TAMPA, Fla. — GTE Financial has introduced a unique new program that aims to reduce members' waistlines and fatten their wallets.
GTE Get Fit, using a web platform powered by Walkmore, tracks members" steps and other physical activities and rewards them with cash and discounts to local businesses based on the work they put in.
"We started brainstorming new and value-added ways we could benefit the community as a financial institution," says Joe Brancucci, GTE CEO. "We came up with GTE Get Fit to reward members for being healthy and active, using "gamification" as a fun motivational tool. We already teach our employees and members about the healthy ways to manage their finances, so why not encourage and reward healthy lifestyles at the same time?"
Members with GTE free checking are eligible to sign up for Get Fit, and get started by downloading smartphone or wearable computing device apps — such as RunKeeper or FitBit — that track physical activity. The steps members take during a day are translated into points that are redeemed for rewards.
Founder and CEO of Walkmore, Eli Mohamad, says his company stresses a "holistic" approach to financial and physical health. "Positive behaviors should be rewarded, and GTE's Get Fit program runs on Walkmore's platform that enables members to get rewarded literally for every step they make."
The GTE program also rewards the CU. Walkmore's models claim to show that the more people move the more likely they are to pay bills on time.
The CU said that one way members earn Get Fit points is to sign up for the local 2014 Publix Gasparilla Distance Classic from Feb. 21-23, that GTE Financial is one of the sponsors.
