Innovative ideas to help you save your money…

I’ve always said that I’m not a great fan of high street banks as the rates they give for savers are pretty dismal. Having said that this means that any company who can come up with innovative ways to leverage any savings you do have should be looked at closely.

One such offering is SmartyPig, an account where you create specific goals to save for. This provides rigour and discipline to account holders. Add to this the potential to earn rewards for specific items and you have a worthwhile option on offer.

SmartyPig is not a bank itself but holds accounts at West Bank which is insured by FDIC. When you open a SmartyPig account you can then create saving goals and how much you want to save for each. Another feature that can help is the ability to allow others to contribute to your savings account. Don’t worry they won’t see your account details but will be able to contribute. There is also the ability to place a SmartyPig widget on your Facebook or MySpace page and this will allow anyone to make a contribution (but don’t hold your breath).

When you have enough in your account to buy what you are saving for you have three options, firstly the money can be transferred to your SmartyPig debit card, secondly it can be transferred to your checking account and finally you could place your funds on a retail card that offers up to a 12% cash boost.

As the brand develops the hope is that the company can forecast what members are saving for and if they know for example that there is say $30M being saved related to home improvements it will provide SmartyPig with leverage to approach home improvement retailers and negotiate a sizeable discount for members. 

This facility is available in the US and Canada and if you live in one of those two countries I’d recommend you take a close look to see if they could help you not only manage your money more efficiently but also increase your buying power with very little effort.

I’m not the only one that thinks this is a good idea, take a look in The New York Times as they are a supporter as well.