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October 4, 2010 • Posted by Sarah FossSetting Goals and Crossing the Finish Line
I measure ALL of my personal success by setting and reaching goals. I have to. Whether it’s saving for the down payment on a new home, losing weight, or completing a degree, goals are the best way for me to get where I’m going. I’m currently training to run a half marathon, and I have a four-month old at home. How am I making it happen? I wrote my plan down. I follow my plan religiously. It’s as easy as one, two… don’t even need a “three.”
In an article this week Visualeconomics.com quoted the smart folks at Harvard Business School stating: “When people write down their goals, they are 80 percent more likely to achieve them.” What were they talking about? SmartyPig. Why? Because we help people set financial goals and reach those goals. Period. And we are currently working feverishly to expand our product line to ensure that no goal goes without the tools necessary to make it happen.
“It is possible that SmartyPig and other banks that allow you to set specific goals by naming your savings accounts accordingly are on to something,” the article reads. And we could not agree more. At SmartyPig we help you set it and never forget it. We provide you a place to state your goal, encouraging you to share it via social networks (a little peer pressure goes a long way), cheer you on by charting your progress toward your goal, and reward you with huge incentives when you cross the finish line.
Remember, the first step is simply just deciding where you want to go. We’ll help you get there. Right now, I gotta run! Seriously!
Sarah Foss, Smarty Pig Media Mad Woman
SFoss@SmartyPig.com
Back to Basics
Don’t they say in fashion that all things circle back? This mantra also appears to be en vogue with regard to money, as we enter into what many in the financial sector are fashionably tabbing the new “normal” economy. Over at Yahoo Finance, Aaron Task writes of this old-new economy of calculated purchases that is “thinking first and shopping second.” Marshal Cohen, chief industry analyst at the NPD group states in the article: “Consumers are… asking themselves some basic questions like: Do I really need this? Do I really want this? Can I get it for less somewhere else? Do I need it now? Where do I get the money?”
Simply put: We are not living in a time when most individuals’ “wants” are fulfilled on a regular basis the way they were a few years back. Plastic is either impossible to get, or too expensive to carry debt on. And there is no such thing as tapping a home equity line to buy luxury items. Larger purchases now require planning and saving for. SmartyPig helps by providing competitive interest to grow your money and cash back options of up to 14% from top merchants to reward you further when it comes time to purchase what you want… and need.
This new “normal” makes conspicuous consumption a thing of the past. We are getting back to the basics, and living our lives without excess. Are there things you want? Of course there are. But being smart about it and owning that thing (your wedding, your family vacation, your new iPad) at the end of the day, will prove that saving up before buying is always the smart way to go.
Wishing you successful saving!
Sarah Foss, SmartyPig’s Media Mad Woman
SFoss@SmartyPig.com
June Twitter Contest Winners
This month, we asked who recently invested in SmartyPig from San Antonio, TX. The answer: Red McCombs.
A couple of veteran players won $100 today, so it pays off to play every month.
Here are the winners:
Congratulations to CUWarrior, Peteness and PhilKJames!
Here are those that made it into the top 20 – thank you for playing and better luck next time! glangley, dawithers, Nicole_1984, ggadventures, davereid, monsterfashion, AdMavericks, 77motivated, ArturoFernandez, rubx, abkadefgee, JenniPullen, LouLou197533, wcdel, casademora, tifferh07, rself.
April Twitter Contest Winners Announced
This month, we asked you what the address is for the new SmartyPig mobile site and the answer is: m.smartypig.com
We had over 140 responses, with a lot of new players!
Here are the winners:
Congratulations to infocuspartners, JenniferRyther, and MIphotography! Please make sure to DM us your address via Twitter so we can send your $100 SmartyPig gift card!
Here are those that made it into the top 20 – thank you for playing and better luck next time! thirtynholding, gretchasketch22, egglng, lisa_lewis, merrylake, lynndro, afalker, RitaYangLu, urvile, jessc098, nelswadycki, bagmomma, kateschneider, sweetjean, AmandaZinger, joshgroth, chasehunter.
Show The World How You Save!
\”Banking\” and \”innovation\” are two words that are typically not paired up. For years, banks have been interested in the Web but have tended to use it only as an extension for their traditional products. Most banks\’ idea of Web 2.0 is letting you view your balance or statements online. And while it may be better than the old way, there is nothing groundbreaking about it. It may be faster, but it\’s not different. At SmartyPig we\’ve actually changed the game, and our latest play is our most exciting one by far!
![\"social](\"http://www.smartypig.com/images/Social.jpg\" "\\"social")
We have a new widget option for sharing your public goals with friends and family. We are leveraging the Clearspring widget technology from our friends there to allow you to easily integrate your SmartyPig goal widget into the leading social networks, start pages, desktops and blogs. Such as MySpace, Facebook, Google, Dashboard, Live, myYearbook, Netvibes, Hi5, Freewebs, Xanga, Friendster, Tagged, Blackplanet, Blogger, TypePad, Livejournal, WordPress, Hoverspot, Multiply, Eons, Pageflakes, Webwag, Orkut, Vox, Piczo, and Perfspot.
