One big-name credit-card company believes it can help accomplish every wireless carrier’s objective: to gain brand recognition, target high-end users, simplify billing, reduce churn and perhaps entice customers to spend more money.
American Express has been teaming with telecommunications carriers for about five years to provide co-marketing and recurring billing services. American Express wants wireless services systematically billed on its credit cards, while mobile phone operators want access to its customer base-a group that spends more money than the average consumer.
Besides its large corporate customer base, American Express also has a significant number of small business card holders. Small businesses are a hot target area for wireless carriers because they need to keep in constant communication, said Frank Giuliano, vice president of recurring billing for American Express in New York.
“We did a survey of small business card members. After travel and entertainment, telecom was the next big item they wanted to put on their card,” said Giuliano. “We have the early adopters. Our card members are more likely to have cellular phones and pagers … From a blanket point of view, our card members tend to spend more than other card members. They tend to be more loyal. With our membership rewards, they know they will earn points for spending more.”
The marketing possibilities are endless. AirTouch Cellular teamed up with American Express nearly a year ago, and has been rolling out marketing campaigns with the credit-card company in premier markets, said Andrew Radlow, director of business development with AirTouch. In Los Angeles, where the carrier has an exclusive relationship with American Express, AirTouch has been sending out direct mail pieces to American Express customers. Through the credit-card company’s rewards program, card holders can receive a free phone with no activation fee, competitive rates and American Express bonus points based on service usage, said John Debrincat, an AirTouch marketing representative in Los Angeles.
“AirTouch is constantly searching for new and innovative methods of distribution,” said Radlow. “We’re looking to refine our segmentation strategy so that we can get at maximizing a customer’s lifetime value. Today, we’re looking at strategic partnerships with companies that have unique qualities, a strong brand and an attractive customer base … American Express has strong communication channels with its customer base.”
Carriers that team with American Express also have access to its database. Database marketing is quickly becoming the buzzword in the industry and many carriers have begun outsourcing the capability to marketing and customer retention specialists.
“Telecommunications carriers only view their customers’ telecommunications needs,” said Giuliano. “They don’t see their whole buying habits. We look at the customer as a total entity.”
Carriers also benefit from allowing American Express to systematically bill the wireless customer because they can get their money in as little as three days from when the bill was received.
