Margin test

The following article is a guest post from, John C. Linfield, Executive Director at the Institute for Financial Literacy. At the end of “Financial Literacy Month” here in the United States, it seems appropriate to take a moment and think about why we should become financially literate, and how we can use that to stay on track for the long term. As educators, we talk a lot about what financially literacy is. But when all is said and done, are we becoming financially literate just because we should? Is financial literacy only about acquiring a specific set of skills and knowledge, for the sake of being able to say we learned it? Many financial educators, myself included, focus on the technical skills and knowledge that the average consumer needs to manage their personal finances on a day to day basis. Money management, credit and debt management, insurance, and the basics of investing and retirement planning form the pillars of financial literacy, the required knowledge that forms the core of a financially literate consumer. As financial literacy evolves however, we are finding that knowledge, while absolutely critical, is not enough. For example, when people learn about debt management, some go home and immediately begin a successful debt reduction plan. Others just feel good about themselves for a little while and never apply what they’ve learned. Why? Is there something that transforms someone from a merely knowledgeable consumer to one that is engaged and in control of their finances? Is there is a catalyst, a secret, which moves a consumer from knowing to doing? The truth is that there is a secret in financial literacy, and many financial educators (including yours truly) often fail to share that secret with our students through oversight. So, here’s your big chance. I’m coming clean. I’m revealing how the financial magic works. I’m going rogue, throwing caution to the wind and sharing arcane and mysterious knowledge that will transform your world. To start, picture this scenario, all too common in homes throughout the United States: You sit down to pay your bills. You struggle as you decide which bills you’ll pay this month, and which ones will have to wait, or worse be ignored entirely. You check your credit card statements, and once again the balances due are even higher than the month before. You have little to no savings and no retirement plan. Your mortgage, which you’re already behind on, has a balance that’s growing due to late fees and the fact you aren’t paying each month, just often enough to hold off the foreclosure on the house you couldn’t afford to buy in the first place. The phone rings 3 or 4 times, but you don’t bother answering it because it’s just the nightly calls from the debt collectors. By the time you’re finished struggling through the mess, you head into bed exhausted, knowing you don’t have enough money to do anything enjoyable anyway. Now picture this scenario: You sit down to pay your bills. You pay all of your bills on time, and you pay off your credit cards in full, as you do every month. You check your bank statements and see that your savings and investments are continuing to grow slowly but steadily. Finally, you check your mortgage statement and see that those extra payments you’ve been making are shrinking your mortgage balance much faster than you ever thought possible. You get a call from your good friend, and you make plans for the weekend. Having finished managing your finances for today, you get up and head out to enjoy the rest of the evening. Most likely, your reality falls somewhere between these two extremes. Which scenario would you rather be in? More importantly, if the first scenario is closer to your reality than you would like, what can you do to turn things around? Here’s an exercise that will help you find your secret, and help you stay on the right track financially. Many of us avoid thinking about our finances because of the stress and negative feelings that it dredges up. But those feelings are OK. I want you to feel that stress and those negative feelings. Why am I such a jerk?  Why do I want you to feel that pain? Because it’s only by doing so that you can take the first step to finding your secret. I want you to sit and close your eyes for at least 10 minutes (really, I’m serious). I want you to think about your financial situation. Think about the bills, the debt, and the worries for the future. Don’t shy away from it; face it in the full, cold light of day. Allow yourself to feel the worry and the fear and the stress to the fullest extent possible. The worse your financial situation, the closer to tears you should get. Embrace it, wallow in it, but above all feel it. Now focus on the One Thing about your finances that causes you the most pain, whatever it is. Feel that one worry as deeply as you can. Hold that feeling. When you’ve gotten as low as you can go, picture yourself in the second scenario above. Picture yourself paying all of your bills on time, every time. Picture your debt decreasing while your assets are growing. Picture yourself dealing with the most terrifying/depressing aspect of your finances and solving it. Imagine what that would feel like, how light you would feel, how calm and peaceful and relieved. Do you feel that smile? That warm glow? That sense of well-being that makes you want to do anything you can to achieve it? That’s it, right there. It’s the One Thing that will keep you focused, engaged and committed with your finances. It will keep you on track, it will give you the willpower to do the things you need to do to achieve the One Thing. Even better, that focus and commitment will spread to the other aspects of your personal finances like a virus over time. That’s your motivation. That’s your secret. As with many things in life, each of us has our own motivations, our own secrets. For some, it is paying off a mortgage, getting out of debt or retiring. All of these are practical, achievable, logical goals, and many of us share these goals or have multiple goals we want to achieve. But in order to transform your finances, in order to take control over the long-term, you have to identify the One Thing and focus on it like a laser. In short, you need to make an emotional connection with your finances, one that can balance the emotional connection you have to the behaviors and choices that led you into financial trouble in the first place. You need to find your motivation. Why? As human beings, we need to feel an emotional connection to something in order to embrace it fully. We don’t pay bills for the sheer joy of paying bills. Building a rainy day fund doesn’t make us better people. If we’re doing these things because we think we have to, we won’t last. We have to dig deeper, get past the technical aspects of managing our finances, and find the One Thing. That emotional connection between our finances and our lives that will give us the strength we need to do what has to be done because a stable financial situation is the gateway to enjoying our lives fully. That’s why financial literacy is important. Through the financial resources it helps us develop, it provides us with the one thing we all have in limited supply: time to enjoy our lives, however we define that. And that’s the secret.

