With recent premium card refreshes and releases, card issuers remain focused on the new benefits and improved reward rates, especially for those geared toward travel. Credit card firms, however, still inconsistently promote one stand-out feature: curated premium experiences for their cardholders.
Travel remains the primary way firms market these premium cards, but Corporate Insight’s (CI) recent Credit Card Monitor – Premium Card Mobile Reward and Benefit Platforms report indicates that premium experiences deserve more attention. In a recent survey conducted by CI, 71% of cardholders stated that travel benefits were the main reason that they chose their current premium card over other credit cards, while exclusive events didn’t even break the top five. Yet major players in the credit card space, like American Express, Chase, Citi, Wells Fargo, and Capital One, offer their cardholders the opportunity to attend these custom experiences. Cardholders take advantage of these experiences at an increasing rate. CI found that while only 25% of cardholders indicated that they preferred to redeem rewards for tickets to experiences, 32% of cardholders redeemed their rewards for them.
Credit card firms offer premium experiences across a range of markets including travel, dining, entertainment, sports, and fashion, appealing to various audiences from festival goers and fashionistas to foodies and globetrotters. The conducted survey revealed that the most common experiences cardholders attended were travel, entertainment, and dining-focused.
Chase and Capital One are two firms that dive into premium travel experiences, offering curated trips for their Sapphire Reserve and Venture X cardholders. The Chase Sapphire Reserve trips have spanned both domestic and international locations, often taking place around key holidays or events such as its Celebrate Día de los Muertos trip in Mexico and its Surf Ranch experience with the World Surf League in California.
Capital One takes a different route for its travel trips, partnering with travel agency PRIOR, art collective DRIFT, and the MICHELIN Guide to provide international trips exploring cities and countries like Amsterdam, France, Peru, and Italy. As both styles of trips have sold out at each firm, understanding which style of trip premium travelers prefer should be a crucial focus for firms looking to enter the exclusive premium travel space.
Attracting foodies, many premium cards also offer premium dining experiences like Platinum Nights by Resy (by Amex), Your Table, Reserved (by Chase) and Dinner Parties (by Capital One); Amex, Chase, and Capital One all additionally provide elevated dining experiences that build on more than just a dinner reservation.
In the past year, the three firms offering unique dining experiences have spanned across meals designed by notable chefs like Capital One’s events with José Andrés, collaborations with notable brands or people like Amex’s Summer EDITION Montauk or unique dining locations like Chase’s Dinner on the Court or at the Opry, highlighting a demand for distinctive one-of-a-kind dining experiences outside of the standard dinner reservation.
It’s no surprise that cardholders prefer travel and dining experiences as their top two attended events, as CI notes that cardholders who frequently eat out and travel are more likely to attend these premium experiences offered by the firms, highlighting key opportunities for credit card firms to continue to develop unique trips and dining that will pull their clientele in.
As these experiences continue to expand, it will be interesting to see how both credit card firms with established premium cards and those looking to expand their portfolio, like Robinhood with its new Platinum Card, will build off the growing interest in these premium-access events. Will they share more on social media and target younger generations like Amex and Chase? Will they activate long-standing partnerships and sponsorships to create fan-based experiences like Capital One’s MLB focus? Or will they choose to home in on one style of event such as Wells Fargo’s Autograph Exclusive’s entertainment events?
To continue to dive deeper into the world of premium card offerings, check out CI’s Credit Card Monitor – Premium Card Mobile Reward and Benefit Platforms report, or contact us to learn more about how CI research can transform your organization’s digital experiences.
Lauren Bilkis
Lauren Bilkis is an analyst on CI's consulting team.