Page 21 - Pay Magazine

volume 10 • spring 2017
SEcrEt SaucE
Cardholder education is baked into nearly all aspects
of the payroll card program, empowering employees to make better nancial decisions and promoting long-term card usage.
GEttiNG tO KNOw
SOLE Financial
Marketplace Names
SOLE Financial, SOLE Paycard
Location
Portland, Ore.
Open for Business
2004
Ownership
Privately held
Founders
Rick Holt, Jeremy Inman, Steve Klaus, Tom Secor
Line of Business
Visa-branded payroll card and mobile app powered by Digiliti Money
Business Philosophy
We’re rm believers that providing a paper check to an unbanked employee should be exposed for the high-cost, low-security, dead-end behav- ior that banked folks wouldn’t stand for.
Business Model
No cost to corporate clients. Rev- enue earned from card usage.
Something You Might
Not Expect
That a nancial group selling direct deposit would have as much fun as we do. Our team of more than 60 has a blast helping our cardholders, which we love doing together, hence our infor- mal nickname, “the SOLE-mates.”
many prepaid companies o er cardholder education ele- ments as part of their platforms,
but for Portland, Ore.-based payroll card provider SOLE Financial, ensuring underbanked cardholders know how to use their cards wisely and avoid fees isn’t just good Pr, it’s good business.
Founded in 2004 as TFG Card Solutions, the company experi- mented with GPr and campus cards before ultimately settling on payroll cards. Since then, the rm (which rebranded as SOLe Financial in 2015) has distributed thousands of its Visa-branded SOLe Paycards, issued by The bancorp bank and Axiom bank.
Education Emphasis
From the beginning, SOLe knew cardholder outreach was critical, not only for customer retention rates but also to di erentiate the company amid erce competition.
“We serve the underserved market- place by emphasizing best uses,”
Cardholder education is key to successful paycard programs.
notes SOLe President Tom Secor. “education of our cardholders is key, so we’re relentless at sharing best practices for long-term use, like using the card for all direct deposits, using it for free at all points of sale, downloading the free app, etc.”
That educational imperative
to promote every cardholder’s nancial literacy permeates each stage of a cardholder’s relationship with SOLe. every new cardholder receives emails with in-depth overviews of di erent card fea- tures, while targeted social media communication includes tips and videos about best card usage practices. Meanwhile, the company provides proactive safeguards, such as disabling pay-at-the-pump authorization at gas stations and requiring users to pay inside to avoid unnecessary holds being placed on accounts. And when cardholders repeatedly incur avoid- able costs, such as ATM fees, SOLe reaches out to them to reinforce the alternatives.
SOLe’s education-centric ap- proach has helped the company sign corporate clients from across a range of industries, including quick service restaurants, assisted living facilities and manufacturing, among others.
“every employee should be on direct deposit, and we can e ectively bridge the gap to those employees who are unbanked,” Secor notes. “empowering all employees to take advantage of an awesome payroll service
is a must.”
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