ING Site Allows Investors to 'Keep up with the Joneses'

March 17, 2009 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - ING has released a new Web site aimed at letting retirement savers see if they are "keeping up with the Joneses" when it comes to their financial habits.

An ING news release said the site, www.INGCompareMe.com , allows users to compare their saving, investing and other financial habits with others by entering their data into the site and then seeing how their situation ranks based on survey data. Users create a profile by entering background information, along with optional details, such as their hobbies and interests and then can answer a variety of straightforward questions in a number of personal finance categories to find out how they fare in the financial peer comparison.

According to the company, the ING site was initially populated with data from a survey conducted by the ING Institute for Retirement Research of more than 5,000 adults who participated in workplace retirement savings plans who were asked more than 150 questions on various financial matters.

For example, the survey found that those who spent more time thinking about and planning for their retirement — including spending time with an adviser — were also saving more in their workplace retirement plans.  In fact, savers who spent a lot more time with an adviser accumulated 60% more than those who did not spend any time.  Even savers that spent some time with a professional accumulated 40% more than those who did not spend any time.

“At ING, we recognize that many Americans aren’t sure where to begin when it comes to retirement saving.  The current financial markets may have gotten them even more confused or frustrated,” said Richard Mason, president of corporate markets for ING U.S. Retirement Services, in the announcement.  “We believe INGCompareMe.com offers a unique and easy way for investors to begin thinking about retirement and how to reach their goals.  From what we know about peer comparison, when individuals benchmark themselves to others it increases the chance that they will act on those comparisons.”

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