Andrew Davidson’s Post

New benefit alert! Chase and Marriott International have launched an enhanced version of the Marriott Bonvoy Bold Credit Card (the no-fee version of the Bonvoy card) and the announcement leads with a NEW TRAVEL NOW, PAY LATER benefit. ✈Travel Now, Pay Later: Cardmembers can break up travel purchases into equal monthly payments, with no interest and NO PLAN FEES for purchases between $100 to $5,000 made directly with an airline or at hotels participating in Marriott Bonvoy. 💡Similar but different. My Chase Plan was launched in 2020 to enable cardmembers to set up payment plans from 3-24 months and was subsequently rebranded as Chase Pay Over Time. Travel Now, Pay Later takes that branding one step further to make it a relevant benefit for the travel sector. The difference here is that the new Travel Now, Pay Later benefit for Bonvoy Bold has no plan fees for purchases at Marriott hotels or directly with airlines. Other purchases incur the usual monthly Chase Pay Over Time plan fee of 1.72%. Is Marriott picking up some of the tab or is this a co-brand partner value-add from Chase? 💡💡Financing takes center stage. It's notable to see this new financing benefit take center stage in a travel card offer, placed right up there alongside the other new benefits of 2X points on grocery/rideshare/streaming and automatic Silver Elite status. BNPL continues to grow with 1 in 5 consumers saying they plan to use it to make purchases and travel is somewhat unchartered territory. By launching this new feature Chase can take advantage of the opportunity and counter competition from fintechs like Upgrade, Inc. whose travel-focused Uplift brand already offers "travel now, pay later" with Southwest, another Chase co-brand card partner. #newbenefitalert #cobrand #marketing #travel #hotels #creditcard #comperemediaemployee Comperemedia Mintel

Fintech under the cosh. Hot on the heels following the collapse of Synapse, some big-name fintechs are having to deal with a cybersecurity incident at fintech bank Evolve Bank & Trust. Notably, Dave, Branch and Affirm were among those who moved quickly to communicate to customers letting them know about the incident, enhancing their security (Dave) or promising to investigate (Branch, Affirm). 👇 💡Feeling the pressure. Data breaches happen but US consumers generally trust legacy financial institutions more than fintechs and this incident doesn't help to overcome one of the biggest barriers to fintech adoption. It also comes following the recent collapse of Synapse following which consumers found out that they had been misled to believe that their accounts (many held at Yotta) were FDIC-insured when they weren't. Fintechs that became banks like LendingClub and Varo Bank had to jump through additional hoops but that extra work is being validated as the hits keep coming. Startups will have to work even harder to establish consumer trust if they want to break through. 💡💡Not hanging around. Evolve didn't even start notifying customers until July even though the breach was found in late May (the company posted details on its website on July 9 - see comments) BUT Dave, Branch and Affirm decided to waste no time by communicating early even though they didn't have all of the information. Affirm even posted its communication on X. Transparency and communication are critical during times of uncertainty. #evolvecybersecurityincident #emailmarketing #communication #trust Mintel Comperemedia #comperemediaemployee #transparency

Fintech partners in acquisition! Interesting collaboration between Snap Finance and Seen to offer customers of Snap a NEW Seen Mastercard credit card with a credit limit of up to $1,000. 👇 Snap Finance: Launched in 2012. Offers lease-to-own and installment financing options with a focus on "furniture, mattresses, tires and wheels, appliances, electronics, and other durable goods." Seen Mastercard: Launched 7 months ago (issued by Coastal Community Bank). A credit building/re-building credit card with an APR of 29.99% or 35.99% and an annual fee ranging from $39-$75. 💡Co-branded offer but not a co-branded card. These are the first offers we have captured from Seen and it is a unique collaboration where there is clearly overlap with Snap's target audience. Seen gets access to a pipeline of potential customers while Snap gets to provide some additional value and help its customers build credit. Credit building has been one of the most innovative areas of financial services in recent years and as new companies flood the space there will be more opportunities for these types of win-win partnerships. #advertising #marketing #creditbuilding #directmarketing #credit Mintel Comperemedia #comperemediaemployee #fintech #mintelemployee

