The Evolution of Personal Financing Apps
For the vast majority of us around today, memories of learning to balance a checkbook and managing finances through paper trails are not all that far away. Neither are the trips to the bank to deposit checks or withdraw money. And back then, the use of credit cards to pay for things was a relatively novel concept.
Flash forward to present times and it can be hard to keep up on all the new and improved ways to manage your finances. True, the need to act responsibly and pay attention to where your money goes is still there, but now it can be done with the click of a button and in the blink of an eye. With the advent of cell phone apps, the options for managing personal finances and tracking your savings are nearly limitless.
Now there is a whole financial sector dedicated to the advancement of finance using technology. It is lovingly referred to as ‘fintech’ and today whole careers can be built off of it. Looking back, it’s crazy to see how far we’ve come and looking forward, there is much to anticipate.
Into the Online World
To be fair, the idea of ‘fintech’ has actually been around for quite a long time. Sure, most people who hear about it today usually think about new finance management apps, but technology is an integral part of finances and it always has been. Clear back in the 1950s, fintech produced credit cards and shortly after that ATMs. From there it has only gained a larger and larger foothold in our daily lives.
The primary way that the majority of us are using modern fintech advances, though, is definitely for mobile banking and other finance-related tasks. The idea of even going to a bank these days can seem really odd, even outright old-fashioned. The fact of the matter is that nearly all of our day-to-day finances now happen online, from automatic check deposits, to credit card purchases, to online bill pay.
Many app developers are thriving in this system and looking for ways to expand. For many, this means taking their app beyond local or national use and making it a globally-used piece of technology. The most difficult part about this is gaining the expertise to understand international finance rules and developing an app that is not only applicable to people all over the globe but also meets the fiscal rules and requirements for each country it’ll be used in.
Saving You Money
Beyond just your day-to-day financial task management, new fintech apps are also increasingly designed to help you save money and actually increase your capital. Nowadays, people are downloading budgeting apps that help them better understand where their money is going. From there, the apps can be used to set goals and work towards spending less on frivolous things.
Other popular money-saving apps are those that help you to find deals and save money on everyday purchases. For instance, there are all sorts of great grocery store apps that can send deals directly to your phone to be applied at checkout. Long gone are the coupon clippers of Grandma’s era, say hello to the modern trendy saver!
Perhaps the least used but most exciting new fintech option is the ability to talk to financial specialists right within certain apps. Rather than having to drive to a bank or talk to a financial planner to get ideas on how to save more money, information can be shared with a professional through your app and you can get advice right then and there. For many business owners, this can be a priceless way to get advice without spending a lot of time looking for it.
A Brave New World
There is a lot to look forward to in the fintech world going into the future. Some advancements are things that we are already anticipating. One example of this is better online security, which is one of the main criticisms of personal finance apps. Much like the healthcare world, security breaches cost victims thousands of dollars and the loss of personal information annually. Fixing these issues is a huge concern and something to look forward to.
Apps that are likely to be successful have certain things in common. Namely, they use marketing to build trust, are designed for specific user desires, and actually work in helping to improve the finances of users. New apps are coming online all the time that are designed to top the latest and greatest thing by improving upon these major points.
A number of small businesses are also taking steps to convert their finances into more of a dynamic online strategy. So far it is working out — financial apps for small businesses are helping them to save money, be more organized, and ultimately more successful. In the coming decades, we can expect that online, cloud-based finances and the use of financial apps in the business sector will become more and more common and obvious to customers.
The growth of financial apps over the past few decades has been astounding. Today you can do nearly everything online in a faster and more efficient manner than ever thought possible. Beyond just personal finance and banking, apps are designed to help with budgeting and saving money and more frequently it isn’t just individuals that are jumping in on the savings. Personal finance apps are the future and it is bound to get more integral to our lives in the coming years.
