Today we announced our partnership with Australia New Zealand Banking Group Limited (ANZ) to provide innovative social savings to Gen Y Australian banking customers with http://www.smartypig.com.au. A-U, as we call it, will launch first of November. We could not be more excited!

Here's why: Australians are among fastest in the world to adopt new technology, and ANZ is THE bank when it comes to pushing the financial services envelope with tech upgrades. First to mobile and now first to the social side of saving - and they are seemingly poised to keep pushing to reach out to the next generation of banking customers... cool, hip savers like you. ANZ also has 6 million customers, close to AUD$400 billion in assets and is exposing SmartyPig to the largest emerging markets in the world.

That means we're working tirelessly to grow... and grow fast.

The partnership is only our first international expansion of SmartyPig, and ANZ is the perfect partner to prove the model overseas because ANZ has a clear strategy to reach a very important, very socially plugged-in demographic. And as you sit here reading this, we are planning our next move.

See, we know we can't save the world, but we know we can help the world save. It's a message that resonated from coast to coast inside of three months of our public launch and is now without borders. Why? Because people know they need to rethink how they approach their finances, no matter where they are from. This "foreign" mind-set is attracting their banks, which are, in turn, contacting us. It's flattering that it's catching on so rapidly, but it truly is little more than common sense: save up before you buy something.

People don't typically read press releases, but here's what ANZ Chief Executive Officer, Australia, Brian Hartzer, said on ours, "We know that young people have unique needs when it comes to their finances. They look for simple, efficient and secure ways to manage their money and are more likely to bank online, as they are very comfortable with the technology. We're particularly excited about launching SmartyPig in Australia, as it's a forward-thinking savings product that appeals to the tech-savvy and time-poor consumer. Partnering with companies like SmartyPig who can innovate and get to market rapidly helps us extend our point of difference."

Mr. Hartzer's claim of SmartyPig being "forward thinking," we think, hits the nail on the head. In this economy - in this global economy - you can't look back. You have to move forward, aim high, get out from under, examine things differently. See, it's all about setting goals. Goals are optimistic. Working together and sharing an experience makes it more meaningful. We at SmartyPig are ecstatic that people are taking notice, but to be honest, it is you all that are doing the real work.

Thanks for letting us be a part of it. And please help spread the word about Simple, Smart, Saving.

The answer is Overstock.com with a 6% boost! You can read about our new retail partner on our blog.

Three lucky Twitterers won $100 today - one of whom has made it into the top 20 in almost every contest and finally won today!

Watch the video:

Congratulations to ku5h, chrispunke and soZealous! chrispunke confirmed that it pays to play and finally won!

Good luck in next months contest to all.

Here were the top 20!

ku5h, q2mobile, justbrady, mattsnyder, urvile, chrispunke, abbieshipton, 4danj, abbylaner, davereid, chewbocka, broox, jensir, ericos, jennoz, CourtneeCee, trenttsd, soZealous, dajwhite, Tony_Leo

Our agreement with each retailer dictates that we cannot disclose the exact boosts until a customer is ready to close their account, as the boosts can change and we cannot promise a number now that may be different months or years into the future when you reach your goal. The good news is that we are already seeing retailers who want to negotiate with us to make sure they get your business, as well as new retailers who are ready to put their money where their mouth is. Case in point: Overstock.com.

Overstock.com is able to deliver quality, name-brand products at deep discounts, while we at SmartyPig have always insisted that sensible consumers have the option of earning more money for their money. Together, it will be next to impossible for the discerning shopper to find a better deal online, which is key when budgets are tight. And we're excited to continue to maximize our customers' savings as our audience grows.

See, a SmartyPig customer who saves up for a new $1,400 flat screen TV for a year (after making a $100 initial deposit to set up their goal and making 12 additional $100 deposits over the ensuing 12 months) would earn nearly $25 in interest, and the boost from Overstock would be approximately $80 at time of redemption. That's an extra $100 on a smart $1,300 investment. And more importantly, at the end of the day, you own the television, not your credit card company.

We will reschedule the Twitter contest for the same time, same place next week - Thursday, October 2nd.

We did, however, happen to get our September question out there, so we won't reuse that one - that would be too easy! Sorry for the inconvenience, but hopefully this gives everyone enough time to brush up on their SmartyPig trivia and win big next Thursday.

