Apple Card is the biggest marketing ploy for iPhone ever made. here's why

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By CCN Markets: The first thing to understand about the Apple card is that it is not exactly a card. Without a doubt, the entry of the tech giant into the financial sector brings to the forefront an extremely white credit card, made of titanium – which has abandoned the 16-digit numbers found on traditional credit / debit cards.

Where are the reward points?

But Apple Card does not matter, because Apple does not recommend users to use the card. Instead, the company introduces additional layers of hardware requirements, in the form of expensive iPhones and digital watches, and [literally] underused users to use them. This decision makes Apple Card appear as a by-product in its own way, and not as an idiosyncratic phenomenon.

This is evident in the operation of Apple's cash back programs. If an average consumer uses an Apple Card directly to pay for goods and services, he receives a 1% refund, against 2% when he uses the Apple Pay mobile payment service. At the same time, consumers receive an additional cash back of 3% when buying Apple products, including App Store payments, via Apple Pay.

That's why one wonders why Apple had to invent a clean-cut map while it was only a backup for places that do not accept Apple Pay . The 1% Cash Back seems like a cruel joke, especially when other credit cards offer better loyalty points, making Apple Card a useless addition to its wallet.

For example, if a customer buys regularly on Amazon.com or Whole Foods, he is more likely to use the Amazon Prime Rewards Visa Signature card because it returns 5% of cash back on his purchases. But using the Apple card, rewards are reduced to only 1%. Even if you use the card to pay at gas stations, restaurants or pharmacies, it pays only 2%. Bank of America's Cash Rewards card does the same for 3%.

Encourage users to buy iPhones

Apple Card is therefore limited to one thing: make an Apple addict an average user. The highest reward points are reserved for consumers eager for Apple products. The payment service of the company will be particularly useful for those looking to buy the latest iPhone, Macbooks, Apple Watch and even subscriptions to iCloud, Apple Music, etc.

This is of course the object of every moment of Apple: the more he brings people into his walled garden, the more likely they are to pay for his products. The Apple card is exclusively available to iPhone users, which means that it would cost at least $ 600 to be able to use it. A typical bank would not force the phone to sell its card services.

The strategy closely follows Apple's results in the second quarter of 2019. The company has announced a significant decline in sales of its iPhones – under $ 26 billion on a global business figure of 53.89 billion of dollars. This was the lowest smartphone revenue since 2012, indicating that customers were turning to cheaper and more reliable alternatives in the Android market.

Apple Financial Director Luca Maestri told the Financial Times that the company is optimistic for the September quarter when it will launch more services, including video streaming, gaming, and most importantly, credit cards. .

'Apart from the iPhone, the company is showing a growth of 17%. When you combine portable services and equipment – categories that did not exist nearly a few years ago – you combine these two companies, which are already approaching the size of a Fortune 50 company, with strong double-digit growth . "

This explains why the Apple card is simply a ploy to link users to their iPhone while managing their wealth. Rest in peace, reward points.

This article is protected by copyright laws and belongs to CCN Markets.

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