“People say: ‘You saved my life’”

“You work in the pension sector? Wow, exciting...”  Prejudices abound about working for a pension fund or administrator. Perhaps not entirely justified, as a series of portraits of the people who work there every day shows. People like

Manon van Hoek, who works as a growth hacker at Kandoor, a platform where financial professionals answer questions about money matters for free. “At Kandoor we really try to help people.”

What is a growth hacker?

“Well, it’s not about hacking anyway, haha. Growth hacking is a form of marketing where the focus is on growth. To get more visitors, my two coworkers and I are constantly improving the platform. What can we do differently, what would the effect be? And then try it out. Then we analyze the data. Are there differences and if so, what causes them?”

Can you give us an example?

“Kandoor has a chatbot, an automated conversation partner on its website. People can get personal answers to all their financial questions through that. We are investigating whether they prefer short answers or whether a detailed explanation is more helpful. We use experiments to find out exactly what questions they have. We are also testing how best to ask for feedback. Or at what point visitors drop out. And whether blogs, for example, are still up-to-date enough or whether they need to be modified.”

Does Kandoor want to become the biggest help site for finances?

"We would really like to expand our reach. Anyone who types in a financial search question on Google should immediately find us.”

So the trick is to get to the top of Google search?

“Yes, that is the challenge. If people have a question about retirement or taxes, for example, they can get the answers from us. All relevant information about financial matters should be on our platform. Plus, the website must be technically structured in such a way that Google can recognize us. However, their algorithm changes constantly. So, we have to constantly keep up with that.”

How many visitors does Kandoor currently have?

“In 2020, we had a million and a half visitors and over half a million questions came in. We will probably reach a million this year, because we already have half a million questions now. We are very happy with that. I think it would be great if Kandoor is seen as a brand soon. That people just know: I have a question about finances, so I’ll go to Kandoor, because they will help me. That is our ultimate goal.”  

Are you a financial wizard yourself?

“I know a lot about data analysis, but I had absolutely no financial knowledge when I joined Kandoor two and a half years ago. I’ve learned a lot here. I didn’t know anything about pensions, for example. I now know that it’s important to start thinking about it at a young age. Because now you can still arrange it properly.”

So you give your friends that advice, but you don't answer questions on the platform?

“No, the financial guides do that. We have a whole community of volunteers. These are all experts who give free information so that people can make their own decisions. We also have bloggers who write about different money topics.”

What makes your work so interesting?

“It's very varied. You are never done learning because there is always a new development. So, you have to constantly come up with new solutions. What I also like is that Kandoor has a social mission. For me, that's the best of both worlds: the constant challenge of being innovative, combined with the social aspect. At Kandoor, we really try to help people with financial stress. I’m much more aware now of how many people have that. And how much impact that has on their lives.”

Does that move you?

“Yes, you see that sometimes people are in so much trouble that they don't know what to do anymore. They are often very grateful for the help of the guides. I get their feedback and sometimes they write, ‘You saved my life. I am so happy that someone is helping me.’ On the one hand, it is very nice that someone has really been helped. But it's also very sad to see people in these kinds of situations.”

What would you change in society if it were up to you?

“The benefits system. It is underestimated how difficult it is for the average Dutch person to navigate through that. And how afraid they are of doing it wrong. Because if you apply for something and it turns out you're not entitled to it after all, then you might be in debt immediately. So, I’d like to make that system easier.”

Anything else you’d like to tackle?

“The letters from the tax authorities. Many people simply don’t understand the content. The language is too complicated. They also come to Kandoor for help. But I don’t know if that problem should be solved by the government alone. Maybe it is also because they have never learned how to do their tax return. Then it’s not surprising that you make mistakes. That’s something schools should teach.”