People are making a big deal about big data—and it is a big deal. It has the power to guide us in addressing some of our nation’s most pressing needs, from protecting against fraud at the checkout counter to helping families secure affordable loans that help them accomplish their dreams. And like any powerful tool, it must be deployed wisely; in the wrong hands, as Hollywood saw recently, data can be hacked. But that doesn’t mean abandoning big data is the solution, especially with so many weighty challenges burdening our nation. There’s a smart way to use data right, and we can “unleash untold opportunities” if we use technology to do it well, as President Obama alluded to in this year’s State of the Union address. With big data, technology is now able to process unfathomable, and until recently largely unmanageable, volumes of information. And from that processing, we can identify actionable insights that can illuminate new solutions to old problems. Read the full article on TheHill.com

On Monday, Experian’s former North American CEO Craig Boundy welcomed conference attendees, asking everyone to Think BIG during the week. Later in the day, we heard an inspirational forward thinking keynote address by former US secretary of state Dr. Madeleine Albright on the geopolitical environment touching on information security. On Tuesday, it was all about BIG insights on the US economy as Adam Fingersh introduced Dr. James Paulsen from Wells Capital Management, who delivered an in-depth economic and financial market update. Paulsen, deemed the recovery the longest in U. S. history, saying “The great recession is often compared to the great depression, but this is really a great exaggeration.” After Dr. Paulsen’s remarks, Experian began its second day of breakout sessions with insights from our team of experts in big data, decision analytics, consumer credit, compliance and fraud before heading off for a day of networking activities. Later in the evening we all celebrated over dinner together while being entertained by the legendary Kool and the Gang. On The final day of the conference, Lloyd Parker, Group President of Credit Services closed Vision by introducing NBA Legend and Hall of Famer, Earvin “Magic” Johnson, who delivered an inspiring talk. Magic got up close and personal with the audience, sharing his insights on being a champion athlete, overcoming obstacles, and the many life lessons on becoming a successful entrepreneur, job creator and community advocate. We are all looking forward to seeing you in Scottsdale, Arizona next year for Vision 2016. Twitter Highlights "Big data is a force for good and makes a difference in the economy, consumers and society," Craig Boundy #vision2015 — Vision Conference (@ExperianVision) May 4, 2015 One day we hope to have a client user event like @ExperianVision as its the best for content, networking and fun! #V…https://t.co/LGiyxKAh5i — masterQueue (@intellaegis) May 8, 2015 I shared my business expertise and how I transitioned from basketball court to the boardroom! @Experian_B2B #vision2015 — Earvin Magic Johnson (@MagicJohnson) May 6, 2015 "Whether you are a foreign minister or a CEO you have to be able to manage risk," Madeleine K. Albright #vision2015 — Vision Conference (@ExperianVision) May 4, 2015 For more Twitter highlights, click here.