Contest will be

• Thursday, October 2nd at 3pm CST.

1. After 15 minutes, we will be picking 20 random people with a number generator from the pool of correct answers.
2. We will then roll a 20 sided dice to pick the lucky winners.
3. We'll make sure to document everything by video and post it here on our blog!

Make sure:

1. You're following us on Twitter
2. We'll ask the $100 question on Thursday, September 25 at 3pm CST
3. Answer the question correctly for your chance to win!

Remember: if you don't already have a SmartyPig account, it's Free to set one up! Winner must be in the US.

Good Luck!

It got us thinking about our own social connections. How many friends, family members and business acquaintances do we keep in touch with? So out came to the calculators. And the average number of people each individual who works at SmartyPig is connected to through social networking sites is 580! Could it be true that each of us corresponds personally with 580 people? Probably not, as routine would suggest otherwise. However, there's a comfort in knowing that at any given time you may connect with old friends from college, your step-brother, co-workers at a convention, whomever and for whatever reason.

In a Cosmopolitan New Etiquette Guide from the '60s readers were warned "Don't talk about politics, money or religion." That was then, this is now. We share salaries, we share photos, we definitely share our politics - and we share most all of it with the world. Open books, one and all. Well, at SmartyPig we want to put a little more purpose in the personal connectivity and sharing.

If you show your kids, your vacation photos, even your exact location at any given time, why not let people know what you and your family are saving for, as well with a SmartyPig widget on your social networking page? Furthermore, why not invite your friends and family to share in the experience? Aren't goals easier to meet when done out in the open with others helping out? And isn't any learning process more meaningful when it is fun?

Social networking is the way we communicate. We're plugged in. We're always available. Learning how to be financially responsible while letting others join in on the process is just another way - and one that can actually pay, and pay well.

So where is the location of this #dmtweetup you say? Well, Des Moines for starters. But we thought we'd have some fun with it and with the help of our friends at Lava Row (i.e. social media geniuses), we're going to reveal the location throughout the day on Thursday, September 11, thru a digital scavenger hunt.

Follow us on Twitter with the hashtag #pighunt for clues throughout the day. The participants who discover the location and arrive first will be rewarded with the following prizes:

• 1st place: Nintendo Wii, (2) wiimotes and a $100 SmartyPig gift card
• 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th place: $25 SmartyPig gift cards

We'll also have some stellar SmartyPig t-shirts and hats to handout to those that arrive "late".

So tell your friends (or don't, if you're a competitive one and want the Wii all for yourself) and we hope to see you there!

- The SmartyPig Crew

You can now download your transaction history from the "Account Activity" section of your account. We are offering the download in CSV file format right now. We will be looking to add OFX in the coming months so folks will be able to sync with sites like Mint and Wesabe.

You can also now mark your notifications as "read" and also delete them from the notifications section. The notification indicator in the toolbar will only display "unread" messages moving forward.

And in an effort to reduce emails into your inbox, we've combined the monthly estatement and savings goal update emails.

Please weigh in here or email our support staff with any ideas, questions or concerns.

Thanks and have a great holiday weekend!

Most Americans are in an extremely abusive relationship - with their credit cards. And more often than not, it's their wallets that are taking a beating. Americans have been so accustomed to putting everything on plastic and worrying about it later, that when banks recently started jacking up credit card rates and cutting back on who they would actually give plastic to try to save themselves (after bleeding you for years), it was a dose of harsh reality to people not living within their means. See, the jig is up.The days of living on cards are over, as are the days of cheap credit. No more posing or pretending. It's time to deal.

This brings me to an interesting article I came across on Fortune.com. Jeff Colvin questions readers, "Personal debt is much higher than before, and average pay is still going nowhere in real terms. So now how do we live as if our standard of living is still rising?" Quick answer: We can't. But we can change things for the better. And Smartypig believes we can help. How? By helping people save up first and begin to reverse the "buy now, pay later" credit card mentality that has gotten so many millions of us upside down financially. Save for your family trip, save for the holidays or save for a your home improvements, but just save!

When you use SmartyPig, you can put away an amount you choose every month for your big purchase while earning one of the most competitive interest rates in the country. Once you've started your goal, put to use the social networking aspect of the site, by sharing your goals with your family and friends that saving money is back and better than ever. And when you reach your goal, enjoy cash boosts of up to 5% on the things you need or want, from your summer vacation to new home appliances.

