Latest news with #Hixon
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Inside Ally's customer referral program
This story was originally published on Banking Dive. To receive daily news and insights, subscribe to our free daily Banking Dive newsletter. A customer referral program Ally Bank launched last year has become a 'foundational part' of its marketing strategy, said David Hixon, head of product and lifecycle marketing at the bank. The program accounts for about 15% of the Detroit-based lender's account volume, Hixon said. 'A referral program is really hard. It's hard to do,' Hixon said, clarifying that while the marketing part may be relatively easy, building the back end in a way that customers get paid appropriately can present a challenge. After a small test to about 250,000 customers in early 2024 proved successful – 'we didn't break anything,' Hixon said – the bank played around with offers and new customer requirements and conducted a second test before a full launch in August. Under the program, an existing deposit customer receives $50 when the referred customer opens a spending or savings account with Ally (up to five referrals). The new customer receives $100 once they take actions 'that we deem skewing that account toward a more quality account,' like setting up direct deposit in a spending account, or a recurring transfer in a savings account, Hixon said. Making Ally customers aware of the referral perk is crucial. Hixon's team has been working on more ways to get the program in the hands of customers, since having to dig through an inbox for an email with a referral code is 'a point of friction.' Last week, Ally added a card that can sit in a customer's mobile wallet and features a QR code that can be scanned by a friend, to initiate the account application process. The bank, which has digital savings buckets for its customers, is also working on a way to have payment from the referral program go directly into its own savings bucket, he said. Ally also plans to start using 'moments of delight' to trigger communication promoting the program, such as when a customer isn't charged an overdraft fee, he said. Gen Z customers, by far, have the highest referral rate, Hixon said. 'That group's just more willing to engage with influencers, and that's basically what the referral program is,' he said. The $193 billion-asset bank is also seeing higher engagement rates with Ally employees who are also customers, and people who themselves are referred, pointing to a kind of snowball effect. The next goal, Hixon said, is figuring out how to limit the number of people gaming the program to get free money. The bank wants to make sure it's bringing in quality accounts, so it's working to find a balance. 'We want as much volume to come through this program as we can get, because it's really efficient from a cost perspective, but we also have to make sure that these are people that are signed up for the long haul with us, so there's a real value exchange,' he said. As it stands, the referral program is three to four times more efficient than other marketing avenues, with a cost to acquire that's less than $100, and the money is going to customers rather than social media, paid search or printed mail, Hixon said. Ally assumed it would see a degradation in response, but hasn't, Hixon said. 'There was definitely a spike and definitely a tail-off,' but now it's reached a steady state with referrals coming in every day, he said. Although the bank has said the program will end in December – Hixon cited a legal requirement to identifying a conclusion date, because it's an incentivized program – 'I feel certain that once we get into Q4, we'll be communicating with, 'Good news, we're extending it for another calendar year,'' he said. It's relatively common to turn to a third-party vendor for this kind of program, Hixon said. That it was built in-house speaks to the bank's nature of doing things iteratively, he contended. Now that the program has proven successful, Ally's technology team is getting involved in building what some may call bells and whistles, Hixon said. Ally declined to comment on the program's budget. 'When we launched it, I had to beg, borrow, steal' for funding for it, Hixon said. Since then, the budget for it has grown, and he expects it will continue to. The lender is the largest all-digital bank in the U.S., yet serves only 1% of the market, CEO Michael Rhodes noted this month at the company's shareholder meeting. Recently, the bank has refocused its strategy on three core businesses: auto dealer financial services – its largest segment – deposits and corporate finance. Hixon said he expects the referral program will have a notable role in that strategy because Ally has historically focused on competitive interest rates and driving savings account balances, but it's now trying to push more toward everyday banking. Ally has about 3.3 million deposit customers and $146 billion of retail deposits as of the first quarter. The bank added 58,000 net new deposit customers in the quarter, a 6% increase year over year, with millennials and younger customers making up the largest segment of new clients, Ally said. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
