Next up in our series of team interviews, we have Maryna. Maryna is a Social Media & Community Manager, who joined Emma in September.
We hope you enjoy reading this interview.

Hey Maryna! Can you tell us a bit about who you are, and what you do at Emma?

Hi, my name is Maryna. I am 27 years old, originally from Ukraine but now I live in the UK.

I’m the Social Media & Community Manager. I’m responsible for developing content strategies, writing blog posts, updating existing content, promoting content, and monitoring organic website traffic. I am delighted with how useful Emma can be, so I also try to create interesting, instructive, useful material for social networks.

My hobbies are vegan baking, travel, yoga and video making.

What’s the best thing about your job?

Emma is a great team from all over the world. Everyone is very nice and I’m just happy to be a part of it. Also, being part of the team means I get an early insight of new features which is exciting. Working at Emma also allows me to always stay up to date with financial news and learn more about economics.

If you could only use 5 words to describe Emma, what would they be?

Probably the first is a teddy bear, then - Colourful, Useful, Budgeting, Passionate.

What is it about Emma that you think has made it so successful?

First of all, the concept of the app is a very cool idea, which starts from the product itself and all the way down to specific features and design of the app.

Second, a lot of helpful features such as the ability to create custom categories, set specific savings goals, rename transactions, compute your accurate net worth and earn cashback make it stand out.

Third, the Emma team is always working to release new and useful features to make Emma even better. The team also take feedback from our users very seriously and work closely with our users to find areas to improve.

Do you have a favourite feature within Emma?

I really like the weekly reports. It shows which apps or stores are best not to visit for me. (laughs)

What do you enjoy spending your money on?

1. Shopping like any woman.
2. Products for baking cakes. I really like to bake, especially vegan pastries. When lockdown started, I found this as a new hobby.
3. And travelling, I like to travel around the world with my family and friends.

Do you consider yourself good with money? Do you have any money-saving tips you can share with us?

I do my best to spend money wisely, but I sometimes over-spend -  especially when it's for my loved ones' birthdays, holidays and travels.

A few tips about money-saving:

1. Pay yourself first. Allocate a monthly percentage of the income you will save. Let this habit come as naturally as a tax or loan payment to yourself. You are not entitled to spend this money now, as it is money for your future. Only after you have set aside your specified amount can you start planning your budget further.
2. Postpone making financial decisions until tomorrow. If you want to buy something unplanned, postpone the decision until tomorrow. Maybe it was a difficult day at work, and you used all of your willpower. In the morning, the decision will be more rational.
3. Make a shopping list and don't deviate from it upon entering the shop, or alternatively, shop online.

If someone gave you £1,000, would you save it, spend it, or invest it?

I would save 30% of it and spend 70%.

If you had to pick one emoji to describe your finances, what would you pick?

________________________________________________________________________________

Thanks to Maryna for chatting with us! If you want to continue getting to know the Emma Finance team, make sure you join the Emma Community. Or, reach out to us on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter!