Deadly Spring weather disrupts lives, businesses

The tornadoes that struck Joplin, Missouri left a tragic wake that will be felt for years to come. Aside from the heart-rending human loss, as business people, we at Directo are thinking of the once-thriving businesses that are going to struggle to continue operations as they rebuild, and our thoughts are with them in their journey.

Spring has always been the time of volatile weather, but this year's news has been extraordinary. It's a wake up call to all of us. If your company doesn't have a business continuity plan in place, don't waste another second! Review and update your current plans. Paycards can be an important part of your plan. Email for a copy of our white paper for tips on how to include paycards in your recovery and continuity plans.

Banks eyeing debit transactions - watch out!

As we posted earlier this spring, banks are looking for ways to make money, and debit transactions may soon see a steep increase. At Directo, we're seeing an increase in wary consumers who are dumping their traditional bank accounts for easy to use Directo paycard accounts. If you're an employer, a Directo paycard program costs nothing, since the accounts belong to your employees. Email today to find out more, or visit www.directocard.com.

Are you an employee? Tell your employer that you want Directo paycards offered at your workplace!

Preparing for the worst.

The recent extreme weather we've experienced across the country has everyone examining their business continuity plans. Direct deposit should be primary in both individual and business recovery plans, and Directo paycards can make direct deposit work for everyone in your company.

Direct deposit and Directo paycards enable you to pay a scattered workforce, and because Directo can instantly replace lost cards, your displaced employees can receive pay with minimal or no interruption.

Read our informative Business Continuity white paper, and find out more at www.directocard.com.

Happy Earth Day! Congrats - you can be even more green!

If you offer your employees the benefit of Directo paycard accounts, you have cut paper and ink cost, as well as distribution cost. What more can you do? How about going totally paperless?

With MyStub electronic paystubs, you can say goodbye to ALL payroll distribution. Each employee can log into his or her account and view paystubs when they are available. Those workers who do not have computer access can still view their net pay, via text message to their phone! Directo's MyStub is inexpensive, quickly set up, and your employees will appreciate the flexible delivery methods. It will pay for itself in very little time.

See for yourself -

Schedule a free, no-pressure demo at your convenience. I'll be happy to walk you through the program and let you peek behind the curtain to see how it's all done. Email me at bplatas@directo.net.

Happy Earth Day!

Berta

May is Directo Deposit Month - time to go green!

This is the year to cut your payroll cost to the bone - and Directo makes it happen, usually in just a week.

Directo paycards let you say goodbye to payday hassles of check distribution, replacing lost or stolen checks, and paycheck fraud concerns. No more dealing with escheat. Pay your employees via direct deposit, either with their existing bank accounts or with Directo paycard accounts that you open on site.

Simple to manage, no software or hardware to buy, no updates to install - enrollment is done online. Directo supplies cards, enrollment materials, and marketing materials to you free of charge. All materials available in English and Spanish, too.

Want to learn more? Call us!

Directo account social security deposits roll on despite Federal budgeting woes

The Social Security Administration announced that checks went out last week, so no worries for recipients. Directo account holders who receive government benefits have nothing to worry about either, no matter how long the budget wrangling goes on. Direct deposit is fast and easy and Directo paycards can be used at an ATM that show the Visa and CIRRUS logos. We sure hope the budget is settled today, because a lot of folks will have a hard few days ahead.

Chase considers limit to debit card transactions

We predicted the end of free banking, and it's happening as banks scramble for ways to replace the billions in lost revenue brought about by changes in banking law.

Interchange fee limits being discussed mean that banks will make even less per transaction, according to Blake Eliss's story on CNN.com's Money Page:

Joe Price, president of consumer banking for Bank of America (BAC, Fortune 500), said in an e-mailed statement that the lower fee wouldn't fairly compensate the bank for the infrastructure and services it provides to retailers.

And consumers would end up feeling the pain when Bank of America is forced to recoup costs "by increasing the cost of their everyday debit card transactions, limiting their payment choices, and impacting industry innovation," according to the email.

Aside from mulling over a limit on transaction amounts, Chase is already testing $3 monthly fees on debit cards and $15 fees on checking accounts in certain states. Additionally, the bank announced in November that it has stopped issuing debit rewards cards. Read the entire story here.

