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BANKS TARGET YOUTHS
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Above:
Money Mouse is a character children learn from at www.wisepockets.com
Area banks establish relationships with kids, making saving fun
and creating loyal customers.
By Holly Logan
Consider that the American youth market accounts for $155 billion
per year in gifts, allowances, part-time job wages and deposits,
and you see what a healthy target kids represent to banks. Regard
further the lifetime value of an average bank patron, and you see
why financial institutions are going after this fertile demographic.
Above:Third
grader visits with Brian Miller, Assistant Vice President UMB Bank,
at a school in Western Missouri.
Here in the St. Louis region, with its nearly 775,000 kids under
18,1 several banks realize the importance of grass roots
programs. Not only do they deepen the relationship with parents
and provide a savings vehicle for kids and those who contribute
to their accounts, but more importantly, these programs imbue kids
with monetary values that later form the cornerstone of sound investment
practices.
"Adults who live in states that mandate personal investment curricula
before high school graduation save more than their counterparts
with no such exposure," offers Mary Suiter, associate director of
the Center for Entrepreneurship and Economic Education, University
of Missouri-St. Louis. Suiter is also involved in the Dollar$ &
$ense-Missouri's Bank At School Programs, jointly sponsored by the
Missouri Bankers Association, Missouri State Treasurers Office,
the Consumer Credit Counseling Service of the Mississippi River
Valley and the Missouri Council on Economic Education, with which
UMSL is affiliated.
Bank At School's specifics include banks "sponsoring" a third through
fifth grade class, training the teacher in activities and lesson
plans that support the curriculum, and a minimum of eight in-class
visits per year. Program administrators match interested banks and
teachers. The agenda is designed in conjunction with Show Me Standards
for economic content. Activities include bartering exercises, children
designing their own currency, which is then displayed at the sponsoring
bank, and a discussion about professions in finance and the necessary
education therein.
On a national level, American Bankers Association Education Foundation
each November sponsors "Teach Children To Save Day." Bankers visit
schools and offer activities, videos and banking exercises.
WHAT
WORK$
Although many programs target parents with marketing efforts,
the task of maintaining kids’ interest and attention is another
feat. Here are some pointers for keeping this elusive age
group rapt:
- Make
it personal—send birthday cards, or offer age-appropriate
premiums
- Kids
love to receive mail. Send monthly bank statements
and involve them in managing their accounts
- If
there’s an online element to the pro- gram, be sure
to update it frequently. The Internet is the medium
of choice, and kids today expect web sites to be
of-the-moment
- Keep
site content dynamic. Rich media are attention grabbers,
as are colorful graphics. Animated characters or
symbols add an element of fun, and remove any abstraction
or fear of banking
- Keep
it relevant. Instead of $99, use a real-life example
and say “For the price of a new Razor Scooter.”
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| Heather
and Arlo are characters who help children learn money
management skills at www.wisepockets.com. |
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Locally, several banks offer programs for kids. "The impetus for
founding Heartland Junior four years ago was to start kids
young and teach them how to prioritize spending and saving," explains
John Wuest, president and CEO of 12-branch Heartland Bank Member
FDIC. "It's very powerful when they can see how their money grows."
All accounts are savings, $10 is required to open an account, and
there are no service fees or minimum balances. At age 18, accounts
are automatically converted to regular savings. Any child that can
sign his name can open an account and make deposits, but parents
are required to be cosignatories on withdrawals. The Heartland Junior
program has 3,500 accounts with total deposits of $1.2 million,
$362 average per child. Five hundred new accounts were opened in
2001 at press time. When accounts are opened, kids receive an age-specific
gift, such as a piggy bank, coloring book or dictionary. In addition,
Heartland mails every child a birthday card.
HOT
LINK$
Banks R For Kids Too
www.frontenacbank.com
(314) 298-8200
Member FDIC
Heartland Junior
www.heartlandbank.com
(314) 512-8900
Member FDIC
Banking Basics
(Allegiant
Bank)
www.ssnbank.com
(314) 416-4111
Member FDIC
Penny Savers Club
(Pioneer
Bank)
www.pioneerbankstl.com
(314) 644-6600
MemberFDIC
Bank At School
www.wisepockets.com
- Information
for Banks
Missouri State Treasurers Office
(573) 751-4123
- Information
for Teachers
Missouri Council on Economic Education
(816) 235-2654
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National
Teach Children To Save Day
www.aba.com
(202) 663-5000 |
For two-plus years, Frontenac Bank Member FDIC has offered Banks
R For Kids Too. According to Maureen Nelson, senior vice president/retail
administration of the Earth City and Frontenac-based bank, "kids
really enjoy coming into the branches and making deposits. It really
makes them feel important. " Frontenac not only cross-sells its
adult customers, but actively markets the program to kids and schools.
Frontenac hosts bank tours for area schools, and gives each child
a $1 gold coin at the end of the tour to open an account. The minimum
requirement to open an account is a penny, no minimum balance is
required, service charges are waived, interest is earned daily on
collected balances immediately on opening an account, and nine free
withdrawals are permitted per quarter. One parent must sign on the
account, and kids receive quarterly statements. Banks R For Kids
Too has 55 members with an average balance of $800. A mass mailing
later in the year will encourage kids to "come by and open a relationship,"
Nelson says.
At Allegiant Bank, formerly South Side National Bank, the 4-year-old
educationally rooted Banking Basics program is offered through
10 parishes in the St. Louis Archdiocese. One branch manager from
each branch visits his specifically assigned class and teaches a
course on the rudimentary points of personal finance, explains Mitch
Baden, executive vice president. Upon completion, kids are given
certificates, and only then can they open saving accounts with the
bank. There is no service charge, no minimum balance, and Allegiant
provides some matching funds when kids open accounts. To date, there
are some 600 "alumni" of Banking Basics. Allegiant also participates
in Teach Children To Save Day.
Learn
More
In addition to information provided by local banks about children’s
savings programs, the following resources are available to
kids and parents who want to learn more:
www.kidsmoney.org
For parents, there are lists of books and games designed to
teach kids about money. For kids, tips on how to make money
are provided, including how to be a successful (and profitable)
baby-sitter in the Kids’ Baby-Sitting area.
www.familyeducation.com
The Family Finance section of site is aimed at parents and
includes approaches on how to talk to kids about money, an
advice section and tips from other parents who’ve posted on
the site. Specific topics include saving for retirement and
college, teaching kids about money and games for kids.
www.tomorrowsmoney.org
The site is maintained by the Bond Market Foundation and includes
practical savings advice, a directory of investment professionals
and budget calculators.
www.kidsenseonline.com
Features include money trivia and a quiz to show kids how
much they do or do not know about money. It exists to teach
kids about basic money skills, and has points of entry for
companies, parents and grandparents, teachers and kids.
www.cibc.com/smartstart
Sponsored by Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, this site
features games called “The Allowance Room,” “Money Machine”
and “The Great Treasure Hunt.” It is segmented by age bracket
for easy navigation by kids. Also included is advice for parents
on how to save for college and how to administer allowances.
www.kidstock.com
Nuts and bolts of stocks, bonds, mutual funds and stocks—parent-
and kid-friendly. Tutorial in nature. |
1U.S. Census Bureau, 2000
Holly Logan is a St. Louis-based free-lance writer who recently
relocated from New York City. |
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