This is similar to what so-sure do.
Is this Metal package being surveyed now? If it is, maybe Monzo arenāt starting with a completely clean slate 
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Has the value of my Monzo Plus T-shirt gone up or down in value - thoughts?
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But letās also remember that they were told twice On the forum that their ideas (or execution) were poor, and they then failed twice. The forum is a pretty good litmus test IMO.
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To be honest all the features I wanted just seemed to disappear and it was travel or fan and I want neither so Iām glad you are trying again
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This idea sounds a great option!
Tbf I always found it odd that getting entered into a metal card draw was a perk. I doubt this is a āperkā that the majority of people care about.
What Monzo needs to do is look at the market and see how it can improve on whatās already out there. This is how Monzo has already established its competitive advantage.
Picking and choosing āperksā I still think is the way to go but it needs to be more bold.
Well done for a brave decision. Take the pain early in the product rather than later. To do so openly with your customers is impressive too.
Keep playing the long game Monzoā¦
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Come on guys lets get pick and mix options to add to the monzo plus, GADGET INSURANCE PLEASE!!! early bird supporters who basically have got nothing should get a little reward, and this time try listening to the community on here, a lot of great suggestions seem to be ignored, its a shame on your new team you didnt add a community voice member
Here we go, wading into the 300 post throng (I got a third of the way through before I decided to jump to the bottom and throw my two cents around, honest)
Iām really liking the market place model mentioned numerous times above and I remember monzo taking about it a lot earlier on. Also agree with the sentiment that features that cost nothing (obviously developer time isnāt free, but they are perceived to be free) are going to be hard to charge for as other banks can easily copy and offer for free.
Along with marketplace perhaps there is still room for a premium account but it should have features aimed at the more well off (and that, crucially, actually cost monzo something to offer). IE itās premium and costs money but provides things that people with money want/need. Exampleās (some already mentioned):
- financial advice
- interest on regular balances
- make savings pots work faster (although arguably this should be the case on all accounts. You can pay me a day early, but I have to wait til 4pm tomorrow to withdraw cash?!)
- higher withdrawal limits abroad
- international bank transfers + Forex on the cheap (aāla revolut)
- virtual cards (if they actually cost anything)
- tax return help
- easy investment
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I would say only charge for the things with a marginal cost, like metal cards and insurance. If you write a software feature, there is no cost difference between whether you give it to everyone or just Plustomers, so you might as well give it out for free, and get more feedback. After all, you are selling financial services, not software.
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I think the new team is going down a dangerous path again.
I saw that @tomdavies asked how much people would be willing to pay. It seems like Monzo is going to throw anything together now and see how much they can get people to shell out for it.
It seems to be entirely the wrong approach. We already know that a metal card is probably going to be in the mix and that it costs a bit more, on a 12month min. sub and to recoup the costs of that card within the contract term the minimum is going to be around 1.50-2quid a month, itās a starting point. I think the whole point of these subscriptions is that everyone pays the right amount and some use more some use less, not every customer needs to cover the entire cost of the subscription.
Monzo should be going around places for example Dragon Pass, Lounge Key to find a competitively priced lounge access product, the same for insurers etc. It shouldnāt be exactly the same cost as going to the provider directly it should be significantly cheaper.
Take a look at Nationwide for example, for their monthly account fee youād be hard pressed to find all of the (equivalent) individual cover for less than the monthly cost they provide you because most donāt use all of the benefits so it brings the cost down for others.
Once Monzo have negotiated actual benefits that are of value, it should be offered at a price that makes it compelling to buy because itās a great deal, not because they love Monzo. If itās not a great deal, the negotiations have been poorly handled. Anything thatās the same or more expensive than what can be obtained outside of the Monzo-sphere is not going to be a great deal.
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Maybe work on the value and content which was badly lacking. Iāve been rather vocal in that via SM and am glad FINALLY Monzo has listened to feedback from users. It was a no go for me from day 1, poorly implemented imo. Maybe focus on good offering like the WHICH rated Nationwide Flex Plus which indeed is great added value for Ā£13 a month. Good providers, great phone cover, decent travel insurance, full breakdown over inc at home, roadside/onward travel etc. Good interest rate on credit balance. (https://www.which.co.uk/news/2019/09/monzo-plus-packaged-account-scrapped-after-four-months-can-you-get-a-refund/)
What do you want?
