Lightbulb Moments: Spark Your Strategy (Vol.16)

August 14th, 2024 | Andrew Davidson

Comperemedia’s Chief Insights Officer, Andrew Davidson is well known for sharing the latest insights on financial services products and marketing strategies/innovations on his LinkedIn, as an event speaker and as a host on Mintel’s Little Conversation podcast. In this bi-weekly recap, he will provide you with the latest news and insights happening in the financial services industry.

Here are the 5 things you need to know:

1. Brooks Brothers launches a credit card with Imprint

Breakthrough! Brooks Brothers and Imprint have launched the new Brooks Brothers World Mastercard (issued by First Electronic Bank). Imprint proudly announced on its blog that the conversion (its first) was completed in RECORD TIME for the industry in just six months.

Value prop: Earn points to redeem at Brooks Brothers

• 4-6 points at Brooks Brothers
• 4 points on restaurants/gas/groceries
• 1 point elsewhere
• 20% off your first online purchase
• $40 reward on your first purchase outside Brooks Brothers
• Free return shipping
• Special events
• No annual fee
• 19.74% – 33.24% APR

💡 Statement win:

• Until this breakthrough, fintechs like Imprint and Cardless have been getting wins with new/smaller/less established brands. Brooks Brothers (founded in 1818) switched credit card providers from Synchrony to Citi in 2015 and renewed a multi-year extension with the latter in 2022.
• Just two years later and Imprint has managed to break through with a cobrand partnership that has been run by two of the most established co-brand issuers in the industry for decades. This is a statement win and established co-brand card issuers need to watch out as Imprint and Cardless continue to gain traction.

2. Amex found lacking in the UK despite expansion

Disconnect.

While traveling in the UK, my American Express credit card, which is top of wallet for me in the US, was relegated to backup card status. My Mastercard on the other hand, rose to the top, as merchant after merchant informed me they don’t accept Amex.

Meanwhile, Amex continues to announce an expanding network in the UK. There seems to be a disconnect between the expansion narrative and the reality on the ground.

💡 Functionality:

You can add bells and whistles to enhance the value prop. Rewards? Love them. Benefits? Yes please! Sign on bonus? Of course. But if it doesn’t work, it’s all pointless. As someone who has traveled between the US and the UK for the past twenty-five years and is a long-time Amex customer, it seemed that Amex acceptance in the UK had declined. It might not be the reality, but it was the perception. The credit card is an amazing invention, but you have to get the basics right.

3. Using Apple Pay to access a public restroom

There is a first time for everything. And this was the first time I have used Apple Pay to access a public bathroom for 0.20 GBP or $0.26 in Bath, UK.

The transaction appeared on my phone as a payment to Healthmatic, a UK company that designs and builds “smarter public toilets.”

From the Healthmatic website:

• “Our main products are designed to raise revenue from buildings and spaces like toilets and libraries which are accessible to the public. These can be operated with coins or tokens, as well as contactless cards and Radar keys.”
• “Healthmatic have made a massive contribution to the development of public toilets across the UK” – Richard Chiswell, President, British Toilet Association

💡 Moving towards a cashless society:

• Would you pay to use the loo? Maybe you wouldn’t as a matter of principle, but needs must be met when alternative options aren’t available, and 26 cents isn’t a barrier if you have the change/payment method to hand.
• Contactless saves the day. Of course, I didn’t have the required 20 pence coin, but thankfully attached to the lock was a contactless device that enabled me to tap in using Apple Pay and enter the luxurious (heavy sarcasm) interior. This was the smallest transaction I have ever made with a credit card, suggesting a cashless society is coming sooner rather than later, particularly in some countries such as the UK.

4. Starling Bank’s partnership with the National Trust

Nice alignment. This is a print ad from UK neobank Starling Bank in the summer edition of the National Trust Magazine.

The National Trust is a conservation charity (and cherished UK institution) that manages more than 500 historic properties, gardens and nature reserves across the country.

Starling and the National Trust agreed to a three-year partnership in 2023.

Starling Bank: Founded 2014. 4.2 million accounts opened.

National Trust: Founded 1884. 5-6 million members.

Alignment (as stated in the ad):

• “We’re branchless and run on renewable energy. And we don’t invest in fossil fuels.”
• “We’re investing in sustainability projects….helping restore peatland and providing nature workshops for kids, in partnership with the National Trust.”

💡Partnership for impact:

There is something extremely powerful about combining the old with the new for maximum impact. Despite the 130-year gap in their foundation years, these two organizations have found the perfect alignment for maximum impact and Starling can promote its message in a relevant context to a huge potential new customer base. The partnership also enhances the bank’s reputation as a forward-thinking, values-driven brand. This is a prime example of how fintechs can leverage established institutions to accelerate growth and reshape the industry.

5. Barclays repurposes underutilized branches

This is the exterior and ground floor of Barclays Eagle Labs in Brighton, UK, a co-working space for entrepreneurs. I happened to be walking past it recently and wondered what it might possibly be.

• In 2015, Barclays began repurposing underused branches and converting them into Barclays Eagle Labs locations. There are now 36 of them across the United Kingdom.
• Entrepreneurs can access the space for 20 GBP a day (approximately $26), and a range of membership packages are available. It’s not just for co-working either. The Eagle Lab includes education, mentoring, events, networking and access to many other resources to help local small businesses.
• Earlier this year, Eagle Labs launched the Eagle Labs Academy, a digital learning platform, in partnership with the UK Government.

💡 Repurpose:

Bank branches have been repurposed for many things over the years. Near me, in NYC, a grandiose old bank branch (Buffalo Savings Bank moved out in 1987) is now a CVS. Many banks have set up innovation hubs to help entrepreneurs, but the Eagle Labs spaces based in towns and cities across the UK seem more accessible for local business owners compared to the flashy hubs based in major urban centers. While many downtown areas are struggling to get back on their feet in the post-Covid work environment, this is a great example of repurposing not just a bank branch, but any urban space that is underutilized, and simultaneously Barclays builds relationships with local small businesses.