Directo paycards are not affected by this type of increase, and continue to be the best banking choice those who want an alternative to traditional banks' increasing fees. Directo plan options include several ways to save, including some that bundle several free ATM transactions per month, and for those far from ATMs, one that include several free point of sale transactions per month. Visit www.directocard.com or call us at 866-365-6521 for information on how Directo paycards can cut your payroll costs and improve productivity.

Staffing sees increase, will other business follow?

Manpower CEO Jeff Joeres is feeling good about his industry's impact on economic recovery.

“We are definitely seeing improvements in the U.S. jobs market as companies begin to feel more positive demand for their products and services,” Joerres said. “It looks as if employers have reached the limit of what they can do with current staffing levels but are frustrated by an inability to find the right talent in the marketplace and beset by lingering doubt over the sustainability of the recovery.”

It's troubling, however, that permanent hires are lagging, as businesses do not want to commit to hiring full time staff. Cost cutting is a fact of life these days. Whether your hires are temporary or permanent, Directo paycards are a powerful tool for attaining aggressive direct deposit goals, a proven way to cut payroll production and distribution cost.

Read more of the article: Increase in temp work boosting economy, Manpower CEO says | The Business Journal

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How bank closings impact the poor

A New York Times article this week sheds light on how closing brick and mortar bank locations hurts the neighborhoods they leave behind. According to the article,

In 2010, for the first time in 15 years, more bank branches closed than opened across the United States. An analysis of government data shows, however, that even as banks shut branches in poorer areas, they continued to expand in wealthier ones, despite decades of government regulations requiring financial institutions to meet the credit needs of poor and middle-class neighborhoods.

The gap in financial services is then sometimes filled by check cashers and predatory lenders. For folks who have internet access and understand online banking, there's little impact. For small businesses and the people who rely on the security of a local bank, it's more than an inconvenience.

Limiting debit card use will hurt consumers - Directo paycards are the best low cost alternative

The New York Post reports that several banks, including Bank of America, Chase, and Citi, are thinking about limiting debit card use to under $50 per transaction in order to make up for vanishing interchange fees. According to author Mark DeCambre:

The limits being contemplated would be imposed on debit-card holders regardless of how much money they held in their checking accounts and are likely to push customers to use credit cards to cover the difference.

"There's a real irony here that just as consumers are practicing greater levels of thrift through their debit cards, they might be presented with increased cost and a higher degree of uncertainty," said Doug Johnson, vice president at the American Banker's Association.

Directo paycards have a default Point of Sale daily limit of $510, the amount seems to be the sweet spot for most spending, allowing for the purchase of money orders, or to gas up, pay some bills and get the groceries. Account owners can raise the amount for free with a call to Customer Care, useful if you need to make a large purchase, such as a TV or kitchen appliance.

Read the article.

Attacked for her tax refund cash? She needed a Directo paycard!

This week, a woman in the metro Atlanta area cashed her $4000 tax refund check at WalMart, and was then attacked in the parking lot by someone who must have seen her flash that cash. Her little girl witnessed the thief beating her mother. The perpetrator was caught, but the woman was hurt and her child were traumatized. Direct deposit of that refund check would have gone straight to her bank or her Directo paycard account, and the transaction would have been safe, private, and deposited much faster, too.

Thieves are watching. Where do your employees cash their checks?

Read the original story here.

Second storm impacts payroll delivery

Snow just about covers car windows in the Northeast, and planes are stuck on runways. If your payroll is frozen in place somewhere short of its destination, your alternative is a phone call away. With Direct paycards you can weatherproof your payroll delivery and at no cost to you. After the payroll file is sent to the bank electronically, Directo paycard accounts are funded on the designated pay date, and your workers receive their pay no matter where they are. Funds can be accessed from ATMs and the cards can be used at cash register's PIN keypads with swipe-and-go ease.

Call today. Start your paycard program before the next big storm hits.

Contact Adam Roche at 770-810-6530

Michigan Direct Deposit Mandate Law Passes

Michigan labor law now allows for mandate of direct deposit, which will allow business owners to save big on payroll production and distribution, as well as eliminate the risk of check fraud.

Read an attorney's overview of the law here: http://bit.ly/h2DeCz

Now more than ever, Directo paycards make sense in Michigan. Unbanked workers will benefit, and so will the growing number of Americans disenchanted with their banks. Learn more at www.directocard.com.

Publish Post

No Free checking + Job cuts = Poor Service and Higher Fees. Time for a Directo account!

