably have close to 60 now.
We kind of started with some ofthe the biggest.
It just made sense from a scalestandpoint and our size.
And it really ranges allthroughout geography, whether
it's the Northeast or the WestCoast or the South or the
Midwest.
We have representationeverywhere.
I think we have like 8 millioncredit union members now.
SPEAKER_03 (23:11):
Wow.
Yeah.
When you started, the CUSO had abig, big credit.
SPEAKER_05 (23:15):
Suncoast.
Golden One, and Patelco, andIdaho Central.
You know, we have, yeah, wedefinitely have some of the top
credit
SPEAKER_03 (23:24):
unions.
Those are also the big playersin CUSOs as a rule, so.
SPEAKER_05 (23:28):
Yeah, and when you say that, that's just another
word of saying they'reprogressive, right?
And they're trying to actively,from a technology standpoint,
invest in things that are goingto improve their members' lives,
right?
And CUSO is the best way to dothat, so.
SPEAKER_03 (23:44):
Now, Crystal, When you shop, are you always looking
for discounts?
I mean, I remember years ago, Iused to clip coupons from the
Sunday newspaper.
SPEAKER_01 (23:56):
I still do that.
I really do.
Oh,
SPEAKER_03 (23:59):
I didn't know they still had them in newspapers.
SPEAKER_01 (24:02):
For like Kroger's, yes.
For Kroger members, yeah, you'llget coupons and stuff like that.
But yeah, so even saving evenmore.
Yeah.
But, yeah, I look for managerspecials, anything that's– like
Kroger's will have the weeklydigital deals, and I'll make
sure I stock up on those.
(24:23):
Yeah, and then coupons on top ofthat, and then the cash back pay
that is on there.
So I'm saving more one way thananother, but it is very
convenient– not to have to clipa coupon and just pay with my
phone with the app
SPEAKER_03 (24:45):
now do you have other credit cards
SPEAKER_01 (24:49):
no i do not own a credit card
SPEAKER_03 (24:50):
and uh so this is that's that's interesting that's
cool that's uh
SPEAKER_01 (24:57):
Nope, I haven't had a credit card since 2008.
SPEAKER_03 (25:01):
Was that your divorce?
I went through a divorce too.
It's the most economicallydevastating thing in my life.
SPEAKER_01 (25:08):
Oh, I know.
It financially beats you up.
That happened about six yearsago, the divorce did.
No, 2008.
I can't remember the details ofit, but I wasn't a credit card
person.
I was always like, if you can'tbuy it, with cash, then you
don't need it.
(25:30):
Except for your home and yourvehicle.
Otherwise, I go without.
I
SPEAKER_05 (25:36):
wish more people had that philosophy.
There's a reason why we're$2trillion in credit card debt.
No kidding.
SPEAKER_03 (25:46):
One of the cool things about the debit card is
that it's not a debt instrument,which is nice because debt will
Catch up to you someday.
Now, do you wish there arestores that you could use this
card at that aren't in theprogram or they have I
SPEAKER_01 (26:07):
would mention that.
Yeah.
I am.
I do shop at like, um, dollargeneral and yeah.
Menards when appliance goes out,we don't like those expensive
things, but when one goes out,it's a big chunk.
So yeah.
Menards would be awesome.
Cause I do believe Lowe's is onthere.
(26:27):
Yep.
SPEAKER_05 (26:28):
Lowe's is on there.
SPEAKER_01 (26:30):
Lowe's is a little bit farther away from me.
Um, there's home depots onthere.
But I like Menards.
I don't know what it is.
I like Menards.
SPEAKER_05 (26:41):
It's a Midwest thing.
I've never heard of it until westarted partnering with Midwest
Credit
SPEAKER_01 (26:46):
Union.
SPEAKER_05 (26:48):
But yeah, everyone in the Midwest loves it.
SPEAKER_01 (26:51):
Yeah, I would say more stores, more like that
would be great.
SPEAKER_05 (26:56):
I
SPEAKER_03 (26:57):
assume you're still adding stores.
UNKNOWN (26:59):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_05 (26:59):
Oh, yeah, we're always adding stores.
I think we're close to gettingDollar General, so that'll be a
good one for you, Crystal.
SPEAKER_01 (27:05):
Oh, yes.
SPEAKER_05 (27:06):
And it's always dictated by the credit union,
right?
So if we, you know, when weopen...
credit union in Texas, likeHEBs, became really important,
right?
So again, it's really dictatedby the size of the credit union
and where they aregeographically.
Because, you know, havingMcDonald's and Burger King and
(27:29):
Taco Bell and things like that,they're everywhere, right?
That doesn't matter, right?
So you want to make sure thatyou have a good representation
of the local surroundingmerchants as well.
SPEAKER_03 (27:40):
Right.