Drive to KARMA. Affiliate marketing still plays a big role when it comes to credit card acquisition with affiliate sites like Credit Karma sourcing potential card applicants in exchange for a fee. That's why I was surprised to see a series of posts by Upgrade, Inc. on Facebook and Instagram 👇 directing consumers interested in the Upgrade MyFive Cash Rewards card to Credit Karma rather than directing them to apply at Upgrade.com. 😕 The MyFive Cash Rewards card is the latest iteration of the Upgrade Card, a hybrid product originally launched in 2019 that combines a credit card with an installment loan (there is no grace period). MyFive Cash Rewards earns 5% cash back on up to $3K of quarterly purchases "in the category of your choice" and 1% on everything else. 💡Why do this? One can only speculate. 1️⃣ Could it be to drive traffic to CK to kickstart the campaign, test out the application experience and hopefully pick up more than the single 1⭐review it has so far? 2️⃣The card isn't listed on Upgrade's site (although you can access an application page directly if you search) so could it infer some kind Credit Karma exclusive? 3️⃣ Does Credit Karma bring an additional element of trust that makes a difference? These are owned posts and the brand doesn't have many followers so my bet is #1. What do you think? 💡💡 Iterative innovation. The relentless pace of innovation at Upgrade continues with new iterations of its hybrid product. Upgrade Select, Upgrade Cash Rewards Elite and now MyFive Cash Rewards. The variations keep coming. #affiliatemarketing #marketing #acquisition #advertising #innovation

New card alert! This one is a surprising new entrant coming in left field from Turkish Airlines and Imprint (First Electronic Bank issues the card). It's the new Turkish Airlines Miles&Smiles Premier Visa Signature Card now available in the US. 👇 - 40K Bonus Miles for spending $3K in 90 days which "could equal a free flight from the US to Istanbul." - 3X miles on purchases with Turkish Airlines - 2X miles on dining/groceries/entertainment/lodging - $99 annual fee - APR: 19.74%-33.24% - No foreign transaction fees - Limited edition metal card for the first 5,000 cardholders 💡Credit card as a service (CCaaS) competition heats up in the airline co-brand space. Recently Cardless has been getting all of the headlines after it ditched basketball and pivoted to airline co-brand cards, launching a series of cards this year with Qatar Airways and avianca and bringing its total number of live credit card products to 8 of which 7 are co-branded airline cards. Imprint is following the lead of Cardless with its first foray into airlines although it does have 2 travel cards on the market with Westgate Resorts and Holiday Inn Club Vacations so that's 3 travel cards out 6 cards in total. These companies have found a way to make the economics of credit cards work for smaller portfolios and bring them to market at speed. With a resurgent travel industry, they have locked on to the travel opportunity. 💡💡Did you know? Turkish Airways flies from Istanbul to 14 destinations in the US and is targeting 20. The airline has been growing rapidly and has doubled capacity since the pandemic with 32.8 million flying in the first 5 months of 2024. I was surprised to read that Istanbul surpassed London Heathrow as Europe's busiest airport in 2023. Sounds like quite a catch for Imprint! 👏 The image below is from a launch video that Imprint posted on X. #newcardalert #marketing #advertising #travel #cobrand #innovation #loyalty

Congratulations to Simone Biles for securing a spot on Team USA for her third Olympics!👏AND that means U.S. Bank's Cash+ Visa Signature Card is also packing its bags for Paris 2024 after the bank launched a new ad campaign called "Everything Everything" featuring both Simone Biles and her sister Adria Biles demonstrating how you can earn up to 5% cash back on "virtually everything." 👇 💳The campaign coincides with the debut of a new red, white and blue design for the card which is now more aligned with the style of its Shopper Cash Rewards Card. 💡In top-performing teams, every member contributes their unique strengths towards a shared objective. The same principle holds true for omnichannel marketing success! US Bank has been building its campaign over the past few weeks with direct mail and email initially promoting the new look card followed by digital, social and the first of two TV spots ramping up through the US Olympic Gymnastics trials and as we approach the opening ceremony on July 26. 💡💡 Did you know? Advertising is at a RECORD HIGH for this Olympic games with Paris the first to allow all spectators since the pandemic and being the first in many years to be in a favorable time zone for a US audience (the last three were in Asia). Stay tuned for more on an upcoming special Mintel Little Conversation podcast episode on the Olympics discussing all this and more! Facebook ad below. Announcement and TV ad in the comments. Mintel Comperemedia Diana Kelter Bella Broccolo #marketing #olympics #advertising #teamusa #visa

