The Children's Mutual Increases The Savings Habit With Love2shop

"Every eligible newborn child receives a voucher worth £250, or £500 for low income families, from the Government when their parents register for Child Benefit. This is used to open a CTF account on their behalf." explains company spokesperson Wendy Roberts. "The aim of the Child Trust Fund is to kick-start and encourage a regular savings habit."

In 2009 The Children's Mutual partnered with Bounty, the UK's favorite parenting club, to encourage uptake of its CTF accounts amongst new parents. "Through the Bounty pack, which is available free to all new parents, we were able to reach the vast proportion of mothers with details of our CTF accounts. Together with Bounty, we were keen to offer an incentive that would both stimulate uptake and encourage an ongoing commitment to savings, so we researched the market to find the best reward for our partnership," Wendy continues."Bearing in mind that our customers are spread right across the UK and the demographic spectrum, we wanted an incentive that would appeal to everyone and would be easy to access. From that exercise we identified Love2shop - The high street gift voucher as the most appealing and appropriate reward."

"From there we set up the incentive which requires parents to both open a CTF with us and set-up a direct debit for £10 or more each month into the account, once the first payment is made they receive £20 worth of Love2shop - The high street gift vouchers - to spend in any one of 80 retailers across the UK. In addition, if grand-parents, friends or other family members wish to contribute to the account on the same basis, then they also receive the same reward. The choice of retailers on the gift voucher is such that every taste is catered for - so whether you're the parent or the grand-parent you'll find a retail brand that you love."

"The relationship with Bounty and the incentive have proved extremely successful - in just one year 50% of new customers commit to a monthly direct debit payment to save regularly for their children. When you consider that the industry average is round 23%, this is a great result." Wendy concludes,"The incentive has proved hugely popular, and will certainly continue for the foreseeable future."

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