A day in the Life of Zopa
This is a collaborative post with Zopa. They recently reached out to me to write about the granting of their banking licence and new products.
The biggest thing I miss about the corporate world is the office environment and working with a team. I miss the chat, grabbing a coffee to catch up, the talk about the previous night’s big TV programme or football match. I miss the sharing of ideas and the buzz of a vibrant office space. Recently I got to experience it again and I loved it. I was welcomed into the Zopa world of #feelgoodmoney and felt right at home from the moment I arrived.
I spent the day meeting with and chatting to various people around the business. From Zopa customer services leads, to marketing and product development teams. The entire Zopa team were so passionate about the company and the services they provide.
I was based for the day with the marketing team and met Clare Gambardella, the Chief Customer Officer in real life. I recently interviewed Clare on my radio show and podcast – Mrs Mummypenny Talks, you can listen to the interview here. It was an exciting day for the team who were buzzing with social media and press coverage for the FeelGood hotline event.
The Celeb #FeelGoodHotline
It was a special day to join the Zopa team and a day that Zopa have been building up to for months. Four celebrities were in the office answering phone calls and spreading the #FeelGood love. Callers, including Zopa customers, had the chance to speak to Frank Bruno, Big Narstie, Frankie Bridge or Lauren Laverne. What a cool selection of celebrities, all well known for their friendly personalities. The celebs dished out stories, pearls of wisdom, and moments of humour to brighten up the callers days. These chats were recorded and have since been shared with callers, giving them a personalised clip to share on social media (for bragging rights, of course!).
I got a chance to pop into the room being used for the calls. I chatted for a few minutes to Lauren Laverne who was super friendly and warm. It was great to meet her as I have been listening to her new breakfast radio show on BBC Radio 6 Music. We talked about my website and the need for greater financial education, particularly for women. Whilst in the room I listened to a call that Frank was taking, his booming voice was brilliant. He made me feel good and I wasn’t even talking to him!
Customer Services Team
The celebs were partnered up with team members from the Customer Services team. They were there to help just in case of any technical questions. These people are incredibly knowledgeable team members who know Zopa and its products inside out. I met with Caroline and Yemi who lead the team. They shared a bit about how the operational teams work and what happens when a customer has a query.
The advisors are brilliantly trained and know the answers to all sorts of questions. Currently there are many calls around the impact of Brexit and investment returns in the current economic climate. The advisors need to have a wide breadth of subject knowledge and are encouraged to have a friendly chat and make the customer #FeelGood.
Zopa is already known for providing world-class Customer Service. They have a Trustpilot score of 9.6 out of 10, six times the average score (1.6) recorded by the “big five” banks.
Clare Gambardella said: “Our Customer Service team are the best in the business and have won many awards since we started in 2005. The team is at the forefront of making sure that our customers feel good about our products, so for January, we wanted to add an extra sprinkle of positivity to proceedings. We think that our star-filled #FeelGood hotline will do just that.
The Mobile App Team
I met with Delphine from the app development team and had such an interesting conversation about the research the team have carried out and the future plans for the app. I am a huge fan of financial app technology and we talked a lot about the apps I love and what I use them for. Zopa wants to make a significant difference to customers’ lives by giving them all their financial information at their finger-tips. Open banking means that all financial information, even if not with Zopa, can be presented in the app.
We talked about money management, help with budgeting and the #FeelGood nature of helping people to save money. Paying that little bit more towards a loan every month, and showing a good record of payments, could mean paying a lower interest rate.
The Credit Card Team
I met with Binh from the credit card team and we talked about the reality of credit cards for consumers in the UK. We talked about my personal experience of regular switching of credit card balances from one 0% deal to another. We talked about the catches I have experienced with transfers fees. Or not realising my 0% deals had ended then being caught out with an interest charge. I am not the only one who experienced this with an estimated 50% of 0% interest credit card customers experiencing a charge during their 0% interest period.
The #FeelGood Money Company™ has lots more on the way
Zopa want people to feel good about money and their finances. They want to take away the stress and lack of control customers often feel. Helping their customers to feel confident, that they’re doing the best they can with their money and building for a better future.
This recently came to fruition with the granting of Zopa’s Banking licence. In the coming months they will be introducing new products including fixed-term savings and credit cards. Products that will help customers to feel good, in control and happy.
A huge thank you to the Zopa team for making me feel so welcome. Look out for more content on Mrs Mummypenny when new products come along.
