Reflecting on Storytelling with Akeem Shannon

This week, I had the privilege of hearing from the dynamic Akeem Shannon at Finovate. Akeem, the Founder and CEO of Flipstick, instantly captivated the audience by rapping his Shark Tank pitch. From the moment he took the stage, he didn’t just talk about storytelling—he showed us how powerful it can be. Akeem’s ability to tell a compelling story made everyone in the room want a Flipstick, even before we fully understood what it was. 

Flipstick is a unique product that lets your phone stick to almost anything. It’s the kind of idea that could either take off or fizzle out, and that was exactly the point of Akeem’s talk. Through his entrepreneurial journey, he didn’t change the product itself—he refined how he told its story and who he told it to. This storytelling is what brought Flipstick to life for customers and investors alike.

Credit unions can take a valuable lesson from this. It’s no longer enough to rely on traditional value propositions like lower interest rates or better products. Today’s consumers, especially younger ones, want more than that—they need a story, a why to connect with. A 2021 whitepaper from American Student Assistance found that 59% of Gen-Z decision makers define career success as having the ability to help others. Six in ten Gen-Zers make financial and career choices based on their perceived impact on social good. This is where credit unions need to step up—not just engaging in social good, but effectively telling the story of their community impact. 

For the next generation of financial consumers, stories of social value will outweigh traditional benefits like interest rates. While CX (customer experience) and other factors remain critical, (read about Ken Hughes at Finovate talking about the Blue Dot Consumer Experience here) social impact has become a major consideration when young people choose a financial institution to build a relationship with.

So how do credit unions discover the right story to tell? How do marketing teams know which competencies to invest in? The board plays a critical role here, empowering the CEO and C-suite to invest in the right technologies and strategies to engage their communities. And how does the board make those decisions? By bringing more young people into the conversation—authentically. The best way to know what matters to the next generation of consumers is simple: ask them.