A few weeks back, TechGadgets.in had reported about Spendometer, a new unique device that keeps a check on ones expenditure. Luckily we got in touch with Mr. Chris Tapp, Director of Credit Action, the company that has developed the Spendometer gadget. TechGadgets.in conducted an exclusive interview with Mr. Tapp. Here’s how it went:
TG: Can you tell us a little about yourself and your company?
CT: Credit Action is a UK wide money education charity which exists to help people manage their money better and avoid problems of serious over-indebtedness and financial hardship. We were founded in 1992 by Keith Tondeur, who is now the honorary President of the organization.
We work in a number of different ways to help people but primarily we work by providing resources, training and carrying out targeted projects.
Our resources help give people the information they need on budgeting, credit, debt, saving and other personal finance issues. We try to make this as practical as possible, as seen by the development of tools like the Spendometer! A full range of the resources can be seen on www.creditaction.org.uk or www.moneybasics.co.uk
Our training helps individuals and organizations equip themselves and their staff with the skills needed to manage their money well and help others to do so. Our projects do this on the ground with people who are in particular difficulty such as those in prison or the homeless.
I have been with Credit Action since 2005, prior to that I worked for a brief while at JPMorgan, the investment bank. I became Director in October 2007.
TG: Could you elaborate a little on the Spendometer tool, with its specifications, purpose and cost?
CT: The Spendometer allows people to manage their money, record spending and keep budgets on their mobile phone. Most people do not spend much, if any time thinking about where their money goes and so it is easy for things to get out of control. We wanted to make keeping budgets as well as tracking and controlling spending as easy as possible.
It is a very quick and easy process to enter your spending into different categories which the tool then arranges into reports so you can see how much you have spent and the speed at which you are spending (i.e. how much a day.) You can also set yourself limits and if you spend over those limits the tool will alert you to the fact.
Entering spending is very quick and easy, it takes less than 10 seconds! Also because it is on the mobile it is very subtle – it doesn’t look like you are doing a budget so hopefully there will be less embarrassment for people.
The tool is completely free of charge for people to download.
TG: What is required for Spendometer to be accessible?
CT: To download the Spendometer you must have a WAP enabled mobile phone, i.e. a phone able to connect to the internet. If this is the case then the vast majority of phone models are able to support the tool.
TG: Does the Spendometer tool support all mobile devices?
CT: The tool works on most mobile phones and other devices such as Blackberries and PDA’s. Some of the operating controls on these devices are slightly different but they are still able to carry the tool satisfactorily.
TG: Is the availability of Spendometer restricted to particular cities or countries?
CT: The Spendometer is available anywhere in the world!
TG: Can you tell us if the tool is available in India? What do the Indian users have to do to operate it? Do the charges differ in terms of countries?
CT: The tool is available for users in India, the only drawback being that the tool displays figures in £s. To download the tool outside the UK users must enter international code for the country they are in, so users in India should enter +91. The tool is free of charge wherever in the world you are.
TG: How are expenses of an individual segregated? And how does the tool manage the money?
CT: The expenses are segregated into individual categories such as food, clothes or entertainment. However the user can amend categories to suit their own individual circumstances. The user is responsible for entering their spending into the tool and selecting the appropriate category and using this information the tool is able to build up reports and other spending information over a period of time. Reports are stored for up to a year.
TG: Is the Spendometer tool compatible cash payments, credit card payments or both?
CT: As it is the user who enters the spending it does not matter whether the spending is in cash or on cards. For the tool to be as effective as possible all spending should be included.
TG: What are the sales figures of the Spendometer? How has the response been till date?
CT: Within the first fortnight of the launching of the tool we had over 2000 people download the tool. (These aren’t ‘sales’ as the tool is free!)
TG: Any figure estimated that you would like to achieve in the next 1 year’s time?
CT: Given the initial take up of the tool following the launch, which received good publicity, we would expect things to level out. If, over the course of the first year we were able to have over 15,000 download the tool then that would be a real success.
TG: Would you let us know about the company’s forthcoming products?
CT: Currently we are looking for ways in which we can build on the success of the Spendometer to deliver other tools aimed at making money management easier. We have already launched a new range of calculators (mortgage, credit card, budget) on www.moneybasics.co.uk) and will be looking for more we can do in the future. I will make sure I keep you informed!
