What's your most important business challenge today? Slowing attrition? Developing and selling new products and services? Building customer loyalty? Simply getting the phones to ring? Without regular client communication through an effective marketing program, these goals may be out of your reach. As more financial institutions fight for market share and customer loyalty, advertising is becoming more important than ever.

For over 25 years, First Marketing has developed targeted and effective marketing/communications programs for financial clients who don't have the time or staff to devote to a large-scale direct mail or marketing program. We've fine-tuned our expertise in identifying and meeting the communication needs for many financial sectors, particularly large credit card, credit union and mortgage banking companies containing millions of customers within their databases.

Based on your customized marketing objectives, we can assume the "voice" of your business and help you, too, develop and sustain a relationship with your customers/members. Whether through print publications, brochures, postcards, Web content or other marketing material - including one-to-one marketing via laser technology - your First Marketing team can offer strategic solutions for your marketing challenges. To date, we've helped some of the biggest names in the credit card, credit union and mortgage industries meet their common communication goals:

• Credit Card - Improving retention, stimulating activation/card usage for purchases, delivering unique selling point (USP) messages and promotions, building added value via unique perks and offers, promoting card benefits, educating cardholders about card usage, providing two-way communication and direct response vehicles (balance transfers, revenue generating offers, select services, etc.) and distinguishing institutions and products from their competitors.

• Mortgage - Obtaining new customers, preventing existing customers from refinancing with another institution, promoting and cross-selling products and services such as home equity lines of credit, second mortgages (home equity loans) and loan refinancing, educating customers about the benefits of home financing, and building the company's image as an industry expert.

• Credit Union - Educating members about the benefits of credit union membership vs. other financial institutions (better rates, lower fees, ownership etc.), promoting, introducing, and increasing awareness of products and services, providing a two-way communication format for response, promoting stability and security, obtaining new members and promoting community support.