BIA/Kelsey Survey of Industry Leaders Shows Momentum for Card-Linked Offers

February 20, 2015
Press Releases

Long-term success for CLOs hinges on several factors, including the industry’s ability to address sales structure hurdles and the development of industry standards

CHANTILLY, Va. (Feb. 20, 2015) – BIA/Kelsey today released a new Insight Paper that highlights industry confidence in the growth of card-linked offers (CLOs), a marketing tool that represents a possible alternative to advertising. CLOs are marketing offers that are intelligently targeted to consumers based on credit card, debit card or loyalty card transactions.

Among the key findings outlined in “Status and Review of Card-Linked Offers, 2015,” CLOs are demonstrating momentum and staying power. First, however, CLOs – like any new technology – need to get past a number of startup hurdles. In BIA/Kelsey’s assessment, the technology must be made seamless; sales channels need to adjust to accommodate them; and merchants and consumers must be incented and motivated to use them.

The report is based on BIA/Kelsey’s survey of key segments of the CLO ecosystem, including publishers, card-linked technology providers, payment processors, payment networks and merchants/advertisers. In the report, BIA/Kelsey points to five factors it believes will impact the industry’s long-term success:

The various segments of the CLO ecosystem – publishers, technology and transaction data – must be better coordinated.
Merchants must provide a constant stream of attractive offers.
Enough consumers must be made aware of CLOs, and regularly buy offers.
Structural sales blockages need to be eliminated.
Industry standards must be developed for card-linked transactions.

“Since their introduction in 2008, some of the original scenarios for CLOs have changed and business models have shifted,” said report author Peter Krasilovsky, VP and chief analyst, BIA/Kelsey. “The jury is still out on their long-term success. But the industry seems poised to make an impact.”

BIA/Kelsey’s Krasilovsky will share highlights from the report during next week’s CardLinx Mobile Card-Linked Forum, Feb. 24, in San Francisco. He will moderate a session titled, “Card-Linking 2.0: The Next Generation of Card-Linked Offers,” featuring panelists Jonathan Silver, CEO, Affinity Solutions, Richard Bravman, COO, Affinity Solutions, and Samir Kothari, Chief Product Officer, Truaxis, a MasterCard company.

Insight Report Availability

More information about the Insight Paper “Status and Review of Card-Linked Offers, 2015,” including how to purchase, can be found at https://www.bia.com/Research-and-Analysis/Reports/Insight-Papers/Card-Linked-Offers-2015.asp.

Those who may find this report valuable include marketers seeking an alternative to advertising; financial institutions that collect transaction data and have relationships with merchants and consumers; POS companies and others that work with financial institutions; card-linked offer networks and services; coupon companies, prepaid deals companies and other providers of promotions; and media companies seeking to add to existing offerings, or track competitive offerings.

Methodology

BIA/Kelsey conducted 14phone-based surveys during October and November 2014 with CLO industry leaders, including 11 key members of The CardLinx Association, the leading standards and awareness organization for the CLO ecosystem; as well as executives from three non-members: Vantiv, Heartland Payments and Edo Interactive. CardLinx helped provide access to its membership, and audited many of the discussions. The observations and conclusions drawn, however, are entirely those of BIA/Kelsey.

About BIA/Kelsey

BIA/Kelsey advises companies in the local media space through consulting and valuation services, research and forecasts, Custom Advisory Services and conferences. Since 1983 BIA/Kelsey has been a resource to the media, mobile advertising, telecommunications, Yellow Pages and electronic directory markets, as well as to government agencies, law firms and investment companies looking to understand trends and revenue drivers. BIA/Kelsey’s annual conferences draw executives from across industries seeking expert guidance on how companies are finding innovative ways to grow. Additional information is available at https://www.bia.com, on the company’s Local Media Watch blog, Twitter (http://twitter.com/BIAKelsey) and Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/biakelsey). Stay connected by subscribing to the firm’s bi-monthly newsletter.