At Experian we believe that data is good. Good for our economy, good for consumers and good for society.  Analytics and technology designed to help marketers put their data to use and become truly customer-centric is just one example of using data as a force for good.  The following column was written by Emad Georgy, senior vice president of development and global head of development at Experian Marketing Services, as part of a “Data-Driven Thinking” series for AdExchanger. Emad explores the topic of customer-centric marketing, and raises the question: “What does a marketing ecosystem look like when we focus on the customer and work backward from there? It’s not about the cloud; it’s about the customer.”  In the age of the half-read article, far too few have taken the time to understand deeply what big data can do for their business. The focus has been more on the medium, with more talk about channels, clouds and the data than about the customers themselves. This begs the question: What does a marketing ecosystem look like when we focus on the customer and work backward from there? It’s not about the cloud; it’s about the customer. Looking for big answers in the channel and the technology is important, but focusing on the “how” of big data can obscure the reasons for why we use the data. It’s as if some are staring at a large explosion of data and wondering, “What can I do with this data? How can it benefit my business?” This is backward at best. With more data in our marketing ecosystem, the complexities of mining and predicting have increased exponentially. More marketing communities are investing in data scientists as a result. But there’s something out there bigger than big data: the big questions we want answered and the answers themselves. Now we need to identify the big questions and answers that can come out of this big data boom. One of the keys to answering the right big questions: predictive analytics. Predictive models and tools are easier and more accessible than ever, with the ability to put big data insights into an automated, future-finding realm that is becoming more open by the day. This accessibility enables professionals in every industry to answer in mere minutes questions that would have once required many years and millions of dollars. The Right Questions Before we identify what the right questions are, it’s important to understand what the right questions are not. Marketers often view predictive analytics as the solution to their budget optimization decisions. Sure, CMOs are under increased pressure to predict future spending and adjust channel budgeting accordingly. Real-time predictive analytics allows them to do this without waiting for end-of-the-month reporting. This is an important decision, and analytics can help. But marketers need to go beyond the budgeting mindset to consider the customer’s role in analytics. Customers offer up so many other data points as they engage with a brand, and marketers are responsible for using that information to improve the customer’s day-to-day experience. So what are the right questions? Here are a few. Who is my best customer segment? Keep in mind that this is a transient answer and can change in real time. Who is showing signs and/or probabilities that they are going to become my next best customer segment? Which cross-channel consumer experiences are resonating, and when and where? Which customers are showing behaviors that may predict a lack of engagement or declining engagement? By asking the right questions, marketers can move beyond the marketing mix budget question. Predictive analytics can offer insight into what types of consumer segments are resonating in which channels, at which times of day, for which products and at which point in a path to purchase. It can give insight into things that are about to happen – when a customer is about to fit your “best customer profile,” or perhaps the warning signs to predict when a customer is about to terminate the relationship. Real-time capabilities to understand and optimize buyer personas, to deliver contextually relevant messages to individuals, not demographics, are just some of the ways we can leverage these capabilities. Building intelligent, mutually beneficial interactions for individual customers requires knowing these signals. Avoid The Snapshot Predictive analytics is so important for optimizing the customer experience because a customer’s experience – whether it’s preferences, behavior or desired conversations – can change every second. Models that are used to inform the marketing experience can’t be built from static variables, but rather must learn and adjust in real time. When the insights are made predictive and are constantly attuned accordingly, a critical shift is made: Customers, not marketing technologies, are driving the intelligence. And that’s the crux of the crossroads we face. We’ve focused for so long on the how of analytics that we’ve forgotten the human side. The algorithms and technology we’ve built are impressive and incredibly useful, but predictive analytics can’t be entirely machine-run. There’s a human element that must coexist and we must recognize that behind the data are real, irrational humans with constantly changing and sometimes unpredictable stories. We mustn’t let our obsession with the “how” of data get in the way of the “why” we care. That is what customers want: seamless, integrated experiences that are contextually relevant to their wants and needs. Follow Experian Marketing Services (@ExperianMkt) and AdExchanger (@adexchanger) on Twitter.

  Today Experian Vision 2015 conference kicked off to great start with a full house here to learn the latest about how data and analytics can transform the way we do business today, drive growth and solve some of our biggest business challenges. Craig Boundy, former CEO of Experian North America challenged the audience to think big over the next two days and beyond. Without question, big data is a huge driver in today’s economy. How can companies operating in today’s data driven world acknowledge the power of data and also embrace the power of data as a force for good. A panel of business leaders from Experian then took the stage to address a range of questions about topics common and critical to successfully grow business, find opportunities and solve problems. The topics addressed:preventing fraud, reaching unbanked and underbanked consumers and the importance of quality data. The more than 80 breakout sessions presented by Experian experts and industry luminaries drilled deeper into these topics. A highlight for all attendees was the keynote from Dr. Madeleine K. Albright, Former U.S. Secretary of State and chair of the Albright Stonebridge Group and Albright Capital Management. Dr. Albright highlighted  her years of international diplomacy and business experience. In her comments, she stated that it is the private sector who truly have an important role to play in embracing technology and data. “It’s the private sector’s know-how, innovation and job creation that invigorates communities and countries. Globally, private sector investment overwhelmingly exceeds foreign aid, which many Americans would be surprised to learn is less than 1% of the federal budget. And needless to say, the financial services sector, which many of you represent, does have an indispensible role. I’ve often said, that for many countries the key to development is not discovering oil or gold; it's having financial institutions that are accessible, accountable and available in the right places at the right time.” To learn more about Experian’s Vision 2015 Conference click here. Be sure to follow us on Twitter at @ExperianVision and our LinkedIn Community for instant conference updates.