Consumer Advocacy

How do you safely navigate the free enterprise system?

“Like your money? Want to keep more of it?” These two questions drive all of FoolProof’s programs—whether it’s our real-time online consumer newspaper for your adult members or our high school program for use by teachers in the classroom.

FoolProof gives consumers of all ages the big picture: hundreds of other programs teach consumers how to balance a checking account. FoolProof teaches the consumer how to think critically. And then we teach them the math. Incidentally, research shows that critical thinkers virtually always choose a credit union over other financial institutions.

We also constantly teach caution. We ask this question:

Who do you trust? Every financial institution, including the worst, is scrambling to establish itself as a friend of the consumer. Banks in particular are trying to mend their reputations with ‘consumer advocacy’ promotions and programs.

It doesn’t take that proverbial rocket scientist to find many of these programs lacking. Most are self-serving at best and misleading at worst.

How do you become the credit union the consumer trusts? FoolProof believes you do it by clearly advocating for the welfare of your members and perhaps more importantly by advocating for the welfare of your non-members— the ones who are really fed up with banks and are likely to switch from a bank to a credit union.

A True Consumer Advocacy Initiative

The FoolProof Initiative provides your credit union with that strong, unique information and education presence.

The power of our programs come from the independent nature of FoolProof itself: We are consumer advocates, not marketers.

FoolProof’s job is to provide straightforward, independent information that helps your members and your community make wise decisions.

If you are considering becoming a FoolProof credit union, it is important that you understand our independent role and our emphasis on critical thinking. We provide your community a voice it can trust because we speak for the consumer, not for any business. This is real consumer information, not infomercial.

That’s why we hope you will thoroughly review the type of information FoolProof provides. Versions of our guides have been used by literally millions of consumers in the past twenty years. Some of the archival articles have been used by hundreds of thousands of consumers in the past five years alone.

Consumer Reaction: Over the years, we have experienced one universal reaction to our consumer information: members love and are thankful for it. But at times, businesses that make less money from an informed customer complain about an article or a buying guide.

For instance, credit card companies don’t like it when a credit union member moves a balance from another bank’s card to a credit union’s card because of our article on choosing a credit card.

At times, some car dealers don’t like the FoolProof Car Buying Guide. Many of your members will tell you they saved thousands of dollars because of this guide. As you can imagine, those members are thankful to the credit union. But the car salespersons involved in those sales understandably are not.

That’s why we hope you will take the time to really explore the FoolProof programs. We believe you’ll be impressed with the value of our true, independent, consumer messages.

100% FoolProof means this: the FoolProof Initiative is one hundred percent about the unique role of credit unions in America.