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What card would you design?

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cws-21
Established Contributor

What card would you design?

For a fun thought excercise, what credit card would you design if you could? The only "rule," not that I can enforce it anyway, is that the card would have to be something that could actually exist and would benefit not only you, but also the credit card issuer. I have provided some food for thought below to consider, though I am sure there are many things that I have not considered. Feel free to include or exclude anything. However, I think this discussion will be most interesting to read, even just for me, if the choices you make are practical/feasible rather than designing a card that would be great for you, but horrible for the credit card issuer.

 

Cash back or points/miles

Network (e.g., Visa, Mastercard, American Express, or Discover)

Issuer (e.g., Chase, American Express, Citi, etc.)

Way in which cash back or points are earned (e.g., 5% cash back on Walmart and PayPal, 4x points at restaurants, etc.)

Limit on cash back or points (e.g., cash back on up to $1,500 per quarter, 4x points on up to $25,000 per year, etc.)

Annual fee

Benefits or perks (e.g., lounge access, cellphone protection, etc.)

Welcome bonus (e.g., amount and required spend within a certain amount of time)

APR or APR range

Credits (e.g., up to $120 dining credit per year)

Message 1 of 5
4 REPLIES 4
BearsCubsOtters
Frequent Contributor

Re: What card would you design?


@cws-21 wrote:

For a fun thought excercise, what credit card would you design if you could? The only "rule," not that I can enforce it anyway, is that the card would have to be something that could actually exist and would benefit not only you, but also the credit card issuer. I have provided some food for thought below to consider, though I am sure there are many things that I have not considered. Feel free to include or exclude anything. However, I think this discussion will be most interesting to read, even just for me, if the choices you make are practical/feasible rather than designing a card that would be great for you, but horrible for the credit card issuer.

 

Cash back or points/miles

Network (e.g., Visa, Mastercard, American Express, or Discover)

Issuer (e.g., Chase, American Express, Citi, etc.)

Way in which cash back or points are earned (e.g., 5% cash back on Walmart and PayPal, 4x points at restaurants, etc.)

Limit on cash back or points (e.g., cash back on up to $1,500 per quarter, 4x points on up to $25,000 per year, etc.)

Annual fee

Benefits or perks (e.g., lounge access, cellphone protection, etc.)

Welcome bonus (e.g., amount and required spend within a certain amount of time)

APR or APR range

Credits (e.g., up to $120 dining credit per year)


For me, I am a cash back kind of guy so I will skip the points/travel:

 

Cash back 

Network: Visa or mastercard; no preference

Issuer: really any except the obvious First Premier/Credit One sort of players and it would have to be available nationally

Way in which cash back is earned: 2%-3% on all purchases

Limit on cash back: none/unlimited

Annual fee: none

Benefits or perks: "true" Visa Signature/world elite mastercard benefits like when they were first launched/cell phone protection

Welcome bonus: $300 after $3,000 spend in the first 90 days

APR or APR range: 12.99%-20.99% (for those who pay interest on reward cards, thank you for helping pay my rewards!)

Credits: none/NA welcome bonus/cashback earnings and low APR are enough. The bank has to profit afterall.

Redemption process: (I added this category) I want the ability to control how my rewards are redeemed. I prefer being able to accumulate my earnings and then have those rewards transferred to checking or savings. I HATE how Amex and AOD FCU (among others) automatically redeem your cash rewards each month to the statement balance. It feels like the earnings are lost that way. 

 

I believe what I have written above is doable and there are already cards that offer a lot of this already (to prove your rule of making this a doable to both consumers and issuers). Anything above 3% cash back just does not seem likely at this time as the bank and its shareholders have to profit as well. And if the interchange fee/swipe fee charged to merchants gets any higher (to pay for rewards) they are going to revolt and/or raise prices to compensate and then, are you really gaining anything?

 

Existing cards that are similar to what I wrote above (which also aligns to your rule of my card design actually being a possibility):

 

USAA Limitless Cashback Rewards; I have one, not availale to new applicants. 2.5% cash back on everything, no limit and I choose how my rewards are redeemed. 

