The card’s biggest attraction is an initial teaser rate of zero percent for the six months. But AmEx is also hoping to win over the tech set with an “electronic wallet’’ feature that automatically fills in purchase forms at Web sites, sparing Internet shoppers from repeatedly filling in their addresses, credit-card numbers and the like. (That information is stored in AmEx’s computers, and transmitted to e-commerce sites with a click of the mouse.) The Blue card also has a “smart chip’’ that adds another level of security. With a card reader that plugs into a PC (AmEx is giving away the hardware for several months), consumers will have to have the actual card and PIN to place online orders, thereby minimizing whatever worries they might have about online thievery of card data. More applications are in the works. “It’s really kind of a novelty, but it does project a cutting-edge image,’’ said Robert B. McKinley, CEO of CardWeb, an online newsletter.
It’s an image that American Express needs to cultivate as it tries to court younger customers, many of whom view AmEx as the card used to help buy their father’s Oldsmobile. The company has started regaining lost market share in recent years, in part by offering a slew of cards with rewards, such as Delta frequent-flier miles. Because consumers now view cards largely as commodities, the business has grown increasingly competitive. Visa and MasterCard are expected to come out with their own smart cards soon. “This lays the groundwork for the next battle,’’ McKinley added.
American Express is spending heavily to make people want to spend heavily with its Blue card. The marketing campaign–$45 million by some estimates–includes everything from advertising on popcorn bags at movie theaters (its target customers like movies) to giving out water bottles with Blue advertising (its target customers also are into working out). The advertising copywriters have also been busy, turning phrases such as “Y3K compliant’’ and “Evolving Credit’’ to be used as marketing tag- lines. Earlier this month Blue from American Express sponsored a free concert in New York’s Central Park featuring Sheryl Crow.
Why the color blue? American Express says it evokes a sense of excitement about the future. Remarkably, others share the opinion. Young & Rubicam’s Brand Futures Group has deemed blue the color of the new millennium. Y&R’s research found that a lot of people link blue with the future because they associate it with sky and water, “providing a sense of limitlessness and peace.’’ Too bad the monthly charge statements don’t inspire the same emotions.
