5,205 demographically and geographically diverse South Africans across various life stages took part in a Sanlam-commissioned News24 survey. Findings show that people regret not getting financially organised and educated earlier in their lives.

Among the key findings were:

• The majority of respondents in every life stage said they would advise their younger self to ‘think of money as an asset to grow, not a luxury to spend’
• ‘Enjoy your money, you only live once’, came in as the lowest recommendation for younger selves across the board
• But reality looks a lot different: the top two financial concerns across all life stages are making ends meet and paying off debt
• From age 50 until retirement, the biggest concern after making ends meet, is retiring comfortably
• Just 10.3% of 18 – 24-year-olds surveyed have a retirement product; with only 17.6% in the 25 – 29 age group having a retirement product. Unfortunately, this means the vast majority are not taking advantage of compound interest and tax breaks linked to saving for retirement.
• Only 7.2% of the retired respondents say that they had felt well prepared to retire. Unless people are encouraged to act early, the outcomes for future retirees are unlikely to improve.
• Overall, 41.3% of respondents have life insurance, with under a half (49.4%) of 40 – 44-year-olds (49.4%) and 45 – 49-year-olds (47.8%) having life insurance
• Providing for education, leaving a legacy, and even being able to buy property came in as a lower priority across all age groups than paying off debt and making ends meet. This indicates that South Africans are living largely on the backfoot, rather than being focused on financial provision for aspects of life that build wealth and success.
• 67.3% of all respondents don’t have a financial adviser. The younger life stages (18 – 39 year-olds) use the internet as their main source of advice. Ages 40 onwards mainly get financial advice from an adviser.

Moyo said that competing short- and long-term priorities, as well as the natural tendency to focus on the here and now, often result in a misalignment between our intentions and our actions. “We want to thrive financially, but we get into debt. We want to stop working and enjoy our lives, but we don’t prioritise saving for retirement. We want to become wealthy, but we don’t invest. Making decisions today to secure your future financial wellbeing may seem overwhelming, but there are resources available to help you on this journey. You don’t need to do this alone.”

At the core of the campaign is Zesande, a digital avatar who lives her entire life in a day. “We map out the course of her lifetime in just 24 hours – for instance at 6:00 she is 20 starting out in the working world and by 20:00 she has entered retirement – educating consumers about the big financial decisions and plans that need to be made at each stage to live a life of financial confidence. Concepts such as compound interest, retirement savings and life insurance are explained and linked to the time of life when those are most important for individuals, helping them tangibly map out their financial lives on a time continuum.”

“Through LI:FE of Confidence, we want to help South Africans understand what is most important at their present and future life stages, and encourage them to take the necessary steps. This will give them the highest level of financial preparedness and success, and set them on the path to a life of financial confidence.”

“The campaign has allowed us to realistically depict living an entire life in a day and demonstrate financial learnings in a creative, compelling way,” said Oosthuizen.

Additional elements include an interactive digital experience via desktop or mobile where South Africans can learn what they should be considering at the key life moments. The campaign’s media launch took place in the metaverse on 31 January, a first for South Africa.

For more information, visit Life of Confidence or feel free to download the full research report.