Plan-It Financial Literacy

Bondora.com recently wrote, "As you might expect, regions like Africa and South America, where traditional education rates are already low, also score low in financial literacy. Yet, even a country like the United States, only has 57% financial literacy (55%)."

How do we solve this problem? 

Plan-It is a FULL financial literacy solution. We work with schools, banks, businesses, and nonprofits and first diagnose each users current level of financial knowledge & create a personal curriculum to help each user grow.

We offer:

• Online & onsite workshops
• Our award-winning app, PLAN-IT
• Engaging content from CentSai Education
• Campus ambassador program
• Virtual Debit card provided by Munch Money

Our users are able to learn and apply their learning and receive feedback so they can make better financial decisions moving forward. We won't make you a millionaire overnight but it will help change your mindset about money and how it works.

1. Financial Inclusion is Increasing Globally, but 2 billion adults remain unbanked. 
2. The solution MUST be mobile, because "in Sub-Saharan Africa, 12% of adults (64 million adults) have mobile accounts (compared to just 2% worldwide); 45% of them (28 million) have only a mobile account."

3. Africa needs a lot of support in this area, "At the highest level, financial literacy around the world appears strongest in countries with developed and advanced economies, especially Western Europe and English-speaking countries. There are no countries in South America where more than 50% of people are financially literate, and only one country in all of Africa."

We traditionally work with teens and young adults ages 15-35 in middle school, high school, and college. But, we are also versatile and we are able to also work with businesses and provide financial education services to their employees. 

No one teaches financial education the way that we do! Our entire system is built on providing a PERSONALIZED experience for each unique user. For example, each takes a diagnostic assessment that builds out their personalized curriculum inside the app. 

In the classroom, teachers are able to give a pre and post assessment at the beginning and end of the year. We also provide small group tutoring for students that aren't mastering topics. Most schools only do this for Reading or Math, but we believe that learning how money works is just as important and can also support students in reading or math class.

Our solution aligns PERFECTLY with: incorporating behavioral tools that incentivize and encourage financial savings, transparency, and accountability.

We solve this problem because our product does not just provide a couple of articles, a website, or maybe a chat with a financial advisor. Our solution assesses your level of current financial knowledge, develops a curriculum for your growth, we help our users budget each month, and if they are off track then we sit down and discuss how they can make better choices moving forward. We are a FULL solution, and not just a band-aid!

As I stated earlier, no one teaches financial education the way that we do! Our entire system is built on providing a PERSONALIZED experience for each unique user. Most financial literacy programs are 'cookie cutter' and don't address the individuals unique needs. 

Here is some feedback from our users:

1. Jason Ray, the founder of Zenith Solutions said, "Plan-IT is an excellent tool for financial education. As founder & lead financial advisor at Zenith Solutions, I recommend Plan-IT for use for most people to use for continued education. I’m excited to see new lessons and functionalities built into the app."

2. Ethan Robson, an education counselor, said, "Plan-It is such a powerful tool because, it is not enough to merely hope that children will make good financial decisions in adulthood. Many students, especially those from low-income backgrounds, have never had the opportunity to realize the benefits of saving money, investing, or smart spending. If we expect the next generation of young people to prosper and thrive, we have to prepare them now. To truly educate our children, we have to talk about money." 

3. Victor Johnson, financial advisor, said, "our new virtual lifestyle is the perfect storm for the Plan-It app to become a strong tool in building a solid financial foundation for young people."

GFLEC or the Global Financial Literacy Excellence Center stated, "Shifts in the economic landscape in recent decades have led to increased individual responsibility for saving and investing. The decision making around these expanded duties begins as early as the teen years. To make choices that will positively affect their careers, education, and debt levels, students need an understanding of basic financial concepts, yet our research documents an alarmingly low level of financial literacy, particularly among the young."

Many teens aren't given the opportunity to learn about personal finance in school and our goal is to solve this problem. GFLEC also found that many teachers agree that financial education should be a priority. 

