PURCHASE, NY – Today, MasterCard International unveiled its enhanced World MasterCard® card program to further establish its leading profile among affluent consumers in the United States. The program offers issuers flexibility and customization options, while providing high-income consumers with unsurpassed global acceptance and an ability to redeem rewards in categories of their choosing. With the enhanced World MasterCard card issuing institutions have the flexibility to offer a uniquely customizable array of incentives designed to complement the evolving preferences of their most affluent cardholders.
The new offering enhances the successful World MasterCard program, originally introduced in 1996. Currently, there are more than 10 major issuers offering World MasterCard to cardholders in the U.S., giving them the opportunity to use their World MasterCard card at more than 24 million locations around the world.
“The enhanced World MasterCard program is a living demonstration of taking a winning approach and making it even better,” said Ruth Ann Marshall, president of the Americas, MasterCard International. “The new World MasterCard program underscores MasterCard’s commitment to the affluent segment as we work with our issuers to provide cardholders with rewards and incentives specifically tailored to their needs and interests.”
“Mass affluent” cardholders, defined as those earning more than USD $100,000 in household income, represent a significant and growing market segment. With a deep and thorough understanding of this consumer population, MasterCard is committed to delivering industry-leading payments solutions in sync with their unique lifestyle.
Although these consumers comprise only 14% of all U.S. households, they account for more than 25% of spending. Elite cardholders traditionally spend much more per transaction than others.
“We recognize that the high-end represents a tremendous ongoing opportunity for the financial institutions which issue World MasterCard,” said Nicole Risafi, vice president, MasterCard International. “Our enhanced World MasterCard program caters to their specific and evolving needs and gives them unmatched access to the places where they can purchase those things that matter most to them.”
Based upon extensive research, MasterCard determined “what matters most” to high-end consumers, including simplicity and managed customization and value, versus the novelties and gimmicks so often found in the category. Within the affluent segment, the company determined that “one size does not fit all” and that these consumers have different priorities for different ages and stages of life.
Based on this research and the core values it identified for the segment, MasterCard created a powerful, first-of-its-kind rewards construct focused on four distinct categories: Personal, Family, Finances and Community.
While issuers are required to offer a free airline ticket with no blackout period in the Personal category, they are empowered to customize rewards in the other three categories. For example, financial institutions offering World MasterCard may choose to feature toy store gift certificates in the Family category; contribution of points to an IRA program in Finances; and donation of points to charity in the Community category. In this way, cardholders may redeem points for rewards with merchants or organizations that are most relevant to their specific habits and lifestyle.
Following the start of the portfolio transitions and the roll-out of the new, enhanced programs, MasterCard will launch an extensive integrated marketing campaign to support its World MasterCard program beginning in May. At the center of the marketing initiative will be the award-winning MasterCard Priceless advertising campaign – including print and television executions, as well as online advertising.
Juniper Bank will be among the first institutions to launch enhanced World MasterCard programs for their affluent cardholders.
“Our customers will derive real value from the enhancements MasterCard is making to the World MasterCard product. We plan to actively participate in the integrated marketing campaign to ensure that our customers have an opportunity to benefit from all that the new World MasterCard has to offer,” said Ben Brake, Managing Director of Marketing, Juniper Bank.
According to MasterCard Program Management, issuers must include reward offerings in each of the four primary categories, but each institution can customize them with merchants, companies, organizations and programs of their choosing.