So whatever you classify as your good life, you can make it even better when you save up for it. It makes all the difference in the world when your things belong to you - not a high-interest credit card company.

One thing I can say is that we will strive non-stop so as to not disappoint. We come to work each day with the hopes of making SmartyPig the most innovative financial service in the world. We aim for nothing less than our perfection and your satisfaction in every way possible. And it is you, our users, who determine what we do and if we've done it right - or wrong, and that's when we really want to hear from you.

Again, hats off to our supporters and members who strongly spoke out and who continue to do so. We could not have said it any better. Humbly put, we have much to live up to. Your continued interest is greatly appreciated. Please contact me personally at mferrari(at)smartypig(dot)com for any reason imaginable that can make your experience using SmartyPig a better one.

• lavarow.com
• nerdflood.com
• BlawgIT.com
• TroyRutter.com
• GetANewBrowser.com
• mark.bockenstedt.net
• JustBrady.com
• And many many others...

Mike Ferrari, co-founder

Watch the video:

Congratulatons to our three winners, MatthewDP, Kathy_L and jensir!

Also, congratulations to the 20 who made it onto the post it notes, better luck next month: frojive, nickcooper, theGlenn, bakedlaurabean, salmndr007, webboy, spacecostsmoney, JessicaV1223, amywright, dalenz, HighSociety, michpendergrass, soZealous, daniAWESOME, ChicShoppaChick, cgarrety, mikehernalsteen.

1. After 15 minutes, we will be picking 20 random people with a number generator from the pool of correct answers.
2. We will then pin those 20 names onto our board.
3. While blindfolded, we will throw darts and three lucky winners of a $100 SmartyPig gift card will be chosen.
4. We'll post the process here on our blog, so everyone can follow along!

Make sure:

1. You're following us on Twitter
2. We'll ask the $100 question on Thursday, August 21 at 2:30pm CST
3. Answer the question correctly for your chance to win!

Remember: if you don't already have a SmartyPig account, it's Free to set one up! Winner must be in the US.

Good Luck!

Popping up across the web are sites like TripIt and Dopplr to help you plan and share your trip with friends and others from your area, sites like Trazzler to help you find the perfect trip based on your interests close to where you live and even GasBuddy, which finds the most inexpensive fuel, based on your location. And while these are all good ideas for hitting the road, what you really need is a way to get you where you're going in a financially sound way.

Putting your trip to Grandma's house on plastic will have the Big Bad Wolf in a mailman's clothing dropping big bad credit card bills in your mailbox for months. But if you use SmartyPig and create a goal for gas or plane tickets and maybe even your gifts, you'll have the next five months to make a dent in your holiday bottom line before it bottoms out - all while earning one of the most competitive interest rates in the country and cash boosts of up to 5% from America's top retailers and travel companies.

For many, spending the holidays with those you love most is a cherished occasion, an event that's anticipated for months. And when you save up with SmartyPig instead of racking up huge credit card bills, getting there can again be half the fun.

Lisa Kelly, a three time cancer fighter found that medical bills were adding up after being laid off from her job. She added the SmartyPig widget to her blog so that her freinds, family and readers can contribute money to her medical expenses goal and she can focus on getting well. View Lisa's site here.

We also heard about Andrew and Liz Sherburne. Moving into a new house can be stressful and it turned into somewhat of a nightmare for them. Less than thirty days after moving in, the floods of 2008 hit their home hard. Without flood insurance the cost to clean up and fix their home skyrocketed. Friends and family wanted to know how they could help. The Shurburnes set up a goal for their home improvement and are watching their goal grow in part to others generosity. View the Sherburne's site here.

This is what SmartyPig is all about. It's the piggy bank of the 21st century. Social networking is playing a tremendous role in day to day life and that's something SmartyPig wants to be a part of. By making goals public, cancer fighters and flood victims, newly engaged couples and recent graduates can all benefit from the contributions of others. SmartyPig can be much more than saving.

Watch the video (Ingrid's dart throwing was less than impeccable this time around):

Congratulations to BrettTrout, hotsauce32, shauna7084!

The runners-up (or those who made it on the board) were seanwaters, theGlenn, quinnroberts, charris1980, chewbocka, flysupes, nettaj, JustinWise, gocyclones, lisak, chrispunke, brotherrabbit, abrudtkuhl, scottsorheim, clairecelsi, richdrake, carlaNcarolina.

