GigSuper Blog

Community Chat: Nic Ryan of DATA FRIENDS

branka@gigsuper.com.au (Branka Injac Misic) — Tue, 28 Jan 2020 06:11:53 GMT

One of my favourite things to do on LinkedIn is watch Nic Ryan and the data science community's chats evolve into a wild, untamed mass of conversation about numbers, logic, tech, AI, and pretty much anything else data-ry you can think of.

It's not a language I speak, but I love getting involved and learning from the best in the business. And maybe I'm a little biased because I've worked with Nic before, but in my humble opinion, he really is one of the best (at least here in Australia!).

Community Chat: Laura Luck – UX Writer + Strategist

branka@gigsuper.com.au (Branka Injac Misic) — Mon, 20 Jan 2020 01:33:50 GMT

Even though she says it still feels too good to be true, Laura Luck has been working with words for the last decade – starting with a journalism and PR degree, weaving through marketing and communications and landing in UX writing.

App Sneak Peek

Peter Stanhope — Tue, 26 Mar 2019 01:33:18 GMT

Sneak peek time!

The Biggest Shocker From Our Self-Employed Community Survey

Peter Stanhope — Tue, 12 Feb 2019 03:03:05 GMT

We recently ran a survey with our community asking for feedback around self-employment.

Some interesting insights came out of it.

But by far the biggest shocker was this:

Four Superannuation Basics For Self-employed Folks

Peter Stanhope — Thu, 31 May 2018 23:40:00 GMT

Most self-employed people treat their super like it’s the parent of a toddler throwing a giant tantrum in public...They avoid contact at all costs or shoot disgusted death stares at it.

Making a super resolution for the New Year

Peter Stanhope — Fri, 05 Jan 2018 09:07:00 GMT

‘Motivation is what gets you started. Habit is what keeps you going.’

What ordering the chips can teach us about super

Peter Stanhope — Thu, 14 Dec 2017 05:56:43 GMT

As our minds turn towards the end of year break, I thought I’d give you an insight into how we are building GigSuper using the principles of behavioural economics to make it as easy as possible for you to save for your future.

Behavioural economics is incredibly useful because it can help us explain why we do things that are not in our long term best interests, and importantly how we can change those behaviours.

Every day we do things that we know are actually bad for us.

From not going to the gym (again) to ordering chips and gravy rather than steamed vegetables with that grilled chicken, we seem to be hardwired to make decisions which feel good right now, despite knowing they are not in our long term best interests.

It is the same with Superannuation.

About 75% of self-employed people don’t contribute to super, and yet we know from talking to many of you it isn’t because you don’t want to.

Everyone knows they should squirrel away money for their later years, and yet few do when they have an option to do so.

So the question for us at GigSuper is not how can we convince you to save for your retirement.

We know you already want to do that.

The question is how we can help you save for retirement?

This is where the field of behavioural economics comes in.

It might sound dull but it can change your life.

Going back to the chips and gravy -vs- steamed veges example for a moment, the effects can be seen in an experiment known as the menu experiment.

Two groups of people are given a menu with some healthy and some not so healthy (but absolutely delicious) items on it and asked to order their meal.

The difference between the two groups is that the first is given the menu the day before, the second is given to them just before they eat.

Now you would expect both groups would order the same mix of meals - right?

Wrong.

The first group, who ordered the day before, generally selected healthy meals. The group who ordered on the day were more likely to go for the not-so-healthy but delicious options.

That’s because humans find it easier to be disciplined about a decision in the future than we do in the present moment.

Similarly, when we talk about putting money aside for later in life, understanding why we make the decision we do is critical.

In designing GigSuper our objective is to help you achieve what you want to achieve - with a little nudge from behavioural economics, and building a product which makes the right decision easy.

I look forward to keeping you up to date with our progress as GigSuper takes shape early next year, and talking more about the unique features which will make it easy for you to recommit to your super.

We at GigSuper wish you a safe and peaceful holiday period and look forward to sharing our progress with you in the New Year.

Super in the gig economy

Peter Stanhope — Thu, 07 Dec 2017 00:43:51 GMT

Recent ABS statistics show the face of the gig economy is changing, with strong growth in the number of self employed people in the business leadership and health professional sectors, which increased by 27,000 people since 2011.

Dirty little secret

Peter Stanhope — Sat, 25 Nov 2017 12:50:17 GMT

Some 1.7 million Australians work for themselves and this number is growing as more people abandon the corporate grind in favour of the freedom and flexibility of the gig economy.

From developers, designers, marketers and business consultants - forecasts are that the gig economy will increasingly become the norm in Australia.

With a combined 20 years in delivering online financial services in Australia, we saw a need for a superannuation product that specifically caters for the self-employed.

While your reasons for stepping out of the mainstream are many and varied, independent thinkers and doers just like you all too often share a dirty little secret.

75 percent of self-employed are not currently contributing to their superannuation, and more than one in five of them have no superannuation at all. This is a financial crisis waiting to happen - both for them personally, and for the Australian economy.

Every year you probably nod as your accountant tells you to start contributing to super, take the paperwork home and tuck into the bottom drawer, where it remains untouched for another year.

Enter GigSuper - a clever app-based superannuation product being specifically co-designed with gig workers to help banish your dirty little secret in as little as five minutes.

GigSuper’s unique non-super account is a game-changer for workers who face fluctuations in income over the financial year. Working job-to-job means your income fluctuates through the year, and the ability to access your money if needed is vital.

We understand the importance of flexibility and ease of use - GigSuper allows access to your funds through investment in a non-super account until end of financial year, when you can instantly transfer those funds into Super to maximise tax-benefits and build for your retirement.

Within five minutes you can sign up for a superannuation account, roll over existing balances, set contributions, and more - all from your mobile phone. No paper forms!

As refugees from the corporate scene ourselves, we understand both the appeal of the gig economy, and the challenges you face as you focus on building your business. It is too easy to put the administrative aspects in the ‘I’ll do that later’ folder.

However failure to invest in super can mean you miss out the attractive tax breaks that super offers. And if you are paying more than your fair share of tax, you will have a smaller nest egg in retirement.

Tax changes that occurred on 1st July 2017 make it easier for self-employed people people to claim their voluntary contributions to super as a tax deduction. These changes, together with the GigSuper app, will make claiming these contributions to super as a tax deduction easier than ever.

We recognise that increasingly people are earning income from a variety of sources, so your super fund needs to reflect that you don’t just earn money from a single employer anymore.