American Express has become one of the leaders in credit and debit card transactions of the financial world. As the most innovative company in the business, they were the first to develop a large-scale traveller’s check. Over the years the company became more of a financial company and with the advent of consumer credit and debit cards they became a major player in supplying this service to it's members. American Express produced a niche market of "card members" to fit the needs of various financial desires. American Express has had to diversify it's products and services over the years to stay competitive with Visa and Master Card, who still control over 75% of the market share. The "elite" consumer still carries an American Express card, and the services and extra benefits associated with "being a member" are still an attractive bonus to many users. With it's financial services, travel business, and it's new Internet business sites American Express continues to grow and even through the recent meltdown in the financial markets they have seemed to emerge as strong as ever and will remain competitive through the 21st century. Once appeared as a travel service company associated with entertainment expenses, and even had several celebrities appeared in their advertisement campaigns. However today it seems as though the company attempts to convey that their service provides an easy and rewarding spending experience.
The growth of American Express has allowed them to invest in many far-reaching causes around the world. Unlike other companies they tend to invest in more cultural and social causes than sporting or high profile events. In 2012 they issued grants to special needs groups in Singapore, invested in repairing the Brighton Do...
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...llenge is even seen today. In 2012, travel and commissions fees declined by 2 percent compared to the prior year due to the decline in worldwide travel sales (1).
In addition, a number of years ago owning a gold American Express card was a status symbol, however today people are less inclined to try to impress others by owning a certain type of credit card. So people go with the best rate they can find and the one that gives them the most monthly credit. Because major competitors are starting to offer the same type of special services that American Express is known for, is can pose a risk on the company’s future growth. Therefore, I find the future of American Express very interesting because in order to compete against the companies who control most of the market share, American Express will have to keep innovating and differentiating their products and services.
In large businesses Equifax provides insight into the consumer’s world, which allows organizations to make conclusions based on factual evidence and analysis of data. This and the expansion of Equifax’s portfolio where the Equifax Chairman and former CEO states "Over the past decade, we have taken a deliberate
The United States lending industry’s main focus has become accentuating profits; therefore, they have made it impossible to live without a credit card in today’s economy and to avoid being taken advantage of by the banks. James Scurlock, director and producer of the film, “Maxed Out”, devotes his movie to informing the audience of the credit card system and its many flaws and gives examples of people who are majorly affected by the pressure the lenders apply. Throughout the movie, numerous statistics, and expert testimonies are presented, as well as comparisons and appeals to emotion. Through the use of this support Scurlock, is able to convey his overall message and propose numerous minor arguments that clarify his argument and make it more credible.
Raised in Rhode Island, Robert Lloyd Crandall graduated from his state’s university and the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton Business School. He worked as a regional credit supervisor for Eastman Kodak and later, headed the computer programming division at Hallmark Cards. In 1966, he joined TWA (TransWorld Airlines) as assistant treasurer. He briefly left the airline industry in 1972 to become senior financial officer at Bloomingdale's Department Stores, but returned the next year when American made him its senior Vice President of Finance (Robert L. Crandall: Official Biography). From there, Mr. Crandall advanced to president.
In light of an evolving market, faced with new competitors, and after a careful analysis of their current customers, the Vanguard Group (hereinafter referred to as “Vanguard”) realizes it must rethink its entire marketing strategy. However, in order to protect and leverage their competitive advantage, which is their low management fees, and to optimize the loyalty that their customers continuously demonstrate toward their organization, they must now target the most profitable segment for them, and develop the best way to serve and delight these customers.
In addition, “if American Express going to be successful as a brand and as a marketer, they need to understand where consumers are doing it, how consumers are spending their time, where consumers want to access information, and how can American Express engage them. American Express has be used in countries all over the world for decades. It simply grew up with the baby boomers’ generation and has earned its reputation as a card with distinction. Through the years, the company has consistently reached consumer by keeping in step with the changing needs of the population. They also has acknowledge that it is the consumers who really decide what American Express stand for and not the company pushing out marketing messages. Further, American Express belie...
American Express has been known as a commodity to most business travelers. In order to build its customer base, other consumers need to see the card as an indispensable convenience in their lives. American Express offers convenient methods to obtain account information, pay bills, find discounted products, and even make travel plans via the Internet. The Internet site offers these options, as well as other services, such as on- line help and assistance for small businesses. American Express realizes the need for many consumers to save time and money, but to still feel important and respected. The ingenuity and thought put into the services offered on the web site shows that American Express is genuinely concerned with the satisfaction of its customers.
The banking industry is under pressure in today’s business climate. Banks have been through big changes. There is opportunity, but there is also increasing competition. To be the preferred bank means changing “good enough” into a unique value proposition. And that means changing the way people have always done things, change on this level requires cutting edge technology. Change cannot be achieved with a simple directive or surface adjustment especially within the banking industry. It requires an innovative rethink of the entire system, in a strong partnership between bank leaders and their change agents. New systems and policies must support the strategy to be successful. The real test of a good strategy implementation plan is whether the people understand the strategy, are motivated and enabled to implement it, and actually start achieving its goals.
