Tyler Lane is the CEO and Founder of Session Interactive, a Denver-based digital marketing consultancy specializing in SEO, analytics, paid search, and content strategy for mid-market and enterprise brands. With over 11 years of experience in digital marketing, Tyler leads a team of seasoned professionals who deliver data-driven solutions to help clients achieve measurable growth. Under his leadership, Session Interactive has become a trusted partner across industries such as finance, healthcare, technology, and travel, known for its strategic thinking and flawless execution.
About the Episode
Many credit unions have no shortage of data, but struggle to turn fragmented or unreliable information into confident decisions. In this episode, Chad Franzen interviews Tyler Lane about building cleaner analytics foundations, connecting marketing activity to member growth, and focusing on engagement, conversions, and retention instead of vanity metrics. They also discuss how credit unions can use better attribution, simplified reporting, and member insights to compete with larger banks while strengthening long-term relationships.
Key Moments
Building a Clean Analytics Foundation
- What clean analytics means for credit unions and why tracking should begin with organizational goals and core conversions [01:43].
- The biggest data gap credit unions face when application activity does not connect back to analytics and marketing attribution [04:03].
Making Analytics Useful for Leadership
- Creating simplified executive dashboards while giving marketing teams the detailed insights they need for ongoing decisions [05:52].
Moving Beyond Vanity Metrics
- Why traffic, impressions, and clicks matter less than meaningful engagement and completed conversions [07:33].
- Combining Google Analytics, Google Tag Manager, heatmaps, and qualitative feedback to understand the member journey [09:31].
Using Data to Strengthen Retention
- How proactive communication based on account behavior can improve service, preserve relationships, and increase member lifetime value [12:36].
Competing With Larger Banks
- Using data to improve campaigns, identify retention patterns, and emphasize the community relationships that differentiate credit unions [22:41].
Top Insights
- Audit your analytics foundation – Reviewing web analytics, application tracking, CRM data, and campaign attribution reveals gaps that weaken decision-making.
- Prioritize meaningful conversions over vanity metrics – Focusing on engagement, applications, and completed forms connects marketing activity to real business growth.
- Simplify reporting for different audiences – Executive dashboards should highlight essential outcomes, while marketing teams receive more detailed, actionable insights.
- Use member data to improve retention – Monitoring account behavior enables proactive communication that can strengthen relationships and prevent avoidable departures.
- Build advanced analytics gradually – Establishing accurate core tracking first prevents unnecessary complexity and creates a stronger foundation for personalization and predictive analysis.
Notable Quotes
- “Now we want to customize those to the individual and the particular organization.”
- “We’re ultimately looking for engagement within the site and subsequent conversions and assigning value to those conversions.”
- “And in actuality, what’s most important is actually engagement and conversions.”
- “There’s no need to try to upsell arbitrarily to a client that doesn’t make sense.”
- “Let’s make sure we have, again, that directionally accurate information as closely as possible.”
Resources
Industry Experts
Companies and Organizations
Analytics and Tag Management Tools
Behavior Analytics and CRO Tools
AI and Search Platforms
Turn Credit Union Data Into a Competitive Advantage
Credit unions already have valuable member, campaign, and application data, but disconnected systems and unclear attribution can make it difficult to act on. At Session Interactive, we help financial institutions build cleaner analytics foundations, identify the metrics that matter, and turn member behavior into smarter marketing, stronger retention, and sustainable growth. Let us help you transform fragmented data into confident decisions.
For more insights on analytics, marketing strategy, and digital growth, subscribe to the Built to Convert podcast. Ready to compete more effectively with larger banks? Contact Session Interactive to build a measurement strategy that strengthens member relationships and drives meaningful results.
