Introducing Multiply – Financial Planning For Bloggers and Freelancers

I am really enjoying being able to blog about different things since I rebranded last year, and exploring more lifestyle topics. Something I haven’t really spoken about on my blog before, is my financial background. Prior to blogging I worked in the finance industry since I left sixth form and my blogging friends often come to me with questions connected to the financial side of blogging, freelancing and being self employed which is why I was really intrigued by Multiply.

Multiply are a brand new app using smart technology to work out what you need to set aside for an emergency fund and pension, as well as work out if you need certain insurance products and help you save for big goals. The app can also tell you what your contributions should be, taking into account an unpredictable income. It’s important to be good with money, and this site really helps with that.

If you’re a full time blogger or YouTuber you’ll know how much your income can fluctuate as you don’t get a set salary like you would with contracted employment. One month you could have a really amazing line of paid opportunities and the next have very little which can be difficult when our bills don’t fluctuate each month. I’d always recommend seeking professional financial advice but Multiply is a great app to give you an idea of what you provisions you can make financially.

As I said, the app is totally free and it has a super easy interface and I feel like the financial side of blogging/content creating can be a little daunting, but Multiply make it a little less scary. I’d really recommend downloading it as it is free so you have nothing to lose, and have a little play around with it as I think you’ll really like how simple it is to use.

Once you’ve downloaded the app from the iStore (there’s a waiting list for Android here) you simply sign up with your email and chosen password. The next step is to then create your ‘profile’ with your first and last name, and you can even choose a character you want to be within the app. The next step is to complete a ‘fact find’ so Multiple can create your personalised financial plan, and the fact find is broken down into four key sections.

You: Here you’ll give your DOB, location (London, England (outside London), Scotland, Wales or N. Ireland), if you have a spouse/partner – then you can add their name and DOB, as well as including any children under 21 you may have. You’ll then be asked if you have any experience with investing ( Yes one or both of use have or No never invested). The next question asks you how much you’ve deposited into ISA’s this tax year (since 6th of April 2018 – with a maximum of £20,000). If you don’t know what an ISA is, it’s an Individual Savings Account which is a tax-free savings option available to residents of the United Kingdom.

Income & Outgoings: This section will ask you what type of work you do (self employed, full time employed etc), your approximate earnings a year before tax and how much you receive in annual benefits if any. The section will also ask the same questions for your spouse/partner if you included one within the You section. Then you’ll need to include your monthly outgoings as a household – so any bills you pay, and then how much of the outgoings are essential such as rent, food and bills to enable Multiple to work out your disposable income after bills.

Assets: This is where you’ll add any bank accounts, savings accounts, ISA’s, pensions, property, stocks and shares or other investments which you may have. Here I added my current accounts but on each section there’s a little black question mark which when you click gives you a little extra information for each step. You’ll need to input the balance of any assets and the interest you receive on them so Multiply knows what you own. Once you’ve input all of your assets you’ll press ‘I’ve added everything’ so you can move on to the fourth and final step.

Debt: The Debt section is where you’ll add any credit cards, student loans, bank loans, mortgages, overdrafts or other debts you may have. Even if you have an overdraft or credit card with zero balances, you’ll still include them within this section. Within Assets and Debt you can name them such as ‘Barclays’ or ‘Main Account’ – however you’d prefer to call them within the app.

Once you’ve finished all four of the above sections, Multiple then creates your ‘plan’ with their recommendations for you based on the information you’ve input within the sections. You can also edit the sections at any time should you need to which will then amend the plan for you. The plan page comes up to tell you they’ve created your personal plan to help you achieve 3 main objectives: Stability Today (feel confident that you can cover costs in the event of the unexpected), Security Tomorrow (future proof your finances with a solid pension and the right insurance) and Achieve Your Goals (from buying your first home to jetting off on a dream trip). FYI: All of the data I’ve entered for the purpose of these screenshots is sample data.

The Plan page comes up after filling in the four sections of the ‘fact find’ but you can access the plan at any time thanks to the buttons along the bottom of the screen (Home, Facts, Goals, Plan and More). The page will then prioritise what they think you should focus on, so if you have any debts it could list them first so you can work on paying them off. If you then select one of the action points within the plan it takes you to a more detailed explanation on why you should do that specific point within the plan. So if you had a credit card debt, they’d recommend focusing on paying it off so it doesn’t become unmanageable and to grow your savings faster. There’s a sub-section with ideas on what they think you should do to make the action point happen and the reasons they recommend that action.

Something I found really great within the app is the recommendations as they don’t just say ‘save more money’, they even give you recommended products/accounts with their interest rate so you can see if there’s a better account option for you. Within their pension point within the plan there’s a very handy pension calculator where you can use the slider to choose different retirement ages, and then your monthly contribution to see how much income you’d receive as a pension after you turn 68. Another feature I really rate within the Multiple interface is their ‘Help & Support’ section. Here you can use the Intercom function to send messages to the Multiply team for questions, or simply sharing feedback about the app.

It’s such an interactive app and I like that it makes financial planning easy to understand even if you have zero experience with the financial side of things. I can’t give financial advice but I can fully recommend the Multiply app as it’s extremely easy to use, it’s free so you have nothing to lose and it helps you to understand what options you have. You can access the app at any time and increase your balance within the savings section to see how your plan changes and improves. I think the Multiply team have done a brilliant job with the app, and I know I’ll keep using it myself going forward.

I’d love to know if you’re going to be downloading Multiply yourself? You can download the app yourself right here.

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