This summer, First Data conducted a consumer loyalty study focused on rewards programs for the financial institution market sector.  More than 1,000 U.S. consumers participated in the study. Key findings include:

• Credit card rewards programs are the most popular, versus debit card or “other banking” rewards programs such as those tied to savings accounts



• Consumers are frustrated – especially when they cannot use the rewards being offered or have no choice when selecting rewards



• Consumers have strong opinions about what constitutes a “unique rewards program”



• The  most important program features are the ability to select rewards and ease of use

More detail is available on these findings.  Credit card rewards program study goes into further detail on these findings and provides additional statistics that offer important perspectives for financial institutions to consider.

Where does all the money go for your credit card processing costs?

We’ve answered this before. Most of it goes to the banks. In a few moments, you’ll read about their blatant promotions to make more money at your expense.

If you process a transaction at the best interchange qualification, they make a little money. If you process a transaction that downgrades to a higher interchange qualification, they make more money. In fact, the worse you qualify, the more money they make.

This is a key reason why banks may not be the best choice for your credit card processing. With their inherent conflict of interest, will your bank help you hit the best interchange? You can influence your interchange qualification. It’s complicated. It’s more than what customers can do, it’s up to professionals like us to not only spot problem areas, but to take the corrective actions to fix the underlying causes- either behind the scenes, through programming changes or by contacting you and providing tips for staff.

Today I received a direct mail piece from a bank. The promotion rewards me for SIGNATURE BASED gold debit mastercard purchases. Pin based debit transactions are ineligible. That’s right. The bank is strongly encouraging consumers not to enter their pin number. They make more money that way.

How can you combat this kind of promotion and encourage pin based debit?
1. Do you have a pin pad? Consumer oriented businesses processing $1M annually, will almost always benefit. Call us for a free analysis.
2. Are you processing $1,000,000+ per MONTH (all card type transactions), please call me regarding new technology that will dramatically lower your debit processing costs.