STRATEGIC PARTNERS
February 21, 2002
DAYTON, Ohio -- The number of consumers using prepaid cards and those interested in trying prepaid cards for the first time continues to increase, according to results from Standard Register's second National Consumer Survey of Plastic Card Usage.
Conducted in conjunction with Card Marketing, the survey identifies consumer awareness, opinion and plastic card use.
Compared to results of Standard Register's 1999 National Consumer Survey of Plastic Card Usage, more consumers are using prepaid and loyalty cards, while the use of other cards remains virtually unchanged.
The research found the following percentages of adults use: credit cards, 88 percent; ATM cards, 60 percent; membership cards, 58 percent; debit cards, 35 percent; prepaid cards, 35 percent; loyalty cards, 29 percent; prepaid phone cards, 28 percent; gift cards, 11 percent; and smart cards, 4 percent.
Anne Rogers, Standard Register's product marketing manager of Imaging Services, said, "Driven by the introduction and expansion of retail and promotional applications, we expect consumer use of prepaid and loyalty cards to approach 50 percent within the next five years."
The use of prepaid cards increased over last year, while credit, ATM and debit cards all showed slight decreases in usage. Gift cards contributed to the growth of all types of prepaid cards. Half of the adults surveyed have given or received a prepaid card, an 8 percent increase over 1999.
Prepaid phone cards remained the most popular prepaid card, used by 28 percent of consumers. As in last year's survey, people most commonly used a prepaid phone card when traveling. In fact, travelers comprise 51 percent of all prepaid phone card users.
The survey indicates that, of consumers who are aware of prepaid cards, 42 percent learned about them through advertising. While advertising continues to play a significant role, in-store displays created awareness among 18 percent of prepaid card users.
Consumer awareness of all plastic cards increased from last year, with membership and debit cards increasing 10 percent each. Other plastic cards with significant growth in awareness include prepaid, 8 percent increase; loyalty, 8 percent; and smart cards, 7 percent. Another key finding about consumer awareness was that people say they carry more cards after hearing about the different card applications.
