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SmartyPig®: June 2008 Archive

The following posts were made in June 2008. You may subscribe to the RSS feed for this archive if you would like to take your time reading through our posts.

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June 26, 2008 • Posted by Michael Ferrari

Happy Holidays? You Can Count On It With SmartyPig

We're less than six months 'til Christmas, Kwanzaa and Hanukkah. Of course, right now it's a little hard to imagine winter and cold weather let alone the hustle and bustle of holiday shopping, but the season is fast approaching. And there's no better time than the present to start stashing away an extra bit of cash to make spending and purchasing gifts guilt and pain free.

Dreaming of a bill-free January? It can be a reality. Why get stuck in the mindset of "buy now and pay later" when you can start saving now. The amount you'd pay on interest alone charged by credit card companies could be many additional gifts for loved ones or some extra cash in your pocket. With SmartyPig you can get the satisfaction of knowing nary a credit card bill will come to your door.

SmartyPig is not only smart, it's incredibly simple. Start by registering for an account and setting up a "holiday" goal. An amount you designate will be automatically deducted from your existing checking or savings account and then deposited toward your goal. And while you're enjoying summer and fall, your money will be earning a competitive interest. Add to it the fact that you won't miss the money after a while, and, even better, when the holidays have come and gone you will own the holidays, and you have a feel-good solution to the same old holiday hangover you have every year after you've shopped 'til you dropped.

You may also choose to set up multiple goals for multiple gifts. Say your child wants a new iPod, your sister wants jewelry and your dad wants a new tool kit. Saving for each person using different goals ensures your money is going to where it should, while you earn interest. And when closing those goals you have the option of choosing from one of our many best-in-class retail partners (Best Buy, Zales and Home Depot, etc.) or the SmartyPig MasterCard® debit card or cashier's check (soon to be an automated ACH transfer back to your bank account).

So start a holiday goal today. Saving yourself from holiday debt is only a few clicks away.

Guest blog post provided by:
Erica Adams, SmartyPig employee (Way to go Erica!)

Tags: smartypig   •  holiday

1 Comment |

June 25, 2008 • Posted by Michael Ferrari

Great Customer Tweet

We're obviously conscious about how people are engaging with our tool. This is why we've set up numerous customer touch points via our blog, Twitter, Facebook and Get Satisfaction.

This came across my reader thru Twitter and we can't help but want to share it with everyone.

This goes back to our roots regarding changing people's behavior with how they save and the true feelings of accomplishment they get using SmartyPig. And it is the very reason I started out on this journey some two odd years ago of creating this system. Because in the end there is nothing more optimistic than setting a goal. And there is nothing more satisfying than reaching it.

Thanks, Mike

Tags: twitter   •  tweet   •  smartypig   •  social

0 Comments |

June 19, 2008 • Posted by Michael Ferrari

Watch Us At Finovate

FinovateStartup San Francisco showcased dozens of the startups in April that are innovating at the intersection of finance and technology to an audience of hundreds of press, bloggers, analysts, VCs, industry leaders and banking executives. The conference was centered around two action-packed sessions of short demos (Including the one below by SmartyPig co-founder, Michael Ferrari) by the presenting startups and two hours of high-quality networking after each. FinovateStartup 2008 was a huge success, as you'll see here. And we are looking forward to round two in New York in October!

Tags: smartypig   •  finovate   •  san francisco   •  video

0 Comments |

June 16, 2008 • Posted by Jon Gaskell

Tell Us What You Think... Really

We cut the ribbon on our new company blog today, demonstrating once again why we are the world's only banking application that is truly Web 2.0. But more importantly than showing off in the space, we focused and launched our blog because we are committed to an open and transparent conversation with you, our customers, about responsible savings, banking and innovation.

Developed on the Post Zinger platform, this blog provides a forum for our products, as well as commentary about the banking industry and consumerism. Oh, and it rocks!

SmartyPig's Footprint Keeps Growing

As shown in the past months with our new Clearspring widgets and our utilization of Twitter and Facebook to make us more accessible, we are committed to putting SmartyPig on leading social platform technologies that help increase our outreach and connection. Our goal is to always be as informative, responsive and as inclusive as possible.

This will be a great tool for all three. Since day one, our customers have been THE most integral part of our growth and development.

Continue Reading...

Tags: smartypig blog   •  banking 2.0   •  social savings   •  high interest rate

9 Comments |

June 13, 2008 • Posted by Michael Ferrari

The Future of Banking and The Social Web

Banks, as of late, have claimed simple service adjustments such as online banking and bill pay as being a foray into the Social Web. And while entities like Wells Fargo may be blogging, and doing a great job at it, their actual services are not socially enabled.

The reality is that online banking innovation, has to this point in time been an extension of the "branch" marketing mentality. Just putting their services where people are more apt to use them. I consider this basic customer service and not real innovation.

The Social Web is about creating community and joining others in the conversation, not simply putting out the same information in a different format.

Large American financial institutions have been slow to the game, but companies like Virgin Money (family and friend lending), Social Picks (online community for stock market investors to share investment ideas), Kiva (loans to entrepreneurs in developing countries) and our company, SmartyPig (web 2.0 social piggy bank), are using the Social Web premise of sharing and organizing to revolutionize financial services. With a majority of the next generation of banking customers online and sharing nearly every aspect of their lives with one another, it seems to be a decent bet that these services will not only grow, but become increasingly attractive to new consumers. Why? Because these individuals and families still trust their peers more than they trust A-list bloggers. They want to interact the way they do everywhere else on the Web.

Continue Reading...

Tags: smartypig   •  virgin money   •  social picks   •  kiva   •  social

1 Comment |