Alliant CU has the Visa Signature with 2.5% cash back but I believe there is a yearly limit and it requires $1000 in checking at all times.

AOD FCU: 3% cash back BUT, you have to join yet another credit union (same is true with Alliant) AND they automatically cash out your rewards as a statement credit. Hard pass.

USAlliance CU: 3% is a promotion that keeps getting extended but will likely be reduced at some point. Yet another credit union to join. No idea of the specifics of this card as it absolutely does nothing for me. 

 

Capital One Quicksilver and NFCU Cash Rewards really need to step up and up their 1.5% (1.75% at NFCU with direct deposit) to a full 2%. I would also like to see Citibank Double Cash just earn 2% as you spend rather than 1% as you spend/1% as you pay. 

 

And finally, I would lobby Amex/Discover/mastercard/Visa and the US government if I had to to ban vertical/portrait style cards! I freaking hate them!!!!

Message 2 of 5
TSlop
Valued Contributor

Re: What card would you design?

Type: cash back.

 

Network: no preference.

 

Issuer: Google

 

Rewards: 3% Google purchases and when used for Google Fi bill. 2% with Google pay. 1% everywhere else. (Not very creative; mimicking Apple)

 

Limit on cash back: none

 

Annual fee: none.

 

Benefits or perks: cell phone protection on Google pixels and other Google products. 18-24 month financing on products.

 

Welcome bonus: $100-200 cashback for $500 spend.

 

APR or APR range: normal.

 

Credits: probably none, but maybe $5 Google Fi credit per month.

 

I think Google is missing out on this with Apple having a credit card. I know there is synchrony, but I'd like to see a physical card to be used, a la Apple.

Message 3 of 5
Aim_High
Super Contributor

Re: What card would you design?


@BearsCubsOtters wrote:

And finally, I would lobby Amex/Discover/mastercard/Visa and the US government if I had to to ban vertical/portrait style cards! I freaking hate them!!!!


+1  It seems people either love them or hate them!   I'm with you.  It won't stop me from adding vertical cards but would make me thing twice.  US Bank just redesigned all of theirs and I have none yet, so it adds to my hesitation about them.   In US Bank's credit, they at least included the horizontal name along the vertical edge so it shows in the typical (traditional) wallet slot.  Some issuers don't even do that.  


Business Cards


Length of Credit > 40 years; Total Credit Limits >$850K
Top Lender TCL - Chase 156.4 - BofA 99.7 - AMEX 95.0 - CITI 94.5 - NFCU 80.0
AoOA > 30 years (Jun 1993); AoYA (Aug 2023)
* Hover cursor over cards to see name & CL, or press & hold on mobile app.
Message 4 of 5
BearsCubsOtters
Frequent Contributor

Re: What card would you design?


@Aim_High wrote:

@BearsCubsOtters wrote:

And finally, I would lobby Amex/Discover/mastercard/Visa and the US government if I had to to ban vertical/portrait style cards! I freaking hate them!!!!


+1  It seems people either love them or hate them!   I'm with you.  It won't stop me from adding vertical cards but would make me thing twice.  US Bank just redesigned all of theirs and I have none yet, so it adds to my hesitation about them.   In US Bank's credit, they at least included the horizontal name along the vertical edge so it shows in the typical (traditional) wallet slot.  Some issuers don't even do that.  


Agreed. They even switched the basic debit card....my debit card and Business Platinum don't expire until 2025 so hopefully they come to their senses by then.

 

US Bank has never been known to have attractive cards, though I would argue the cards of about 2015-2020 were actually so. I just really hate vertical cards. It's like, stop trying to reinvent the wheel. 

 

I sent them hate mail from time to time but it falls on deaf ears; or rather, blind eyes. I will keep doing it though. At the very least it would be nice if they offered a normal card for those who want one. Chase did...when they made Slate portrait style many years ago I let them know what I thought and they sent me a normal, landscape version in the mail.

Message 5 of 5
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