I think it’s worth bearing in mind how legacy banks subsidise these sort of offers/deals - they have ridiculous charges for things like going into an unarranged overdraft, bouncing a direct debit etc.
Monzo don’t do this - so it means they can’t offer such ‘loss leaders’, but banking with them IS fair and transparent.
Another great point well made! 
Sometimes we forget how much trouble legacy banks have caused its customers over the years both intentionally and unintentionally when it comes to its products, (poor) interest and charges.
They probably offer ridiculously low interest rates so they can entice new and existing customers with their own competitive packaged bank accounts so I suppose it depends what you prefer in your bank: competitive prices on packaged bank accounts and suffer the loss in interest and the hike in charges; or full transparency with proper budgeting tools and much better interest rates for savings along with the opportunity to actually be heard on what you’d like to see on Monzo.
6 posts were merged into an existing topic: Removed Posts - August
I agree that it may have been too complicated for people but the idea of building your own package still has appeal.
I really disliked having to buy into Plus to then be able to choose the additions I wanted. The base “offering” was naff and felt awkward.
Almost every shop on the internet operates on the basis of adding products to your cart/account then checking out. I cannot see how adopting this method would be a problem for most people; it’s a standard process.
Because they so confidently announced and launched the Monzo Plus proposition on that basis, after stating on multiple occasions that traditional bundled accounts were a rip-off for customers. This was supposed to be different.
And because that’s the basis on which many customers signed up, and agreed to part with their cash.
And this comment encapsulates perfectly the problem with this community. You might understand intimately how banking works - how well do you think the other 2.5m customers understand banking?
Too much choice is a bad thing, Monzo have simplified the process for 99% of the people out there, except for people complaining in this forum.
This doesn’t mean dramatically cutting the number of options available, but rather presenting them wisely, as an in-store sales representative would do when assisting a customer. There are several efficient methods for easing the selection process and giving the customer the direction he needs.
Articles are always a great reference, but lets actually keep it into context, no where are they saying choice is bad.
I get what you’re saying, I do and agree that the “core offering” and then the add one didn’t add up too well.
However backend wise with managing everything this early on wouldn’t be easy for what they can do right now - yea sure other banks like Barclays have those options but they also have a bigger infrastructure to work with and hopefully Monzo doing these “packages” will allow it to grow better than the original plus offerings would have done. Then they could potentially add back more customisation (like they’ve said they’re keeping it as a potential)
I’ve been thinking about this more, and have come to the conclusion that for me, I only really signed up to the Monzo Plus trial as a supporter of Monzo, and to try out a different colour card. I also hoped to get some interest, which currently I will get until the end of my 12 month contract. For me I am making £2 a month from this, so I can see why Monzo have had to re-think things.
I won’t renew Monzo Plus when my contract comes to an end, but only because the equivalent bundle (the supporter) is more expensive than the early bird offer of £3 and because of no longer receiving interest.
I will still remain a Monzo customer, and just move my emergency fund back into interest pots.
I had never had a packaged bank account before but I can see that adding in the traveller at some point could be useful if I was planning a holiday abroad and for ease of sorting the insurance / additional cash withdrawals.
Thanks for your honesty Monzo - this thread is hard to read but shows how passionate people are about getting things right for Monzo.
#picknmix
It really puts it into perspective when I saw the new Monzo plus options discussed on Facebook and the reactions are positive!
People saying they will actually now sign up!
Even more perspective, all my friends who have Monzo have no idea what Plus is or that it’s even an option.
I hate the changes and Monzo Plus has let me down but it’s important to put into context, that Plus as a product is still in an embryonic stage.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/monzosavingsquad/permalink/2250749998500185?sfns=xmo
I really dislike what Monzo done to already Monzo plustomers and the fact that they took the interest option away in the new bundles . The interest encouraged people to keep their money in the Monzo account, rather than keeping it with a legacy bank and using Monzo for spending. Monzo could have used that money for lending etc.
Anyway. It’s not all about me.
On the positive side, one of my friend signed up to Monzo plus since the change and he is well happy. People who didn’t know about the interest, probably won’t miss it.
I just feel like, there is a real need for the Saving bundle . 
You can get better rates on savings elsewhere. Monzo can’t be the best at everything.
I’d like to see more savings options than is currently offered but I don’t see this as being a Plus feature. All customers should have free access to a range of products. Things like regular savings accounts and integrations for S&S ISAs (which has been mentioned).
Having just joined monzo plus I was expecting the ability to be able to add extra features as explained in the faq’s. Was hoping for at least what all other banks are currently offering , travel insurance , mobile phone insurance and breakdown cover. These bundles are a huge step backwards . Not at the cost of having to have more than 1 bundle and not using half the products 
.
#mis-sold #nextppiscandel
Another wondering idea like the one above @anon36543001 @Sheri.
I understand that the offering interest this early on would have cost to much money, considering the cost of the original base cost. However could Plus adopt a feature like paid early?
What I mean by this is that Plus customers still keep their savings in easy access saving pots (the ones that take one business day to get the money out) but Monzo let the money out early from your end because you know the money is coming out of the savings pot anyway (absorbing the cost for one business day) so Plus customers can get the “interest on their normal account” feeling and the instant access feeling - yet Monzo still makes the profit from having people use Savings pots.
So:
This way,
Now along with my original idea of semi customisable Plus offerings I do not know how feasible it is, so please correct me if I’m wrong 
I’ve just finished reading this thread, and like most people I’m baffled. This new Plus offering couldn’t be further from the initial vision that we all bought into, and for the first time I actually feel somewhat concerned about the direction Monzo are heading in by cutting corners to reach profitability, rather than pushing through and releasing something truly innovative. 
One thing that I feel is missing from this discussion is how Monzo seem to be forgetting what got them to this point. If the original vision for Plus was followed through to completion, we would most likely be marketing it for them by telling our friends, coworkers, and families about the benefits it brings. Especially because of the way it differs from the approach of legacy banks.
We may be a small collection of somewhat (previously) dedicated Monzo supporters in comparison to the 2.8 million customers they now have, but Monzo’s growth has always been attributed to word of mouth marketing. This new offering is nothing to shout about, does nothing differently to any legacy bank, and for that reason I simply can’t see it doing well (even if the metrics are inevitably presented in a biased way to prove otherwise - such as the removal of interest).
For context, I’m currently on the £3/month early bird subscription which I signed up for in anticipation of adding some phone insurance after a small waiting period. Now, I will be waiting for the email to see what cancellation options are available, or simply waiting for it to expire after the 12 months of interest have ended.
Hats off to @anon50039658 for seemingly being the only staff member to genuinely empathise with us all. We may only have spent a few pounds each on our subscriptions so far, but let’s not forget many of us have invested hundreds if not thousands of pounds in Monzo because we believed in their vision. This thread is the biggest disconnect I have seen between Monzo and it’s supporters so far.
Agreed with a lot of your points - nice post, very civil compared to some other long posts ()
I agree that for you since you’re we’re wanting just the phone insurance now it’s the whole bundle that it’ll make sense to either cancel/wait out to make something out of the interest. But I’d argue that it’ll be interesting to see how the bundles pan out and grown before I give my final judgement
A lack of bundled services was cited as a common reason for people not switching to Monzo.
We shouldn’t be surprised, therefore, that Monzo Plus is starting to look a lot like the premium accounts offered by other banks.
The only surprise was that Monzo ever thought they could do it differently. Bundled services have never made much sense with bank accounts, and the vast majority of people - whether or not they’re with Monzo - are better off buying insurance services separately.
(Also, the advertising campaigns have been credited with much of the recent growth, but I suppose that’s by the by)
