Despite the frustrations that some credit unions face with building long-term, multiple product and service relationships with members who come through the door via indirect lending, the loans have continued to be a meaty portion in many portfolios.

From 2008 to 2010, the years commonly referred to as the Great Recession, auto lending and specifically indirect lending, provided credit unions with a barrier against loan losses during this time, according to the Filene Research Institute. The firm recently tracked successful lending programs to find out what strategies were in place that enabled continued loan growth in the midst of a massive economic downturn. 

The research firm asked nearly a dozen credit unions if more than 50% of their auto loan growth came through indirect channels in 2008, 2009 and 2010, what they had done differently than their peers. Among the strategies were maintaining a large available network of dealers, consistent underwriting, taking on the closing themselves, and ensuring that business development managers were building new relationships with area dealers.