There is a strong belief that in addition to making a profit, companies should act for the benefit of the society. This research has evaluated a novel cooperation model between a non-profit financial institution and a community service provider (a local YMCA) with the overarching aim of advancing customers’ well-being. By offering a financial incentive (a savings account with higher interest payouts, contingent on account holders’ increased participation in YMCA activities), the financial institution and the YMCA partnered to improve consumers’ financial standing, positive health behaviors, and overall well-being. The collaboration exemplified a business engagement in the community that goes beyond philanthropy.

Participation in YMCA activities was found not to be influenced by the financial incentive. However, households participating in the program swiftly transferred their financial resources to the incentivized account and along with that increased their activity in YMCA to boost the interest rate. Sport-related YMCA visits had some positive effects on momentary well-being, but none were observed for non-sport-related activities. Furthermore, the incentivized activities did not translate into improved well-being outcomes but had a potential to positively contribute to emergency savings. The evidence from qualitative feedback from in-depth participant interviews pointed to a reverse effect of the incentive, where YMCA engagement was a trigger for setting up the savings account.

The findings have corroborated the understanding that designing interventions that target customers’ well-being is not a straightforward task.

人们坚信，除了盈利，公司还应该为社会造福。本研究评估了非营利金融机构与社区服务提供商（当地基督教青年会）之间的新型合作模式，其首要目标是提高客户的福祉。通过提供财务激励（具有更高利息支出的储蓄账户，取决于账户持有人更多地参与 YMCA 活动），金融机构和 YMCA 合作改善消费者的财务状况、积极的健康行为和整体福祉。此次合作体现了社区中超越慈善事业的商业参与。

发现参与 YMCA 活动不受经济激励的影响。然而，参与该计划的家庭迅速将他们的财务资源转移到激励账户，同时增加了他们在 YMCA 的活动以提高利率。与体育相关的 YMCA 访问对暂时的幸福感有一些积极的影响，但没有观察到与体育无关的活动。此外，激励性活动并没有转化为改善的福祉结果，而是有可能为紧急储蓄做出积极贡献。来自深入参与者访谈的定性反馈的证据表明激励的反向影响，其中基督教青年会的参与是建立储蓄账户的触发因素。

研究结果证实了这样一种理解，即设计针对客户福祉的干预措施并不是一项简单的任务。