When the scandal of American express came to light. Warren Buffet believed American express shouldn’t have to pay the sixty million it offered to pay but rather they should have to accept blame and admit to. Buffett even at his own expense offered to testify describing how management was trying to plan to settle. American express ended up paying out large amounts of money; however, was able to bounce back and get its company’s stock back up by 1964. Many were surprised when Buffett wanted to testify because even though he was notorious for being honest just like his father but he had never tried to turn his investments into a place where all their secrets were out in the open.
In the Spring of 1949, Alfred Bloomingdale, Frank McNamara, and Ralph Snyder came up with a new plan for a modern type of credit card. While out to lunch one day in New York, the President of the New York Credit Card Company Frank McNamara had forgotten his wallet at home (Evans 53) . He had a thriving business yet credit cards at the time were only given to selected people. The first modern credit cards was introduced by Diners Club Inc. because of this. The modern day credit card is a small, plastic, rectangle, more than three inches. There is an account number and a name that is embroidered on the front. The first credit card did not look much like what credit cards look today. They were made out of paper not plastic, and they weren’t cards they were a lot like a tiny booklet that had all the same information the modern day credit card has now(Weiss 38). The modern day credit card can carry up to a $200 line of credit meaning you can buy anything you want at that certain time and pay it back at a later date such as months or a year after that time. Some companies require you to pay the full amount of your charge on the card at once, but some allow you to pay in small amounts. In order to apply for a credit card you must be at least eighteen years of age and if you are not you must have an adult sign the paperwork to apply for one. Prior ...
American Express sends out customer service surveys to the card members that call in to the telephone service center. The surveys are sent out randomly with a coding on the bottom of the survey so that the results and comments are given back to the correct employee. The employees are aware that any card member that they speak to could receive a survey. With this said, each employee goes through extensive training on the telephone behaviors that must be demonstrated while speaking to card members. The employees also go through extensive training on the policies and procedures that each card product and service has. This training is to ensure that each card member is handled with the most utmost professional behavior and their issues are handled correctly.
Miller, J. (2008, January). Resources: Credit Card Security . Retrieved February 21, 2011, from Arizona Society of Certified Public Accoutants : http://www.ascpa.com/Content/39591.aspx
Credit cards: for some they are the paths to financial freedom, for others they are a necessity for daily purchases. During the recent economic crisis, many have sought out to find the cause. One common suspect is the credit card industry, which is comprised of more than six thousand card issuers (Clayton 209). This issue is debated in the two-part article “Should Congress Regulate Credit Card Rates and Fees?” “Yes” and “No.” Tamara Draut, Director of Economic Opportunity, Demos, argues yes, claiming the credit card companies’ ability to adjust terms and interest rates traps cardholders in everlasting debt. On the contrary, Kenneth J. Clayton, Managing Director of Card Policy for the American Bankers Association, argues no, stating that regulating credit card companies would hinder many people from obtaining credit and further damage the economy. Although both Draut and Clayton present strong evidence for some aspects of their arguments, both writers make assumptions which they fail to support and ignore the complexity of the issue, making their arguments overall unpersuasive.
The usage of credit and debit cards have dramatically increased in the recent years. There was a projected total of 160 million credit card holders in 2012 and 654 million debit cards in 2015 (WalletHub/Nasdaq). Both credit and debit cards are methods of payment that do not require you to have cash on hand. Even though both a credit and debit card accomplish the same thing, there are many differences between the two methods of payment that could sway a customer’s choice towards one over the other.
Introduction This paper will analyze the mission and vision statements of JPMorgan Chase & Co against the performance of the organization. An evaluation of how well the company lives out its mission and vision statement will be provided. The organization’s strategic goals linked to the company’s mission and vision will be assessed. An analysis of the company’s financial performance to determine the link between the company’s strategic goals, strategy, and its financial performance. A competitive and marketing analysis of JPMorgan Chase & Co will be conducted to determine its strengths and opportunities.
The introduction of the credit card first came around while the economy was booming in the early 1950’s. American consumers were in buy mode and the credit card was a genius idea to let people buy now and pay later. At first look this idea seemed great but what looks and sounds great does not always mean that it is going to be great overall. Over the years credit agencies have released thousands of credit cards with several questionable polices and high interest rates. “Any given American family in the present day possesses an average of eight credit cards with about 15,000 dollars of debt”(Canner 8). Many consumers have become addicted to wasteful cyclic consumption and living beyond their income due to the ownership of credit cards. The invention and continued implementation of credit cards into the American economic and social systems appears to be the cause of the struggling economy, the weakened U.S. dollar, the sky rocketing prices of gas and grocery store goods, the all-time highs of American debt, and social deprivation in some regions.