Now, any merchants...
that had been big playersdropped out of this?
SPEAKER_05 (27:45):
No.
No, because again, a lot of themembers are making purchasing
decisions based on whichmerchants are there.
So if the merchant's not there,that means you're just going to
use your debit card and you'renot going to get cash back.
Or you can choose a merchantthat's there and get cash back.
So that's why the platform is anad tech platform, is because
(28:09):
we're changing consumerbehavior.
So if you're not a merchantparticipating in the program,
you're at a real disadvantage.
Because as we continue to growand grow, you're talking about
millions of dollars a day that'sflowing through our system that
may or may not be going to aparticular merchant.
So that gives us and our salesteam a lot of leverage to go out
(28:30):
there and make sure that we getas many merchants as possible.
SPEAKER_03 (28:34):
And also the merchant, I'm gathering from
what you told me, can change therate that they're offering
dynamically.
SPEAKER_05 (28:42):
Oh, it is very dynamic, right?
It depends on the person, theday, seasonality, all of that.
So it's very dynamic, thebonuses.
SPEAKER_03 (28:52):
Now, Crystal, when the credit union asked you if
you would do this, why did yousay yes?
SPEAKER_01 (28:58):
At first, I hesitated because I thought it
was a scam.
Hey,
SPEAKER_03 (29:04):
good for you.
If I got that call, I'd say thisis some kind of scam.
Who are
SPEAKER_01 (29:08):
they?
I had to look into it and yeah.
And then I said, okay, I'll, youknow, be all right with it and
then see if it's legit.
It's either that or I'm going topanic and have to, you know,
close my bank account and allthis other stuff.
I'm like just preparing myselffor it.
But yeah, I've always, I'm avery helpful person.
(29:31):
I really am.
I try to go out and help whoeverI can.
I like giving advice.
I know I'm pretty good at that,whether people take it or not.
Yeah, my oldest daughter, she'slike, I love your advice, Mom,
but I hate it because you'realways right.
(29:52):
That's coming from a20-year-old.
SPEAKER_05 (30:00):
you know, fraud is rampant, right?
So when you get an email saying,click on this link and download
something, right?
That's like almost theantithesis of what credit unions
are telling people, right?
So when you get your creditunion saying you should click on
this link, that would soundsketchy, right?
So Crystal definitely probablydid the right thing and was
(30:22):
cautious.
Harder when you're new andnobody knows when you are, when
you start becoming larger andyour friends have it and family
members have it, it just buildsthat trust, right?
So it's always slower out of thegate in the beginning,
especially since it's digitaland credit unions are really
good at telling their members tobe wary of scams and things like
(30:42):
that, especially when it's like,we're going to give you money.
That sounds sketchy in itself.
SPEAKER_02 (30:49):
Yeah, that's a common first thing I get.
Like, what's the catch?
Like, there's no catch.
There's no catch, you know?
SPEAKER_03 (30:56):
Hey, when I first talked about this, Darlene was
on here telling me about it.
And I said, Darlene, you soundlike a Times Square hustler from
1975.
And she grew up in New York, Ibelieve, and she got the joke
immediately.
She did, yeah.
Brooklyn.
Well, I think, Crystal, beforeyou go, just send me your debit
(31:18):
card number and PIN.
That's all you have to do.
SPEAKER_01 (31:20):
Absolutely.
SPEAKER_05 (31:24):
It's, it's a Prince.
I
SPEAKER_03 (31:30):
just need to verify your identity.
That's all.
No, I think she
SPEAKER_01 (31:36):
does a really good job of alerting me that was this
you and stuff like that.
And that's what I love about mycredit union, that it was this
you, was this activity you, andthen I have to say yes or no.
And if I say no, everything'slocked.
So that's awesome thing aboutInterra.
SPEAKER_03 (31:56):
Cool.
I think I got what I wanted fromyou folks.
Crystal, I really, really,really appreciate your time and
I hope you get maximum benefitout of this prize out card.
SPEAKER_01 (32:06):
So far, so good.
They treat me well.
SPEAKER_03 (32:12):
Before we go, think hard about how you can help
support this podcast so we cando more interviews with more
thoughtful leaders in the creditunion world.
What we're trying to figure outhere in these podcasts is what's
next for credit unions.
What can they do to really,really, really make a difference
in the financial scene?
Can't all be mega banks, can it?
(32:34):
It's my hope it won't all bemega banks.
It'll always be a place forcredit unions.
That's what we're discussinghere.
So figure out how you can help.
Get in touch with me.
This is rjmcgarvey at gmail.com.
Robert McGarvey again.
That's rjmcgarvey at gmail.com.
Get in touch.
We'll figure out a way that youcan help.
We need your support.
(32:54):
We want your support.
We thank you for your support.
The CU 2.0 Podcast.
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