Credit card marketing

ANZ/Visa card loses contact
http://www.east.com.au/bankingnews.asp?id=2420
(23 July 2008 – Australia) ANZ and Visa have launched the first reloadable, prepaid contactless card in Australia.The card uses new technology developed to take away the need for signature or pin verification on low value transactions.

The ANZ Visa card allows customers to make payments for transactions under the value of $35 without the need for a PIN or signature, by holding their card within five centimetres of a contactless reader.

The new ANZ Stadium Visa payWave card is so named because of its launch at the first Bledisloe Cup rugby union match of 2008 at ANZ Stadium in Sydney. Credit of $25 will be provided for 2000 cards at the launch to pay for food and beverages.

Visa’s general manager for Australia and New Zealand, Chris Clark said that the new card is designed to improve the customer experience at major events by reducing transaction times.Clark also said that an average transaction with the new card can be completed in four to six seconds, less than half the time of a cash transaction which averages 12 to 14 seconds.The new technology is part of Visa’s long term strategy in Australia.

The cards carry an antenna and computer chip embedded in the card which securely transmits payment instructions to and from a specially adapted card terminal. The cardholder keeps control of the card throughout the transaction to reduce the risk of fraud.The card can be reloaded with funds using BPAY via internet or phone banking and has a magnetic stripe so it can be used as a Visa prepaid card for merchant outlets outside of ANZ Stadium.

Australians don’t like carrying cash
http://www.smartcompany.com.au/Free-Articles/Trends/20080715-Australians-dont-like-carrying-cash.html?source=cmailer
Australians feel more uncomfortable carrying large amounts of cash around in their wallet or purse than any other people in the world, a new global survey of more than 7000 people shows.
According to the survey, by credit card company Mastercard, 88% of Australians don’t like carrying a lot of money around, ahead of New Zealand (87%) and Singapore (58%).

People from those three countries were also most likely to say they carry less cash around today than they did five years ago.

A majority (60%) of Australian respondents to the survey said they usually carry the equivalent of $US50 or less in their wallet, while people in Italy were the most likely to have a big wad of cash with them. Consumers in Singapore and China were the most likely to carry less than $US50 in cash at a time.

Pre-paid cards lock in gas prices
http://springwise.com/weekly/2008-07-09.htm#mygallons
Today's high gas prices are already forcing changes in the way many consumers live, but it's a pretty safe bet they won't look so bad in a year or two. A new service from MyGallons.com lets consumers prepurchase gas and lock in today's gas prices for the future.

Consumers who sign up for a MyGallons Card begin by paying an annual membership fee of USD 29.95. Up to three cards can be linked to one account, and the membership fee is backed by a 100 percent money-back guarantee if the consumer doesn't save money on at least one redemption during the year. Members can then monitor their current MyGallons price—a fluctuating quote that's good for purchase of unleaded gas at a particular point in time, including estimated local taxes—and prepurchase gas when they deem the price worth locking in. Purchasing gas is simply a matter of visiting a participating gas station, where the MyGallons Card is accepted much like a debit card, complete with four-digit PIN. The number of gallons pumped is deducted from the consumer's MyGallons account balance, with adjustments automatically made for more expensive grades or types of fuel and price differences caused by tax discrepancies or other local variations. If the consumer pumps fuel from a filling station for less than the lower end of the MyGallons range on that day, he or she will receive a credit, in gallons, to his or her account.

More than 80 percent of the prepurchase money consumers spend through MyGallons is placed in an escrow account and invested in money markets and US government-backed notes; the remainder is used for financial transactions to accommodate gasoline price changes, MyGallons says. There are no time limits on using the prepurchased gas, so consumers can save it for as long as they want, provided they maintain their MyGallons membership.

After a pilot program beginning in April, MyGallons.com just recently underwent a public launch. Due to an unexpected, last-minute pull-out by US Bank, it is in the process of negotiating with other payment networks to allow the MyGallons Card to be accepted at most stations in the US that already accept credit cards. Nevertheless, the service promises to be a taste of what's to come.

Website: http://www.mygallons.com/

High Interest in Branding Credit Cards
http://www.brandchannel.com/start1.asp?fa_id=428
Extracts: The “Big Four”—Visa, MasterCard, American Express, and Discover Card—have individual brand messages, but Visa is the clear winner in market share: According to a recent Nilson Report, Visa claimed 44 percent of the US credit card market, while MasterCard nailed 31 percent, Amex grabbed 22 percent, and Discover came in at five percent.

American Express is probably the easiest to parse in terms of brand identity. Often considered the gold (or platinum) standard of payment possibilities, Amex represents the elite spender with extensive buying power who can manage to pay that hefty bill in full every month. Trust, customer loyalty, and ease of use are also hallmarks of the Amex brand. In an independent research study conducted by the Ponemon Institute and TRUSTe, Amex has ranked in the top 25 most-trusted companies for the past two years.

If you’ve been a Discover member from the beginning, you’re likely a loyal one: The brand’s cardmembers hold their accounts for an average of 8.6 years, versus 6.2 for the industry, according to a study cited in Brandweek. And for the 11th year in a row, Discover Card has ranked number one among leading credit-card brands, according to the 2008 Brand Keys Customer Loyalty Engagement Index. “Discover is a leader in cash rewards—some of the key advantages include our CashbackBonus rewards program. Cardmembers also have the ability to increase, even double, their rewards when they redeem for gift certificates from our over 100 participating retailers. ShopDiscover, our online shopping portal, allows cardmembers to earn 5–20 percent CBB."

Visa and MasterCard are the two brands that have not been so easy to separate. Their omnipresence is one reason they’ve become so closely aligned over the years: They’re both accepted in a staggering number of countries worldwide (MC claims 210 countries, Visa at least 170).