"Welcome In" to American Express' Newest Brand Campaign Entitled, "The Membership Effect"

Note to visitors: We have moved!  For current news and information, please visit our successor blogs: http://JBK-BizTech.blogspot.com and http://JBK-Current-Events.blogspot.com.  Thank you."Welcome In" to American Express' Newest Brand Campaign Entitled, "The Membership Effect"Television Spots Featuring Actor/Comedian Aziz Ansari, Restaurateur Thomas Keller and Small Business Saturday Highlight Unique Benefits and Value American Express Provides Consumers and Merchants

Broadcast and Cable Presence for Ads Across Two Dozen Networks

NEW YORK,  March 28, 2012 -- 

American Express announced the launch of its latest television and digital brand campaign entitled, "The Membership Effect," which chronicles the power of the unique benefits and innovations available to the millions of American Express Cardmembers and merchant partners connecting globally every day.

The campaign is the centerpiece of a broader effort that American Express is taking to educate its customers about the potential that American Express offers to connect people to possibilities through the power of its network, or "The Membership Effect." The American Express network connects millions of consumers, merchants and businesses around the globe in a payments and commerce ecosystem that creates value for all its participants. American Express is built on relationships, insights gleaned from data, and the ability to use these assets to enhance lives and build business success for its customers.

The campaign aims to showcase how American Express delivers benefits, rewards, savings and experiences for customers and services and relationships that help its merchant partners succeed through television spots featuring actor/comedian Aziz Ansari, chef/restaurateur Thomas Keller and the Company's Small Business Saturday initiative.

The campaign also introduces a new tagline for American Express, "Welcome In," to highlight that membership in a networked world is inclusive, ambitious and emphasizes the advantages that come from belonging to the American Express community, called out as "the power of all of us."

The campaign kicked off on March 15 and has aired during primetime lineups on CBS, NBC and Fox and will include such network hits as American Idol, Glee, CSI, Big Bang Theory, Saturday Night Live, Touch, Smash and The Voice. Thirty-second and sixty-second versions of the Keller and Small Business Saturday executions will air across more than two dozen broadcast and cable networks including AMC, ESPN, TBS and Comedy Central throughout the spring. The digital campaign includes a heavy presence across Facebook, Twitter and Apple's iAd mobile platform.

Two new executions featuring Ansari begin airing today.

"Through the unique American Express ecosystem of buyers and sellers, we have the ability to offer our Cardmembers and merchant partners additional value and service. Nowhere is that more evident than with our collaborations with Facebook, foursquare and, most recently, Twitter -- which allow us to connect and facilitate both experiences and commerce between Cardmembers and merchants," said John Hayes, Chief Marketing Officer, American Express. "The Membership Effect captures that idea, of how American Express is creating powerful connections and shared value between the members of the American Express community of consumers, merchants and small business owners."

Several American Express programs that capitalize on the power and potential of "The Membership Effect" are highlighted in the advertising campaign, including:

Creating Rich Experiences for Cardmembers
American Express partnered with Aziz Ansari to develop three humorous spots showing how he is able to take advantage of exclusive offers for American Express Cardmembers by "syncing" his Card to Facebook, Twitter and foursquare. A :60 spot takes Ansari on a journey with the help of his American Express Card following his quest to win the heart of a young woman, and two :30 versions show Ansari feeding his love of kayaking and the tuba. The ads illustrate how American Express uses social media platforms to add value to Cardmembers by allowing seamless redemption of merchant offers without the need for coupons or special codes.

Delivering Value to Businesses
The spots featuring Thomas Keller share how "The Membership Effect" benefits him as a small business owner and American Express merchant partner. Throughout the spot, Keller shares how American Express harnesses the power of its network of buyers and sellers to grow his business and provides insights and tools that help him expand his customer base and support the local economy in Yountville, California, home to his first restaurant The French Laundry, and beyond.

Consumers and Communities Connecting to Support Small Business
American Express' successful Small Business Saturday initiative – which drives millions of consumers to small businesses around the country – is profiled in multiple television spots to highlight the role that American Express, consumers and merchants play to support an important economic engine: small business.

For more information on "The Membership Effect," visit americanexpress.com/me. All of the spots can be viewed online at youtube.com/americanexpress.

About American Express
American Express is a global services company, providing customers with access to products, insights and experiences that enrich lives and build business success. Learn more at americanexpress.com and connect with us on facebook.com/americanexpress,twitter.com/americanexpress and youtube.com/americanexpress.

T.S.A. Is Considering Automating ID Checks

Excerpt from an article in

The New York Times

Tuesday, March 20, 2012

T.S.A. Is Considering Automating ID Checks

By SUSAN STELLIN The Transportation Security Administration has spent a lot of money on technology to keep dangerous items off planes — with mixed results — but has been slower to address another risk: travelers who are using a fake boarding pass or identification.

Despite announcing plans last fall to test machines that can electronically verify passengers’ documents, the agency still relies on its agents to visually inspect boarding passes and IDs, and confirm that each traveler matches the photo on a driver’s license or passport. At a busy airport, one employee may check several hundred documents an hour.

The repetitiveness of that task has left plenty of room for human error, as Michael Krug and his colleague discovered when they were on a Delta flight in February and realized they each had a boarding pass for seat 12C, both printed with Mr. Krug’s name.

“The person at security didn’t notice that my co-worker’s boarding pass had my name on it and he had an ID with his name,” Mr. Krug said.

