College students and credit cards
By 1998, direct-mail solicitations peaked at 3.5 billion and then dipped by about 10 percent in 1999. Overall, about three out of four U.S. households receive these "invitations" in the mail. This means that 35-75 pre-approved offers are delivered annually to each of these targeted households, depending upon their consumption activities and debt levels. 11
Since the early 1980s, consumer College students and credit cards has become the lifeblood of the U.S. economy. In fact, consumer College students and credit cards are so important in influencing domestic economic trends (inflation, GDP, and employment) that President Carter in 1980 and President Bush in 1991 sought to regulate officially the availability and cost. Nevertheless, most Americans are unaware of the larger economic forces and institutional motivations that influence their daily attitudes toward consumption, College students and credit cards, and debt. This is due to the sophisticated advertising strategies of the College students and credit cards industry, which quickly learned from early consumer research studies that "changes in [consumer attitudes] will lead to changes in the aggregate demand for consumer installment College students and credit cards." With slick yet familiar-sounding names such as Visa, MasterCard, American Express (Optima), Discover (Private Issue), and the hi-tech Blue card, the industry entices us with sales pitches that emphasize financial freedom and security: "Have it the way you want it with Visa," "Master the moment," "The American Express card: Your key . . . opens doors for you all over the world," "It pays to Discover," "Private Issue–the card you design to meet your changing [financial] needs," and "Blue [smart card] from American Express . . . a little piece of the future that got here early."
Interestingly, the standard American Express charge card promotes the economic virtue of Puritan thrift (no costly finance charges), since all purchases must be paid in full each month. Yet, at the same time, its TV commercials and billboards subliminally offer status-conscious club members the vicarious thrill of rubbing shoulders with celebrity members–many of whose profligate lifestyles are regaled in journalistic reports of the rich and famous. Not unexpectedly, the success of this marketing strategy has not been ignored by AMEX competitors. Television ads of Visa, MasterCard, and Discover have featured a wide range of celebrities, including singer Tony Bennett, politician Bob Dole, musician Elton John, basketball star Hakeem Olajuwon, football/baseball star Dion Sanders, James Bond ( actor Pierce Brosnan), actor Gregory Hines, actor John Lithgow, actress Shirley MacLaine, political consultant James Carville, and writer Kurt Vonnegut, alas, no academics. Discover’s Private Issue has offered personalized College students and credit cards featuring a choice of celebrity designs by Florence Griffith Joyner, Jane Seymour, and Ringo Starr. Other College students and credit cards have been tied to rock bands (KISS, Rolling Stones) or popular culture, such as the MBNA Garfield MasterCard, the Austin Powers "It’s titanium, baby" Visa, and the Dilbert NextCard Visa that lets members choose their official PictureCard and titles such as Supreme Ruler or Evil Director of HR (Human Resources).