“Humans of Finance” is a series about how embedded finance helps people and businesses in the real world.

Helping brands connect with their audiences

Lisa Dini is a strategic marketing consultant based in the San Francisco Bay Area.

She helps companies like Hidden Valley and Kingsford reach new audiences and deepen their relationships with existing customers. That can involve anything from market research and high-level messaging to billboards and email campaigns.

In order to scale her business, Lisa needed to figure out how to manage her business finances.

For the last two years, she’s been a solopreneur—a business of one—but that wasn’t always the case. Lisa previously led marketing and communications for brands like the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Eddie Bauer, and The Clorox Company.

“I was ready to try something new,” she recalls. “As I was trying to figure out that next step, I felt grateful and excited that my former clients kept reaching out to see if I was available on a consulting basis.”

She pivoted into consulting and quickly established a growing client portfolio. But, in order to scale, she needed to figure out how to manage her money.

A better way to manage small-business finances

For solopreneurs like Lisa, managing business finances can be a haphazard experience.

When she started out, she was using her personal financial accounts to accept payments and make purchases. She hadn’t incorporated as a business or taken full advantage of the tax deductions that were available to her. In fact, she wasn’t clear on how much she owed—or even how much she’d made—until it was time to file her taxes.

“I was using an email folder to collect my receipts. That’s about as scientific as I got back then.”

That's where Lettuce comes in. They’re a platform that helps solopreneurs take control of their finances. That involves doing things like automating tax withholding and projecting income. They also take care of setting up LLCs and S Corps.

With Lettuce, Lisa was able to incorporate as a business, withhold estimated taxes, and file as an S Corp to save money on taxes. She also opened a business bank account and debit card—made available through Lettuce—and brought all of her business purchases, invoices, and accounting in one place. 

“Now I can see where the money’s coming from—and where it’s going,” says Lisa. “I feel confident as a business owner, and I know what I can spend.”

Powered by embedded finance

When Lettuce helps Lisa withhold taxes in a dedicated bank account, that’s an example of embedded finance. 

What’s embedded finance? It’s when tech companies partner with banks to make financial products (e.g., bank accounts, debit cards) available to their customers directly within their app or website. 

For Lisa, embedded finance has helped her worry less about money and focus more on her business.

In this case, TransPecos Banks partners with Lettuce to offer business bank accounts and debit cards for solopreneurs. Most traditional banks won’t help solopreneurs estimate or withhold taxes—let alone set up an S Corp or create revenue projections. But Lettuce brings it all together in a single app.

For Lisa, it’s helped her worry less about money and focus more on her business. Thanks to Lettuce and TransPecos Banks, she can spend more time working with clients and deciding where she wants to take her business next.

“I’m building a career that makes sense for me,” says Lisa. “I’m focusing on what I’m good at, and finding the places where I can make the biggest impact.”

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*Lettuce is a financial technology company and not a bank. Banking services provided by TransPecos Banks, SSB; Member FDIC. The Lettuce Debit Card is issued by TransPecos Banks, SSB pursuant to a license from Visa U.S.A. Inc. and may be used everywhere Visa cards are accepted.