But, the question is does it help the individuals life improve or change their mindset about money to help him or her make better financial decisions.

GFLEC's 2019 study found that, "The 2019 index survey contained several questions, some new, indicative of financial wellness—either about behaviors that should promote financial wellness or about outcomes demonstrating financial wellness. In each case, greater financial literacy was positively associated with the financial wellness indicator. For example, as the percentage of P-Fin Index questions answered correctly increases, individuals are more likely to have the capacity to handle a financial shock and to save for retirement on a regular basis, and less likely to be debt constrained." 

More financial knowledge and applying that knowledge and receiving feedback does help an individual improve their life!

Our solution can be 100% virtual or in person. Our app is easily accessed on our users phone. Through our strategic partnership with CentSai we are able to provide a web based tool for teachers or supervisors. Our debit card is 100% virtual or we can provide a physical card if needed. We are primed and ready to help the citizens of West Africa!

We are very 'user friendly' for administrators and/or users because of the ease of access of our tools.

This isn't applicable to our solution.

As a teacher, I have had to work with economically disadvantaged students and that is why I built in the 'Save to Library' option in my app. 

We are fully prepared to help those that are in low connectivity environments. 

1. Currently-Beta users=130

2. One year-2,000

3. 5 years-1,000,000

Year 1=My goal is to continue to prove our overall concept this school year. We have 2 confirmed pilots in 2 major school districts in the US, and 2 unconfirmed with a nonprofit and hospital system. The nonprofit we are in discussions with is based in Africa and is called, CampaignFIA. We are searching for funds so we can offer our solution to the students the nonprofit helps.

My current challenges are mainly financial. I am an African-American founder with limited access to capital. We have a strong sales process that is lead by my partner, Richard Ciarletta, our VP of Sales & Marketing. We have all of the tools in place to help our customers to succeed, but businesses need capital to continue to grow and scale. 

I have been very careful about offering equity to investors and I will continue to research and find options like you SOLVE challenges to help create funds to continue my mission.

Not applicable

1. Derrick Wesley, Founder and CEO

2. Richard Ciarletta, VP of Sales & Marketing

3. Chris Hanebeck, Advisor

4. Arindam Nag, CentSai Founder

5. Chris Kane, Munch Money Founder

We are well positioned because our core leaders are also veteran educators. We are passionate about closing the financial education gap and we have created a tool and process to help our customers become more financially savvy.

We have currently partnered with CentSai Education and they are our content partners. CentSai's content is aligned to US National Standards for financial education.

Munch Money provides our users with their virtual and physical debit cards.

Plaid helps keep all of user information safe and secure when connecting their savings, investing, and checking accounts. 

Our solution is very affordable for schools and can be customized to fit their unique needs. For example, a school of 500 students could purchase our FULL suite of products and services for $12,500 for the school year (about $25 per student) or choose which products and services to help find a price and solution that fits their budget.

We will continue to bring in funds through new customers. Our overhead expenses are very low and that will help as we continue to grow over the next few years. 

Funds Raised:

1. TD Ameritrade Innovation Quest-$50,000

2. WT Enterprises-$25,000

I am seeking to raise $150,000-$500,000 in the form of a grant or equity. This will give us enough runway to execute our 18 month plan to grow and scale.

1. PLAID=$500 per month

2. AWS=$1,000 per month

3. SendGrid=$2,000 month

4. Tech Team=$1,500 month

5. Marketing=$500 month

I am applying to the Mission Billion Challenge WURI West Africa Prize because I would like to help spread our mission to the people that need it the most. As I stated earlier, I am searching for funds to help Campaign FIA fulfill their mission and winning this challenge would help us to start piloting our solution in Africa with a team that we have already built a relationship with. 

Getting good legal advice is always helpful. We are on a 'shoestring' budget and don't have the funds for a law team. 

I would like to partner with banks and credit unions. Banks and credit unions would make excellent partners because they can sponsor our product for schools and nonprofits so they won't have to carry the financial load.