America Saves Week February 24-March 2, 2008 Goals With an eye toward improving savings behavior, a large coalition of groups led by America Saves and the American Savings Education Council set out to: raise the profile of the savings issue and the need to save, provide the public with opportunities to assess their savings progress, and provide the public with concrete steps to improve their savings habits. 1
Website and Marketing America Saves and ASEC developed a new website to promote Saves Week, AmericaSavesWeek.org. For Organizations: posters, flyers and brochures Ballpark E$timate worksheet savings fact sheets press materials List of 80+ participating or endorsing non-profits, agencies, associations and companies, all recruited by America sample payroll stuffers, sample proclamations for public officials, etc For individuals: Savings Checklist and savings assessment resources a set of Saver Stories public service announcements Resources for individuals to create a financial plan and enroll in the America Saves campaign AmericaSavesWeek.org features, continued Supportive statements from Ben Bernanke, Chairman, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System Sheila Bair, FDIC Chairman Richard Cordray, Ohio State Treasurer Michelle Singletary, personal finance columnist Ric Edelman, financial advisor and author Humberto Cruz, financial advisor and columnist Sign-up form for individuals to opt-into receiving monthly advice from E-Wealth Coaches 2
85+ Groups Listed as Participants and Supporters on AmericaSavesWeek.org Government Agencies Federal Citizen Information Center, General Services Information Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Federal Reserve Board Federal Trade Commission Internal Revenue Service Missouri State Employees Retirement System Ohio Treasurer of State Securities and Exchange Commission Social Security Administration U.S. Department of Agriculture, Cooperative State, Research, Education and Extension Services U.S. Department of Defense Armed Forces Tax Council Department of the Air Force Department of the Army Department of the Navy U.S. Coast Guard U.S. Marine Corp U.S. Department of Labor, Employee Benefits Security Administration U.S. Department of the Treasury U.S. Postal Service Washington Department of Financial Institutions Washington State Department of Retirement Services Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions Companies American Express Company Bank of America Capital One Capital Research and Management Citi Foundation Countrywide Bank Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators Edelman Financial Services, LLC Fidelity Investments GlaxoSmithKline Greenwald & Associates H&R Block Hartford Life Insurance Company Merrill Lynch MetLife National City Bank Prudential Financial Russell Investments Segal Company TIAA-CREF Towers Perrin Wachovia Washington Mutual Wells Fargo Bank, NA 3
Non-Profit Organizations AARP American Institute of Certified Public Accountants 360 Degrees of Financial Literacy American Society of Military Comptrollers Armed Forces Financial Network Aspen Institute Initiative on Financial Security Center for Financial Services Innovation Consumer Federation of America Consumer University CUPA-HR Employee Benefit Research Institute Family, Career and Community Leaders of America FINRA Investor Education Foundation SaveAndInvest.org HR Policy Association InCharge Education Foundation International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans Jump $tart Coalition for Personal Financial Literacy Money Management International National Cooperative Bank National Council on Economic Education National Endowment for Financial Education National Foundation for Credit Counseling National Military Family Association New America Foundation North American Securities Administrators Association Operation Hope The Retirement Security Project United Way Washington Society of CPAs Women's Institute for a Secure Retirement WorldatWork Industry Trade Associations American Bankers Association American Council of Life Insurers American Society of Pension Professionals and Actuaries Association of Military Banks of America Consumer Bankers Association Credit Union National Association Defense Credit Union Council Independent Community Bankers of America Investment Company Institute National Association of Federal Credit Unions Web Stats Of the approximately 80 groups and campaigns that reported their America Saves Week Participation 70% posted information on their website 71% used the materials available on AmericaSavesWeek.org or affiliated sites 81% included ASW information in mass emails or newsletters, which were distributed to over 750,000 people Over half a million people saw information about ASW on the campaign websites or a partner s website. 4
Participation Hundreds of organizations participated in America Saves Week 2008: Local campaigns worked at the city, county or state level to organize working groups national organizations, agencies or companies provided information and resources to their staff, customers, members or the general public military organizations ranging from Navy Youth Centers to the Airforce s Airman and Family Readiness Centers, to military banks and credit unions Local Campaigns Over 30 organizations ran Saves Week campaigns that engaged hundreds of local groups. Some examples: North Carolina Saves enjoyed the support of the State Treasurer s office and the North Carolina Bankers Association, who both served on the steering committee for the Week and helped encourage banks across the state to offer savings incentive and promote the savings message. Cleveland Saves, a 400 organization-strong coalition, had over 700 people attend events during Saves Week. In addition, Cleveland Saves planned media promotions and received proclamations from public officials. Philadelphia Saves, in conjunction with the Campaign for Working Families, helped to encourage tax filers in Philadelphia this year to save a portion of their refund. The organizations ran 17 free tax prep sites across the city and helped split over 200 refunds into on-site CDs, savings accounts or client s existing savings products, a 170% increase over the 2007 tax season. 5
National Participating Groups Over 60 national organizations, government agencies, financial institutions, trade associations and others participated in ASW 08. Some examples include: Cooperative Extension Service had educators in nearly 30 states reach an estimated 6 million through media, web, mail and marketing. The Family, Career and Community Leaders of America reached over 10,000 students in 28 states, who pledged to save over half a million dollars. WorldatWork offered one-on-one financial counseling to employees, and promoted the week through the web and publications. The Federal Reserve Board offered daily savings tips to over 50,000 employees. Military Participation Military Saves Week 2008 included participation from: Every service branch Department of Defense Armed Forces Financial Network Association of Military Banks of America Armed Forces Tax Council National Military Family Association Some highlights from Military Saves Week include the following: More than 200 military banks and defense credit unions accepted millions of dollars in savings deposits. Events held around the world included participation from all of the Navy Youth Centers and from many Army, Air Force, and Marine Corps sites. Military units large and small declared themselves Military Saves organizations. Special recognition goes to the U.S. Naval Mobile Construction Battalion Five, Detail Chinhae. Every member of the battalion took the Saver Pledge, 70 percent own a Thrift Savings Plan account, 39 percent have IRAs, 30 percent own real estate, and 48 percent took a personal investments class. 6
Financial Action Over 75,000 people attended over 1800 events during America Saves Week, including: Financial education classes Seminars Financial fairs One-on-one counseling Over 10,000 people opened a new savings account or added to an existing account (this number does not include final reporting from national financial institutions.) Just under 10,000 enrolled as Savers in the America Saves. An additional 17,000 people took the Military Saves Pledge. Media America Saves and ASEC partnered to conduct a national press conference that over 25 reporters attended. Additionally, many local campaigns and organizations pursued a media promotion strategy. Over 250 print, TV and radio hits, that reached at least 40 million in many major markets About 65% of reporting groups did earned media About 20% did paid media About 20% placed Public Service Announcements 7
Notable Press Hits Associated Press, Feb. 25 Most Americans see paying off mortgage Associated Press, Feb. 20 Savings easier when it s automatic Humberto Cruz syndicated column, March 3 Start thinking about savings now Kathy Kristof syndicated column for the LA Times, March 2 No more excuses: simple ways to build up your savings CNNMoney.com, Feb. 26 Befuddled by debt? You re not alone ABC News, March 5 Net Gains: When Cutting Out Coffee Isn t Enough US News and World Report Alpha Consumer Blog, Feb. 25 This Week, Celebrate Savings Business Journal wire article, Feb. 28 Wachovia rolls out savings seminars NBC wire article, Feb. 25 Half of Households Saving, Survey Finds National Public Radio s Marketplace segment, Feb. 22 Reframing retirement savings America Saves Week February 24-March 2, 2008 8