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How Under-45 Consumers Decide Which Financial Institution Is “Best” (and Why Credit Unions Lose Non-Members but Can Win Primary Status)
The data referenced below is from research conducted by Geear among 1,000 customers on their banking preferences. The survey was conducted end of 2025. The data below is sourced from a Geear study involving 1,000 customers, which investigated their banking preferences. This research was completed at the end of 2025.
Summary:
- Under-45 non-members default to traditional banks for nearly every high-priority factor (customer service, accessibility, branches, variety, community), while online-only banks win the digital experience categories (mobile app, online experience). Credit unions do not lead a single factor in 2022 or 2025 for this segment (per the slide’s “most often rated as best”).
- Credit unions gain ground once someone is already a CU member, but not primary (Non-PFI): in 2025, credit unions become “best” for customer service, and also lead on variety of offerings and financial education. While online-only banks remain “best” for mobile app and online experience.
- Primary credit union relationships (PFI) are strong, but no longer safe: in 2025, online-only banks match credit unions for “best” accessibility and continue to dominate “best” online experience; credit unions still lead most human/community factors.
- Surprising insight: In the Non-PFI segment, traditional banks are rated “least often as best” for mobile app in 2025. A sign that even “big banks” can lose perceived digital leadership if the experience lags or expectations rise.
- The strategic takeaway: Credit union growth in under-45 audiences is a two-front strategy. (1) break the “big bank default” among non-members, and (2) defend PFI members from online-only competitors by upgrading the accessibility and mobile moments that shape everyday satisfaction.
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Chris Leone
Feb 9, 2026
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How Credit Unions Can Improve Their Visibility in AI LLMs
A recent study by Geear found that consumers under 45 use Large Language Models (LLMs) as the second-most-used channel when researching financial institutions, trailing only search engines. As Gemini and ChatGPT become daily research tools, credit union and bank marketers are naturally asking: “How do we ensure our brand appears in these results?”
Chris Leone
Feb 4, 2026
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Online-Only Bank Adoption Is Rising. Older Consumers Are Catching Up: What Credit Unions Should Do Next
Summary:
- Online-only bank membership is growing across age groups, with the biggest acceleration coming from consumers 45 or older.
- Consumers under 45 still lead adoption (online-only bank membership rose from 61% in 2022 to 66% in 2025), meaning “digital-first” remains the default expectation.
- Surprising insight: Online-only bank membership among consumers 45+ jumped from 24% (2022) to 35% (2025). That’s now “over 1 in 3” older consumers indicating online-only bank membership.
- The competitive threat isn’t only “new fintechs winning Gen Z.” It’s digital competitors successfully penetrating traditionally loyal, deposit-rich segments, which raises the stakes for retention and relationship strategy.
- Credit unions should treat digital adoption as a retention and share-of-wallet problem, not just a marketing awareness problem. Backed by better segmentation, onboarding, security messaging, and measurable conversion/engagement KPIs.
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Chris Leone
Feb 2, 2026
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How Can You Secure Your Place in AI Ad Placements? A Paid Advertising Strategy for Credit Unions.
Consumers aren’t starting their financial research the way they used to. A member who once searched “auto loan rates near me” now asks:
Christina Odom
Jan 20, 2026
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What Level of HubSpot is Right for Our Credit Union?
Brandon Frey
Jan 12, 2026
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Geear Achieves SOC 2 Type II Compliance, Reinforcing Commitment to Security for Financial Institutions
Geear is proud to announce that we have successfully completed our SOC 2 Type II examination, validating the effectiveness of our security controls over an extended audit period. This milestone underscores our ongoing commitment to safeguarding information and supporting the compliance expectations of credit unions and community banks we serve.
Chris Leone
Dec 20, 2025
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Smarter PPC Strategy for Seasonal Credit Union Campaigns
Seasonal campaigns for credit unions often get rushed out the door: quick launch, quick spend, and a vague hope that something sticks. But in competitive financial markets, that kind of approach usually leads to wasted budget and underwhelming performance.
Chalyn McCarter
Dec 4, 2025
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How Much Traffic is ChatGPT Sending to Credit Union Websites?
Ever since ChatGPT launched to the public in late 2022, people have been speculating that the days of traditional search engine dominance were numbered.
Chris Leone
Dec 1, 2025
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How Often Do People Use AI to Find A Bank or Credit Union?
AI tools like ChatGPT, Claude, and Gemini have changed the way people find information online. But the actual impact these large language model tools (LLMs) are having on businesses is still unclear. Credit unions in particular are left wondering where and how these AI tools factor into the member experience.
In a recently published survey conducted by Geear of 1,000 consumers, we found that people turn to LLMs as their first step when looking for an FI nearly 10% of the time. By comparison, search engines are used first ~30% of the time.
Chris Leone
Dec 1, 2025
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Reaching the right members: Audience Targeting for Credit Unions
Why Targeting Got Harder (And Why That’s a Good Thing)
If you lead marketing at a credit union, you’ve felt the shift: audience targeting isn’t what it used to be. Privacy regulations, automation, and platform restrictions within Google Ads, especially for financial services categories, have rewritten the rules of digital reach.
Christina Odom
Nov 10, 2025