North Star CCU Grows with Envisant

This credit union grew its credit and debit card program with the help of Envisant – a DakCU CAP member and trusted strategic partner. 

North Star Community Credit Union (Maddock, ND) is a federally insured credit union serving members throughout their 12 branches and multiple ATMs in North Dakota. North Star strives to deliver the best in financial solutions, one person at a time.

When the intermediary for North Star’s card program stopped offering its program, the credit union needed a new way to offer credit and debit cards to their members. Already faced with the challenge of this transition, North Star was also aware of potentially burdensome legislation introduced at the state level. These became strong pain points to not only offering quality debit and credit programs, but also to achieving the credit union’s goal for growth.
​
Envisant was recommended to North Star by the Dakota Credit Union Association (DakCU). As George McDonald, DakCU’s Chief Officer of Strategic Services explained, “Envisant is a credit union service organization that uses forward-thinking strategies to help credit unions achieve their vision, and they have been a longtime trusted strategic partner of the association. North Star started off needing a guide through their card program transition process and ended up with a partner that helped them meet their goals for growing their card program,” he added.

“We decided that Envisant would be a good fit for us to transition, and at some point, in the future, if we wanted to break away, we certainly could,” stated Joann Bergrud, Chief Operations Officer at North Star. “But we have found true value in being a partner with Envisant. We have had our hands held through major projects; we would never have been able to understand some of the details of these projects without the Envisant team guiding us,” she added.

Envisant’s knowledgeable team was instrumental in answering the credit union’s questions and providing insights into new strategies that would help both their debit and credit programs grow while fighting fraud. The results speak for themselves, with monthly savings from potential fraud exceeding $20,000.

In addition, Envisant guided North Star in keeping their credit program front and center, reviewing all aspects of their strategy. Envisant assisted with a change in terms, adjusting the rate on the credit union’s cards to be more in line with the marketplace. Promotional campaigns were also introduced with marketing materials and a continuous-running, popular balance transfer promotion was implemented.

RESULTS:

• Card balances up 18.2%
• Number of transactions up 12%
• Sales volume up 12%
• Active accounts up 10.7%
• Interchange income up 16%
• Total card revenue up 25.8%

These results, and the excellent working relationship formed, motivated North Star to remain with Envisant long term. Envisant has helped North Star focus on maximizing interchange through a new network strategy and introduced tools that helped streamline technology for North Star’s members, while enhancing operational efficiencies.

Just this week, DakCU learned that Envisant was named CUSO of the Year by the National Association of Credit Union Service Organizations (NASCUSO). Be sure to check out the related story in today’s Memo!

Envisant helps credit unions compete, providing a favorable operating environment and quality information, products and services, which have value, and which enable credit unions to compete and prosper in the financial marketplace. Visit their website to learn more. 
 
Are you considering a new card program? Do you need assistance in getting started? Contact George McDonald, Chief Officer of Strategic Services, for more information.