American Advertising Federation and America’s Credit Unions Name America First Credit Union “Best of Show”

AFCU takes home six ADDY Awards and ten Diamond Awards, including Best of Show

 

SALT LAKE CITY – May 7, 2025 – America First Credit Union earned top honors at two major marketing competitions, receiving “Best of Show” at both America’s Credit Unions’ Diamond Awards in San Antonio, Texas, and the American Advertising Federation of Utah’s ADDY Awards in Sandy, Utah. The Diamond Awards, which recognize excellence in credit union marketing, and the ADDYs, which honor achievements in marketing across industries, are considered among the highest accolades in their respective fields. In total, America First received ten Diamond Awards and six gold ADDY awards.

“Our team is focused on connecting with members and the communities we serve in meaningful ways — whether through humor, storytelling or shared values,” said Zach Winegar, SVP of marketing for America First Credit Union. “These awards are a reflection of the creativity and collaboration across our team and our commitment to being effective in driving growth for the benefit of our members. The fact that two independent judging panels in two independent competitions recognized the power of our messages demonstrates that these campaigns speak to the public at large.”

America First Credit Union submitted several campaign and individual projects across several categories. Its breakout entry was the “Get Your Money Working” campaign, which received significant recognition and was the recipient of Best of Show at both the ADDY and Diamond Awards.

America First Credit Union’s advertising campaigns are unique in that they are developed and executed entirely in-house by the AFCU marketing team, which includes full video production and graphic design crews.

“Producing our campaigns in-house allows us to move quickly, stay authentic to our brand and create work that truly resonates with our members,” said Kyle Curtis, VP of marketing at America First Credit Union. “It also gives us the freedom to experiment, take creative risks and push our ideas further with each campaign.”

America’s Credit Unions (formerly CUNA) have held the Diamond Awards for over 30 years, and it is considered the most prestigious marketing competition for the credit union industry. The ADDY Awards is the advertising industry’s largest creative competition. With six gold awards at the state level, America First Credit Union is now eligible for the district and national ADDY Award competitions.

America First Credit Union was recognized for the following entries:

 

“Get Your Money Working” Campaign

Diamond Awards for Best of Show; Best in Category – Use of Humor; Best of Category – Cutting Edge; Brand Awareness; and Video Commercial – Single or Series

ADDY Awards (Gold) for Best of Show; Integrated Media Campaign; Animation, Special Effects, or Motion Graphics; Computer Generated Imagery; Regional/National Television Commercial Campaign; and Social Media Campaign

This commercial series, which was recognized as the top entry across all categories by both American Advertising Federation and America’s Credit Unions, uses humor to depict people encouraging their money to do a bit more for them, reflecting a central message of helping members “do more with [their] money.

 

Utah Hockey Club Official Credit Union Ad
Diamond Award for Video Commercial – Single or Series

This commercial features Logan Cooley and Clayton Keller of the Utah Hockey Club talking about how change can be an exciting thing, especially with America First Credit Union to help you through it.

 

Father’s Day Video
Diamond Award for Video Non-Commercial – Single

This social media video honors fathers through heartfelt messages from children and adults, recognizing everyday acts of care, featuring real America First Credit Union employees and members.

 

Keyonte George “Financial Assist” Jazz Fan Campaign
Diamond Award for Audience Specific Marketing

In this social media ad series, Utah Jazz guard Keyonte George delivers surprise “financial assists” to families during everyday moments like breakfast or movie night.

 

Team Debit Card Campaign
Diamond Award for Community Partnerships & Relations, Endorsements, or NIL Efforts

This campaign highlights America First Credit Union’s exclusive team-themed debit cards through videos celebrating its partnerships with the Utah Jazz, Utah Hockey Club and Las Vegas Raiders.

 

Care-a-Lot Logo
Diamond Award for Logos

This logo was redesigned to renew engagement with America First Credit Union’s longstanding Care-a-Lot employee assistance program and reflects both legacy and connection.

The marketing initiatives of America First Credit Union exist to drive growth and thereby increase the institution’s ability to fulfill and support the mission to provide personal financial services of a superior quality to members.

 

 

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ABOUT AMERICA FIRST CREDIT UNION

Now in its 86^th year, America First Credit Union has grown from a single branch serving military personnel and federal employees into one of the strongest and most progressive credit unions in the country. The credit union is the largest in Utah, and has 115 locations across Arizona, Idaho, Nevada, New Mexico and Utah. It is also the fifth largest credit union in America with more than 1.5 million members, and the sixth largest in assets with more than $22 billion. America First Credit Union is a member-owned, not-for-profit cooperative financial institution dedicated to building communities and helping members do more with their money. Learn more at americafirst.com.

 

MEDIA CONTACT

Dave Nellis
America First Credit Union
801.827.8606

dcnellis@americafirst.com