Time to Kick Butt on Credit Card Promos

By John Blom and Margie Church

According to Bankrate.com, the average interest rate on cash back cards is 16.39%. Balance transfer cards come in at 16.14%, and rewards card rates at 15.48%.*

Those rates are higher than most credit union credit cards. Heck, they're even higher than a lot of personal lines of credit that credit unions offer, too. Lots of these cards feature 0% introductory rates and afterward, a variable rate. All this has me wondering why credit unions aren't knocking down doors with summer credit card promotions. Last time I checked (which was this morning), Americans were still trying to pay down their credit card debt and carefully manage any new debt.

If your CU offers a rate lower than these and especially if you have a fixed rate and no balance transfer fee, this seems the perfect time to offer a pre-qualified or pre-approved offer. Dig into your data to find those members without your card and give them a hand up, credit unions! 

A razor-sharp direct mail piece that illustrates the savings could be a welcome sight in your members' mailboxes. The lower rate just might make them feel better about using credit to have a little fun for a change. Transferring a balance to save on interest payments and pay off the debt faster can be a real relief.  

Include a Personal URL with your direct mail and email to make it easy to communicate to your member and get an immediate response. Sending an email as a follow-up to your product offer is also a friendly reminder!

Using pre-screened data makes this campaign targeted and super cost-efficient. The end result is a higher ROI and a high-five from your lending department. Maybe you'll even have some budget left over to run a second flight. And we all know how important frequency and reach are. 

In the member's eyes, you guys are heroes, and the relationship between you deepens. Looks like a win-win for everyone.

Summer credit card promotions.  Simple. Fast. Profitable.

Bankrate.com rates 6/21/2012.

Pinpoint Direct Marketing creates data-driven, electronic and print marketing campaigns for the financial industry. Its customized campaigns achieve excellent results without premium costs. Learn more about Pinpoint Direct Marketing at www.PDMKT.com or call Kerry Blom, owner, 866-784-7555.