We spent yesterday at Finovate, a yearly roundup of new personal finance services available online. Here’s a recap of some of the afternoon presentations, including a mortgage comparison service that promises greater transparency, a new credit simulator feature from Credit Karma, and a site that uses reverse auctions to get banks to bid on your money.
Report From Finovate '08: Round 2
By October 14, 2008
Round 2 of the Finovate presentations includes online financial planning, the “match.com” of stocks, and Facebook banking. Let’s dive in and find out what they’re all about:
Report From Finovate '08: The Latest Personal Finance Tools
By October 14, 2008
I’ve been dispatched by our cigar-chomping editors to midtown NYC to check out the 14 new personal finance software apps getting demoed at Finovate 2008. I’ll be reporting here and letting you know about the latest tools from the frontlines of the personal finance revolution.
Why Was Gas So Expensive?
By October 13, 2008
Did you know that gas price gouging almost never occurs as prices rise? Rather, it’s most often when dealers keep prices artificially high even as their costs fall. As gas costs were near $5 a gallon until falling and oil companies earn around $100 billion each year, it’s a good time to question what really goes into the price of gas. The numbers on the gas station sign hide a complex set of transactions. Before gas can power your car, it must be discovered as crude oil, traverse three markets, and be refined from crude into gas. Inside, we’ll explain the three markets, walk you through the role of refineries, and show how oil companies use creative tactics to manipulate gas prices…
Ticketmaster Is Evil And Must Die
By October 12, 2008
Ticketmaster is an evil monopoly that steals cash from defenseless consumers. They are infinitely more evil than their hated 30% surcharge would suggest, and they must be destroyed.
How Can We Save Our Debt-Swamped Government?
By October 11, 2008
The United States is $10.2 trillion in debt. Like countless Americans, our government has spent beyond its means and needs help getting back on its feet. We recently received a panicked email from White House Budget Director Jim Nussle…
The Idiot-Proof Way To Securely Use Public Wi-Fi
By October 6, 2008
We talk a lot on this blog about personal data and privacy, but not so much about how to secure that data on your own computer. That’s because a.) we’re not Lifehacker and b.) the solutions frequently bloat into crazy, jargon-filled recipes that scare away the non-IT crowd. Not this time! For all you novices, here is a single idea you should consider that will help keep your personal data personal, and make your identity that much harder to steal.
What Does The Bailout Mean For You?
By October 6, 2008
So, Congress finally passed the bailout bill. You know about the Treasury’s newfound $700 billion, and you’ve heard about the snipped golden parachutes, but what does the 451-page week-old shotgun savior of a bill actually mean for you?
How To Write To Congress
By September 23, 2008
Writing to Congress is the single best way to express your view on public policy. The average consumer has a surprising ability to influence legislation by crafting a well written missive. Let’s find out what the common mistakes to avoid are, how the process works, and the best ways to ensure your letter has the greatest impact.
34 Victims Of The Grocery Shrink Ray
By September 17, 2008
The story may be well and established already, but that hasn’t stopped manufacturers from their food product and package shrink-a-dink rampage. Here’s 34 more victims of The Grocery Shrink Ray spotted by the all-volunteer Consumerist tipster army, 25 of which are viewable using advanced pop-up slideshow technology…
15 Victims Of The Grocery Shrink Ray
By August 1, 2008
The Grocery Shrink Ray continues its miniature spree across the supermarket aisles of America. Here’s 14 more victims that have surfaced in the past week, as spotted by our watchful bands of deputized Consumerist reader-investigators…
Ben Popken On "To The Point" (And A Debate Over Personal Finance Advice)
By July 25, 2008
Here’s the clip of the To The Point radio program I was on yesterday. There was a bunch of people on, you can hear me at 23:30 talking about the Grocery Shrink Ray and 37:30 talking about the customer service hotline Sprint set up for Consumerist readers. It’s a great show and I love Warren Onley’s voice, but I have some issues with the advice some of the other guests gave on the show that I need to address. Here’s what I would have said had I been asked some of their questions…
10 Secrets To Getting Better Tech Support From Asus
By July 16, 2008
An Asus technician has stepped forward out the shadows to give us the 10 insider tips for getting through and getting better and faster tech support from the computer and computer parts maker. Some things just can’t be fixed though, but it’s at least to know the soul-crushing math they’re using to destroy the customer experience. Considering how bad their tech support is, you’re definitely going to need these tips…
Do You Suffer From CLH? (Consumer Learned Helplessness)
By June 27, 2008
Did you know that you can learn to be helpless? These days, a lot of people are showing signs of a new disease called CLH, or Consumer Learned Helplessness. Here’s how it works.
Netflix Eliminates User Profiles, Infuriates Customers
By June 19, 2008
Netlfix announced yesterday that they’ll be eliminating the ability to set up separate queues or “profiles” within one account. Some customers, like reader Stephen are hopping mad about it.
Sneak Peek Of BillShrink.com's New Credit Card Comparison Tool
By June 18, 2008
Billshrink.com is going to bring a never-before-seen level of transparency to consumers looking for the best credit card offer. Think of it as a turbocharged dashboard for navigating the credit card market. The site launched earlier this year as wireless plan comparison service, but with personal debt at record highs and personal savings rates at record lows, the credit card vector is potentially even more important and useful tool. I sat down with CEO Peter Pham yesterday as he showed me the actual website in action.
Consumerist's Ultimate Fast Food Nutrition Guide: 2008
By May 28, 2008
Back in January of 2007, we took a look at fast food and chain restaurant websites to see who was hiding their nutritional information and who was making it easy for consumers to find out what was in their favorite menu items. We found that some chains were offering a veritable buffet of information, while others either ignored the subject altogether or hid links to PDFs in the depths of their fine print. Because of this, inside, we’ve got a nutritional info report card of about 50 top fast food joints. We tell you whether they have the info online at all, provide nutritional info for all items, if it’s easy to locate, and whether they have allergen info. We also give an overall rating to the overall quality of the nutritional info, and provide direct links to the nutrition page or PDF.
How Robots Are Killing Customer Service
By May 20, 2008
Here is the live audio and powerpoint from a recent presentation I gave called, “The 5 Things Your Customers Aren’t Telling You.” This is number 3, “Stop Hiding Behind Walls Of Robots.” It’s all about how companies think they’re saving money by replacing humans with machines but sometimes machines can’t do jobs as well as humans, especially when it comes to customer service. I brought the point to life with a funny little story about eBay and their wonderfully inept automated email response system. I hope you enjoy the video, including the intro and outro ditties I worked up on my girlfriend’s old Yamaha synth. [More]
