comScore: Credit Card Shopping More Prevalent as U.S. Consumer Economic Sentiment Improves

comScore, a provider of solutions measuring the digital world,released its annual Online Credit Card Report, which provides a lookat the U.S. online credit card industry over the past year.

The report focuses on shifts in the industry related to improvingconsumer perceptions of the economic environment, card features mostlikely to influence card shopping decisions, and the growingimportance of online servicing for issuers. The report draws itsanalysis from comScore's research panel of one million U.S.consumers and a comScore survey of nearly 2,000 U.S. Internet usersconducted in December 2010. Among its findings, the study reveals agreater percentage of card shopping activity among consumers whoreported having a more positive view of the economy.

During the past twelve months, 20 percent of all cardholdersreported shopping for a new card. Among consumers who reportedfeeling more confident about the economy, this stood at a higher 34percent.

"As we see consumer economic sentiment improve, we're also seeinga corresponding increase in retail and e-commerce spending alongwith increased card shopping, especially among those in the subprimesector," said Sarah Lenart, comScore VP of financial services. "Withshopping and card applications expected to continue to increase in2011, consumers are likely to place even greater emphasis oncompetitive card features and offerings as well as enticing rewardsprograms."

Low interest rates, the lack of annual fees, and rewards programswere regarded as the most important features by most cardholders,with low interest rates deemed most important by 40 percent ofconsumers. Rewards programs rank third in importance to cardholdersbut represent an opportunity to incentivize consumers to increasetheir overall use of credit as opposed to using a debit card orcash.

The most important credit card reward offerings were cash back(57 percent of respondents), merchant rewards (13 percent), flexiblepoints (13 percent) and airline miles (10 percent).

As card issuers continue to develop websites and mobileapplications as a way to engage with cardholders, a noticeable shiftcan be seen in consumers' use of these channels as opposed to moretraditional channels. In 2010, 76 percent of cardholders reportedaccessing their accounts online, up 5-percentage points from a yearago.

While mobile applications and sites are not used to the sameextent as other channels, they are gaining popularity. Amongcardholders with mobile phones, 16 percent reported accessing theirissuer's site through a mobile browser and 13 percent reportedaccessing their accounts through mobile applications.

More Information:

http://www.comscore.com/Press_Events/Presentations_Whitepapers/2011/The_2010_Online_Credit_Card_Report

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