Digital Transactions Authoritative, insightful and timely information for payments professionals
American Express Co. cardholders are about to see targeted ads from premium brands on some AmEx-owned platforms.
Announced Monday, Amex Ads is a digital advertising platform to help brands reach the issuer’s 34 million U.S. cardholders. It begins on AmexTravel.com and will expand to other AmEx-owned platforms.
AmEx says this new service builds on its Amex Offers platform, which launched in 2012, and will enable brands to reach these consumers at opportune times. In one instance, Marriott Bonvoy, the hotelier’s loyalty program, used Amex Ads to convert AmEx cardholders who had booked a flight on AmexTravel.com, but not a hotel. In another, travel products seller Tumi uses Amex Ads to target users during and after travel bookings using ads on AmexTravel.com and emails from Amex Travel.
AmEx outlines four steps to use Amex Ads. First is designing the campaign, which could have a new-customer acquisition purpose or the aim of building loyalty with existing customers, for example. The next step is getting the messages in front of AmEx cardholders. Cardholders may then add the offers to their cards and redeem them. Advertisers receive detailed reports that can include average transaction size, customer demographics, and the value of the media they used.
Amex Offers generated $15 billion in global spending in 2024, of which $13 billion was at U.S. merchants that accept Amex cards.
In related news, AmEx says its Global Business Travel unit, operated by its Global Business Travel Group Inc., will work with SAP Concur, a travel expense and management platform.
This move entails an integration of Concur Expense for Amex GBT Egencia customers and a new service called Complete. AmEx acquired Egencia from Expedia Group in 2021.
Complete will use an artificial intelligence-enabled user experience and personalization interface and provide one app and one view across online and offline travel matters.