Better luck in next month's Twitter contest if you didn't win this time!

1. After 15 minutes, we will be picking 20 random people with a number generator from the pool of correct answers.
2. We will then pin those 20 names onto our board.
3. While blindfolded, we will throw darts and three lucky winners of a $100 SmartyPig gift card will be chosen.
4. We'll post the process here on our blog, so everyone can follow along!

Make sure:

1. You're following us on Twitter
2. We'll ask the $100 question on Thursday, July 17th at 10am CST
3. Answer the question correctly for your chance to win!

Remember: if you don't already have a SmartyPig account, it's Free to set one up! Winner must be in the US.

Good Luck!

We have a few other features we are debuting, as well. A customer suggested we add a "Add New Goal" link to the Savings Accounts page. So we did! Here's a shot of what it looks like on my own account.

In the "Manage" section of your savings account, you can now track interest accrued by goal for the current quarter here…

And we've included a new report in your "Account Activity" called "ACH" where you can monitor all your ACH activity for a given goal.

Look for more exciting updates and enhancements being released in the very near future!

The Des Moines, Iowa CBS affiliate recently featured SmartyPig on its weekly special, "Money Monday," interviewing gung-ho teenage SmartyPig user Katie Githens. Katie is the perfect example of a perfect SmartyPig customer. As you'll see in the clip, Katie explains what she's saving for and how she benefits from the site. And by making her goal public so that her friends and family can help, Katie is able to receive contributions toward her goals. Katie also discusses keeping a goal open over her eight semesters at school and when she graduates, she'll have cash saved, making her venture into the real world a little bit less scary. That's smart thinking. Check it out!

Does your kitchen remind you of something out of an 80's sitcom? Or has your living room become a little too "lived in"? You'd like to update things, maybe go for a new look, but the thought of home improvement can be daunting. The time, the labor, not to mention the cost, it all adds up.

During these sour economic times, the idea of making improvements makes most people wince. But it doesn't have to if you do it the smart way. Instead of racking up huge credit card bills, save first with SmartyPig instead. Creating and putting extra cash in a "home improvement" goal with SmartyPig means that in just a matter of months you could have the savings socked away for a kitchen that would make the most seasoned chef jealous. Add to it a cash boost from the likes of Home Depot®, Lowe's®, Restoration Hardware® and Sears®, and you can really get cooking.

So whichever project you decide to tackle, SmartyPig can help you get there. You decide what to save for, how much you want to save and when you want to reach your savings goal - you can even invite your friends and family to pitch in. You set the pace, and the amount you decide will be automatically deposited into your SmartyPig account from your existing checking or savings account every month. And while in this world of instant gratification the idea of saving before buying has become nearly foreign, think of it this way: you could save up first, or spend years paying off high-interest credit cards. The difference with SmartyPig is that when the dust has settled, what you have is yours free and clear.

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!)

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

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.

Just read what the top bloggers have to say about us here:

• Being Frugal
  
• Gather Little by Little

Human SmartyPigs Don't Wallow in Mistakes

We right wrongs as quickly as possible, and we air all dirty laundry in public. Why? Because the more you can read about and participate in relevant discussions about SmartyPig, the more of an understanding you'll have regarding who and what SmartyPig stands for.

Join In The Conversation

So sign up for our RSS feed, follow us on Twitter, become a fan on Facebook or give us a piece of your mind or product improvement suggestions on Get Satisfaction. We not only want it all, we can take it all.

This isn't some hacked together, multiple technology cut-and-paste job. At SmartyPig, we want to leverage all the great and communicative opportunities in Web 2.0. And while we roll up our sleeves every morning and cross our fingers hoping that the news and customer experience is always good, we're ready for the open dialogue to begin in earnest. After all, that's the only way to ensure we can do the best job possible.

So let us have it. Really.

Watch the video:

Congratulations to lindsayress, jenharvey and pepsidave14!

The runners-up (or those who made it on the board) were spacecostsmoney, ericabiz, chrispunke, abrudtkuhl, charris1980, davereid, tompohl,jcbgrady, geekmommamashup, ericos, Kathy_L, robbyg, jensir, trutter, theGlenn, amywright, gocyclones.

Better luck in next month's Twitter contest if you didn't win this time!