CBS News
30-04-2025
- Health
- CBS News
Some students exposed to tuberculosis at Dillard High School, Broward officials say
Some students at Dillard High School in Fort Lauderdale have been identified as exposed to tuberculosis following a confirmed on-campus case, Broward County school officials said Wednesday. Broward health officials begin testing students for tuberculosis Superintendent Howard Hepburn said health experts conducted contact tracing and found students who may have been exposed. Those individuals will be tested with parental consent to determine whether additional cases are present. "There is one confirmed case of tuberculosis at Dillard High School," Hepburn said. "They did contact tracking and they found other kids we have identified who have been exposed." Hepburn, who toured the school on Wednesday, said he is confident in the steps being taken and emphasized that he is "not particularly worried." The infected student, whose identity and grade level were not disclosed, is reportedly doing well. Dillard High sees spike in absences amid TB testing Broward Schools Chair Debra Hixon said the district is taking the situation seriously. "Obviously we are concerned that we are going through the right steps to make sure all the steps are taken that are necessary," she said. The confirmed case has had an impact on Dillard's school attendance. Of the school's 1,900 students, 475 were absent Wednesday — more than double the typical number. Hixon urged families to keep students in school, especially during this critical period of state testing. "It is very important for students to be in school for a lot of reasons, especially as we begin testing season," Hixon said. What to know about tuberculosis symptoms and transmission Tuberculosis is a bacterial infection that primarily affects the lungs and can spread through the air when an infected person coughs or sneezes. Symptoms include: Persistent cough Weight loss Night sweats Fever "It is unusual to have TB in our community," said Dr. Paula Eckhardt, chief of the Memorial Healthcare System's infectious disease division. "You are exposed if you are in close proximity with a person who has TB for an extended period of time." She added that many infected individuals may not immediately show symptoms. No TB outbreak declared, Broward officials continue to monitor While only one case has been confirmed, school and health officials said there is no outbreak at this time and they are closely monitoring the situation. Parents who have not been contacted directly by the school or the Florida Department of Health are not required to take any action. Questions can be directed to the Florida Department of Health in Broward County at (954) 848-2680.
CBS News
03-03-2025
- Politics
- CBS News
Florida lawmakers revisit gun laws, Parkland families push back
As the new legislative session begins Tuesday, Florida lawmakers are once again taking up gun laws, sparking opposition from families of the 17 victims killed in the 2018 Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting. A newly introduced bill would lower the minimum age to purchase a gun from 21 to 18, reversing a measure passed in response to the Parkland shooting. Debbie Hixon, whose husband Chris was killed that day, opposes any rollback of the law. "That law has really saved a lot of lives across the state," Hixon said. Tony Montalto, whose 14-year-old daughter Gina Rose Montalto was among the victims, also opposes the measure. Debate over guns on college campuses Another bill under consideration would allow firearms on college and university campuses. Montalto believes that only well-trained security personnel should carry weapons in those settings. "Well-selected and well-trained should be the ones with weapons on campus," Montalto said. "I don't feel that our students are in such jeopardy that they need to carry as well." FIU sophomore Vinh Le also expressed concerns. "If everybody has a gun, then it might cause shootings," Le said. Lawmakers and leadership weigh in State Sen. Randy Fine, who introduced the Senate versions of both bills, defended the proposals. His office referred to past press releases, in which he stated: "The Second Amendment does not take the semester off when you step on a college campus." Regarding lowering the gun purchasing age, Fine argued the current law is inconsistent. "After the Marjory Stoneman Douglas School Safety Act passed in 2018, I committed to addressing the inconsistency that allows an 18-year-old to be given a firearm by a parent or purchase one in a private transaction but not from a licensed firearms dealer," he said. Gov. Ron DeSantis has also voiced support for open carry in Florida. Hixon, Montalto, and other Parkland families plan to travel to Tallahassee to speak with lawmakers in an effort to prevent changes to existing gun laws.