Job cuts at banks means even less service to go along with the increase fees we've already seen. Directo is the low-cost choice that allows you (and if you're a business manager or owner, your employees) to bank when and where you want to bank, and with FREE bilingual customer service.

From today's PaymentsSource.com newsletter:

What do Wells Fargo, American Express, PNC, Fifth Third and Synovus have in common? They've all announced job cuts this week. The Wall Street Journal said analysts expect banks to reduce operating costs by as much as 20% over the next few years "as they struggle to put their bad loans behind them, adjust to a raft of costly regulations and increase revenue in challenging economic conditions."

Need to know more about Directo? Visit us at www.directocard.com.

Bank of America dumps free accounts , too.

Just as we predicted, the banks have started eliminating free checking. Bank of America's lowest-cost account will now be almost $9 a month for the basic service. Georgia is one of the test markets for the accounts. Read the whole article here: Bank of America revamping accounts, fees | ajc.com

Directo paycards continue to be the high-value, low cost alternative, and not just for the unbanked. Simple to implement and easy for cardholders to use, Directo paycard programs cost the employer nothing, yet offer the best of banking to our customers. Learn more at www.directocard.com.

Money management the Directo way

We've been reading articles and blogs about the new fiscal responsibility and how Americans are moving away from credit, paying down debt, and spending only what they have. At Directo, we're thrilled to offer a way to help out.

Simple to use Directo debit card accounts are a great tool for those who wish to spend only what is available, and a great way to establish a separate low cost direct deposit account to help manage money. Directo programs can be quickly set up, and because the accounts belong to the employees, there's no cost to the employer, while employees enjoy low-cost banking with high security and 24/7 access to their cash. Check out more at www.DirectoCard.com.

Another bank raises its fees - Citizens Bank in Boston

The banking world's turmoil is not over yet. As bank fees rise to compensate for lost revenue, we'll post the news here. Read about Citizens Bank's new rate structure and who it affects. Directo accounts are a better choice. Stable fees, online access, no credit check.

Visit us at www.directocard.com to learn more. Employers, contact Jim McCarthy at jmccarthy@directo.net to find out how you can quickly get a paycard program together for your associates. It's fast, simple, and there is no cost to you.

Bank account fees on the rise - we have a solution

It's inevitable. Take away a major revenue stream like overdraft fees, and the banks had to do something to make up for it. Read about it here.

What can you do about it? For many, a Directo account may be the answer. Call Jim McCarthy at 910.269.4332 to learn more, or email him at jmccarthy@directo.net.

It happens every week - checks put employers at risk again and again.

Without requiring employees to use direct deposit you and your employees are potential targets. The linked article was in the news yesterday but we hear about it every day. In this instance, a 70-year-old woman was followed after cashing her unbanked employees' payroll checks. She was injured and has lost the entire payroll. Now they have a suspect in mind.

Lilburn Police: Woman Identified in Robbery of 70 Year Old Business Owner - 11Alive.com | WXIA | Atlanta, GA

Directo can help you and your employees eliminate the risk, expense and hassles associated with paychecks without it costing you a dime. Make your paydays safe, for you and your employees. Call us at: 1.866.365.6521, email Jim McCarthy at jmccarthy@directo.net, or visit our website at www.directocard.com.

Prepare for your seasonal workers

Spring is officially here, which means that your business is likely increasing staffing for the season. While this increased workforce brings additional challenges, Directo aims to ease payroll burdens for you and your employees.

While reducing costs and increasing productivity, paycard pioneer Directo allows your company to offer an unmatched employee benefit that will maximize their paychecks.

For unbanked employees, one of the largest hits to their pocketbooks is exorbitant check cashing fees. With these fees ranging on average about 5 percent of their check, Directo eliminates the need for this service and saves your employees hundreds over the course of a season.

An additional issue with check cashing falls on the employers' shoulders since workers often need to leave the jobsite early in order to cash their checks. The loss of productivity is also evident with the hassles of reaching workers in the field or having them come into the office to receive their checks. Directo eliminates all of these stresses since the deposits are automatic and instantly available.

Furthermore, Directo offers a variety of options to eliminate even more high fees faced by employees who need to send money to other locations. With options that include no additional monthly expenses, Directo can create an account that allows your employees to continue supporting their families worldwide.

Offering top-notch bilingual customer support, Directo helps your company attain 100 percent direct deposit while ensuring your employees aren't needlessly spending their paychecks simply to obtain what they worked so hard for in the first place.

Learn more at www.directocard.com