Co-branded credit cards typically encourage a higher rate of transactions and generate three times as much turnover than bank-only cards. More versatile than the fuel card, co-branded oil company credit cards offer forecourt retailers the opportunity to enhance consumer loyalty, increase brand recognition and compete successfully with the co-branded credit cards offered by grocery multiples.

• An assessment of the potential profitability of co-branded oil company credit cards when compared with fuel cards and bank-only credit cards
• A quantitative comparison of pricing strategies of existing oil company credit cards and leading non-oil credit cards to acquire and retain customers
• An evaluation of the non-price strategies employed to increase customer acquisition, retention, loyalty and card activity
• An investigation into loyalty programmes, the relationship between issuer and retailer and some of the more innovative non-price incentives


Highlights



Consumers prefer co-branded credit cards. A typical co-branded credit card generates EUR37 more profit yearly than a bank-only card. In terms of fuel retailing, credit cards, due to their versatility, are becoming more popular than fuel card or cash payment. In the commercial market, credit cards accounted for 23% of fuel sold in 2004 across Europe.





In 2004, 68% of motorists considered price the most important factor when choosing a petrol station. Only 4% of consumers would select a fuel retailer on the basis of its brand. Given that most motorists are not loyal to fuel retailers, linking a loyalty scheme to an oil credit card has the potential to transform this.





Points-based loyalty schemes have proven popular but inevitably involve forging relationships with other retailers, such as Boots for health and beauty products in the UK or Géant for groceries in Poland. As well as providing a wider range of goods for redemption, such partnerships help to increase the appeal and frequency of customer rewards.



Reasons to Purchase


• Understand which markets have an established playing field for co-branded oil company credit cards and the extent of the competition in those markets
• Benchmark the rates and level of redemption offered by co-branded oil company credit cards and the leading non-oil card across various global markets
• Evaluate the success of various acquisition and retention non-price strategies via detailed and extensive case profiles