GM Card links nicely with Visa
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I read with interest your article on the growing trend in partnership marketing “Joint deals put strain on core brand values” (MW July 12), in which you interview Tom Blackett, deputy chairman of Interbrand, about some partnership combinations. I would like to respond to his comments on the GM Card and its relationship with Visa, and his misconception that these are “strange bedfellows”.
The GM Card was the first co-branded card in the UK. It is both a loyalty card and a credit card. The benefits to all parties concerned – the consumer, Vauxhall, Visa and Mastercard – are considerable.
Blackett’s belief that the long-term benefits to Vauxhall are probably “not a great deal” is incorrect. The card has attracted a new target market to Vauxhall, opening regular channels of communication to people we haven’t reached before.
Richard Parker
The GM Card
Luton