I was looking at things like home contents and phone insurance - but they just went and all there was on offer was traveler and merch fan or something like that
I love the transparency here (as always). Iāve been a Monzo Plus user since pretty much day one, and Iāll be keeping my subscription because Iām sure itāll become something great soon enough. Itās a hard project to get right, and I appreciate how much effort the team is putting in. Keep it up!
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Having seen the transition Monzo has made throughout the plus offering, I have been struck by a few problems and considered possible solutions.
Problems:
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When selling things like coloured cards and merch, what are you achieving? Given the reach of the bank and the attempt to make it mass market youāre attracting, very few customers who are with your bank for convenience. Those types of offerings are a ānice to haveā, not a tangible monetary benefit for the money they spend.
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Monzo is trying to compete with the high street banks by offering arguably worse products for more money. If theyāre going to compete, cost is the number one issue for most people. This means that unless Monzo has the capital and the will to compete on cost with the banking giants, the only way for Monzo to win is through innovative and new ways of helping customers.
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Finally, it seemed there was a scattergun approach to the products on offer, instead of forensically examining the benefit for the customer and profitability for the business for each new part.
Solutions:
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Monzo is a bank trying to offer an adult product. Whilst the roots are in a startup, the focus should be on making profit sustainable and mutually beneficial for the consumer and the business. Instead of giving merch away to premium subscribers, just make a merch shop. The Boring company did it and made a pretty penny. Iām sure Monzo can do the same!
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Instead of opaque offerings and bundles that arenāt explained and itemised, go back to what makes Monzo great: transparency! Have a set fee for the plus account and when signing up show people how much they can save with it. This could be through creating the marketplace and then showing whatās on offer. Allow people to buy insurance, take out savings accounts etc but provide preferential rates and charges for the plus customer. That way if people want to take out multiple products it can be cheaper to sign up to plus but if they only want one item then it might work out cheaper by letting monzo take the margin they currently do. It maintains funding for Monzo as they stay profitable and keeps the consumers informed and getting the best rates. As Tom Blomfeld has always said, Monzo should be a marketplace for consumer finance. Letās make it that whilst sticking to the ideal of transparency and simplicity for the end user!
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For the last point, when rolling out the idea shown above, listen to the consumers and compare against the banks. Monzo clearly doesnāt have the financial might of a big bank so it must have a different USP. Offer what the consumer wants, at a rate that is competitive and in a way that differentiates from the other hulking behemoths of the financial industry. But do so in a way that is structured in the roll out. Offer a handful of products to start off with, to a select few individuals (for free), before rolling out more products and extending the reach and start charging for them.
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@Feathers - copying this back to this thread as it is explicitly about ānew Plusā, not a legacy issue.
Dear Monzo.
- Close this thread (and read it all)
- Sort out the cancel/refund situation and communicate it OUT to all Plus customers
- Figure out why you want a āPlusā account in your business model (more than it āmakes moneyā), what are the benefits to the customer, how does it align to your vision of Monzo/roadmap
- Come back with a clear offering and THEN ask our help to refine it.
Yours a happy but very confused and increasingly disenfranchised customer.
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Sure. I knew Iād grab at least one post in error. Sorry!
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I think as others have said, if Monzo wants to compete with Legacy banks using the same premium/subscription model, the only way to attract customers to your bundles/subscriptions would be to offer better value for money.
The previously offered bundles had very poor value and I canāt imagine anybody other than a hardcore Monzo fan would willingly pay more money for less just because itās Monzo. Much better to stick with legacy bank package (some of them have been mentioned in this thread) that offer better value.
Ideally, since Monzo is supposed to be a new way of banking, it should try to compete with innovation. Come up with products that are innovative and provide value to your customers, then charge money for them.
But the current approach seems very misguided. It seems again, this time itās already been decided that it will be a subscription model with bundles. I donāt think it will go better than the last time to be honest so the approach should be rethought from scratch.
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