How does the Bilt Rewards Mastercard make money? 👇 There has been a lot of press coverage regarding the Bilt Rewards Mastercard culminating in yesterdays episode of The Journal podcast with AnnaMaria Andriotis with the title “The Unusual Economics of the Bilt Credit Card.” (link in comments) I thought it would be a good time to revisit my Mintel Little Conversation interview with Bilt founder Ankur Jain from 2022 (before Wells Fargo became the issuing bank) where I asked him directly about the economics of the card and he outlined its 3️⃣ primary sources of revenue. ▶️Listen to the clip below and I’ll post a link to the full episode in the comments which is well worth listening to if you really want to understand this product. 💡Long term play. There is plenty of miss/missing information swirling around this card. For example the idea that cardholders immediately paying off rent payments wasn’t part of the strategy is just WRONG. As you will hear from the interview Bilt operates as a “debit card for rent” so revolving on rent was never the plan. For Wells Fargo the LONG TERM OPPORTUNITY IS MORTGAGES and this isn’t mentioned in the coverage. The economics might be challenging but this was always a long term play. Comperemedia #innovation #marketing #advertising #rewards #loyalty

Book travel! First emails to Citi customers regarding the rebranded Citi Strata Premier Card lead with Citi Travel, emphasize the key changes to the card and encourage cardholders to "Make every point count with your Cit Strata Premier Card". 👇 Key changes emphasized: 1️⃣ Travel Portal: Ongoing 10X ThankYou Points on hotels, car rentals, and attractions booked through CitiTravel.com (previously this was limited time only) 2️⃣ EV Charging: 3X ThankYou Points at gas and EV charging stations (EV charging is new) 3️⃣ Travel Insurances: Trip Delay Protection, Trip Cancellation and Interruption Protection, Lost or Damaged Luggage, Car Rental Insurance 💡Citi Travel takes the lead. Citi launched its travel portal with Booking.com in 2023 and this is the first attempt to fully infuse Citi Travel with the value proposition of a Citi credit card (previously all accelerated earn on the site with Premier/other Citi products was for a limited time only). The message is clear that the new Strata Premier and Citi Travel combined will enhance the travel experience for Citi cardholders. 💡💡Risk or reward. By integrating a travel portal into a credit card value prop, there is an element of risk in that both now depend on the success of each other. That means marketing will need to focus on the synergy of combining these two services and continue to reinforce the message of enhanced value. #travelcard #marketing #advertising #creditcard #travel

📣An ad for an ad! (or at least an email promoting an ad). In honor of Juneteenth, OneUnited Bank - "the nation's largest Black-owned bank" - launched a OneLove Card TV commercial and sent millions of emails to let people know about it. The email subject line was very clear: Tune Into Our New OneLove TV Commercial Now! ❤The OneLove Card (launched February 2024) is a debit card designed by artist Addonis Parker to symbolize UNITY. (see comments) The Juneteenth ad shows a group of friends having brunch at Pips on La Brea, a Black-owned jazz club/restaurant in LA and discussing the features of the OneLove debit card including 1️⃣ Access to pay up to 2 days early and 2️⃣ "AI insights" for personalized advice. "Juneteenth reminds us of the power of freedom, the importance of financial literacy and that we’re stronger, together, as a community," said Teri Williams 💡Finding meaningful moments. OneUnited Bank's recent campaign highlights the essence of unlocking meaningful moments. By promoting the OneLove Card and emphasizing features like early pay benefits and personalized AI insights, the bank not only provides practical financial solutions but also fosters a sense of community and shared progress, aligning with the core message of Juneteenth. 💡💡Amplifying the message. If you are going to put all of that work (and $$) into a TV commercial then why not do everything you can to make sure that as many people hear about it as possible? It's a smart move by OneUnited to drop the ad into the inboxes of 2-3 million customers/prospective customers who can click directly to watch in their own time. #marketing #emailmarketing #advertising #innovation #juneteenth