"Targeting Homebodies"... Card Companies Compete to Attract Untact Consumers

Untact Consumption Target
Use of OTT and Delivery Apps
Offering Discounts and Rewards
Expanding Easy Payment Options

[Asia Economy Reporter Ki Ha-young] Yu Hee-jin (42), a dual-income housewife from the 'DINK' group, has been doing 90% of her shopping online or via mobile since the outbreak of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19). She receives early morning deliveries of groceries and other food items through Market Kurly, and most of her meals are ordered through delivery apps such as Baedal Minjok. She hardly dares to go out, so she spends most of her time at home reading or watching movies. She subscribes to books regularly and uses Netflix for movies and dramas. Yu said, "Since most consumption happens at home, I started looking into credit card benefits related to untact (contactless) services, which I wasn't interested in before," adding, "I mainly use cards that offer discounts on delivery apps and real-time online video (OTT) services."

As untact consumption culture spreads due to COVID-19, credit card companies have started targeting the 'stay-at-home' crowd. They are actively attracting customers by launching new products aimed at untact consumption or renewing existing products by adding related benefits.

According to the industry on the 11th, Lotte Card re-released the discontinued Lotte Like It Fun on the 1st as 'Like It Fun Plus.' The core of the renewal is untact. It added a 5% discount on delivery apps and offers an additional 10% benefit when using easy payment at Starbucks, allowing discounts of up to 60%.

Samsung Card also revamped its existing card, 'American Express Blue,' to strengthen untact consumption benefits. It offers 7% point accumulation for convenience store and delivery app payments, and 5% for transportation and telecommunications payments. It also provides 1.5% point accumulation for easy payments.

Hyundai Card renewed 'Hyundai Card Zero' as 'Zero Edition 2' in May and newly introduced it. It offers 1.5% discount (discount type) or 2.5% M-point accumulation (point type) benefits on payments in specialized areas reflecting untact consumption culture, such as seven major online easy payment services, ten major online shopping malls, and social commerce.

From New Products to Renewals... Focus on Untact Consumption

New cards released this year have also flooded the market with products targeting untact consumption, reflecting changes in consumption and payment patterns due to COVID-19. Samsung Card launched three digital specialized products on the 3rd. Among them, 'Tap Tap Digital' offers a 5% discount when paying at domestic online merchants using Samsung Pay, Naver Pay, Kakao Pay, Payco, Smile Pay, etc., and up to a 20,000 KRW discount on the payment date depending on the previous month's usage amount.

The 'Shinhan Card YaY' launched in the first half of the year targeted the home economy (home + economy) and untact consumption market. Its distinctive feature is the 'Mariage' service, which provides benefits when using OTT services and food delivery services together, a first in the industry. Woori Card even reflected untact in the card name with 'Card of Jeongseok Untact.' It includes discounts on more than five regular payments and easy payment discounts simultaneously. It fully discounts the 2,900 KRW monthly fee for Coupang Rocket Wow membership. Hana Card also started with the mobile-only 'Everyone's Shopping' card, which offers 5-10% basic accumulation in online and offline shopping sectors, and continues to release cards targeting untact consumption.

An industry official said, "As consumption patterns have changed with the expansion of easy payments due to COVID-19, new products responding to this have been released," adding, "Cards launched this year commonly include services such as online shopping, delivery apps, and OTT."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.