The two men checked in as part of a group and figured that the agent must have handed them two copies of the same boarding pass, a mistake that was overlooked at the security line and then again at the gate. That triple error may be rare, but it highlights a security flaw that has been publicized many times.

Last year, for instance, a Nigerian man managed to fly free from New York to Los Angeles with an expired boarding pass in someone else’s name, but was arrested a few days later at Los Angeles International Airport when he tried to fly to Atlanta using another expired pass.

Travelers, security specialists and the news media have reported many other instances when T.S.A. agents failed to notice a fake or expired boarding pass or improper identification, a vulnerability that has been a concern since it was discovered that many of the 9/11 hijackers had obtained fraudulent IDs.

With the advent of online check-in, it became easy to digitally alter a real boarding pass with a different name or new travel date and print a copy that would get through security. There have even been Web sites that generated a fake boarding pass or provided instructions on how to make one at home.

The T.S.A. said it was working to address this problem as part of its shift toward a more risk-based approach to screening passengers, which gives higher scrutiny to travelers the government knows less about.

In October, the agency announced that it was spending $3.2 million to buy 30 document authentication systems from three vendors, which it planned to test in airports in early 2012. Those tests are now expected at select airports “in the coming months,” said Greg Soule, an agency spokesman.

“The technology is designed to read security features embedded in both the boarding pass and ID to verify their authenticity and ensure the names match,” Mr. Soule said in an e-mail.

News Release from JPMorgan - Strategic Partnership

March 8, 2012

JPMorgan Chase and AirPlus International Form Strategic Partnership
New Partnership Will Provide Corporations and Their Employees With Integrated Expense Management Solutions That Deliver Local Expertise With Worldwide Reach

NEW YORK - March 8, 2012 - JPMorgan Chase & Co. Global Commercial Card business (NYSE: JPM) and AirPlus International, a leading provider of corporate travel & entertainment expense solutions, today announced the formation of a strategic partnership to help multinational organizations optimize processes and strengthen control of their corporate card and travel expense management programs. The comprehensive offering will provide leading solutions to both business travellers on the road and their travel managers at home.

By integrating AirPlus' innovative approach and expertise in corporate travel payment with J.P. Morgan's strength in global corporate banking services, the partnership will bring powerful benefits to organizations around the world.  This arrangement will generate new and innovative solutions in the corporate travel payments industry.

"AirPlus has developed a leading edge solution in helping corporations better manage their global travel spend," said Andrew Pilkington, President, Global Commercial Card, J.P. Morgan. "Together, we are delivering a compelling alternative to traditional corporate card programs. We will offer clients a complete suite of travel & entertainment payment solutions that provide world-class technology, travel expense management expertise and local service and knowledge. This partnership fully supports our strategy of delivering innovative yet practical solutions to drive a first-class client experience on a global scale."

"J.P. Morgan's strength and depth of experience in the cards business is an excellent fit with our know-how in international corporate payment solutions, and we are delighted to form this strategic partnership," said Patrick Diemer, Chairman of the Executive Board, AirPlus. "The partnership will form the basis for continued and sustainable growth of our global market share and bring us ever closer to our goals of becoming the preferred global provider of business travel payment solutions."

The features and benefits that the new J.P. Morgan and AirPlus partnership will bring to market will be announced in the coming months.

Airline Woes

Excerpt from an article in

The New York Times

Tuesday, March 06, 2012

Manifestos for Travelers, Not Just Airlines - On the Road

By JOE SHARKEY

AS they say in the Navy when seas get rough, stand by for heavy rolls. If you think that airplanes are crowded now, if you worry about service to smaller and midsize cities, if you’re alarmed by rising airfares, just wait.

“I don’t think people realize what’s coming,” said Michael Boyd, the president of the airline forecaster Boyd Group International. “Airlines are going to do O.K., but doing O.K. means they’re going to be dropping a lot of places they now fly. Air travel is going to get accessed by fewer and fewer people,” as airlines continue to reduce service to many markets to cut costs, he said.

“This is a mixed metaphor, but it’s going to be a sea change in air travel patterns,” he said.

For over a year, most airlines have been reducing capacity in the domestic air travel system while concentrating on the major routes that provide the most revenue and feed their international routes. Still, they are clearly worried about the future, with fuel now accounting for about 35 percent of costs, and travelers starting to push back against steady increases in fares. Domestic airlines collectively earned $390 million last year, and $2.7 billion in 2010, after a decade in which they collectively lost $53 billion, according to Airlines for America, the industry trade group.

Last week, the trade group issued a detailed “Case for a U.S. National Airline Policy,” calling on the federal government to reduce aviation taxes and regulations, assist the industry in facing more aggressive global competition, curb fuel prices and volatility and spend more money on improving the national air traffic control system and other federal services.

The trade group, in its manifesto, said the airlines wanted “a cohesive policy supporting the integral role of the U.S. airline industry in our economy,” and argued that without help, “domestic service levels will suffer,” especially at smaller cities and rural communities.

Updating Travel Policy

News release from American Express:

The One Business Resolution Companies Can't Afford to Break: Updating Travel PolicyLess Than One Third of Companies Have Updated Their Travel Policies within the Last Year According to New Research from American Express Global Business Travel

NEW YORK, NY,  February 6, 2012 -- 

New research by American Express Global Business Travel outlines gaps and opportunities for companies to strengthen managed travel programs by focusing on their travel and expense policies early this year. Analyzing nearly 100 travel policies of global, multinational, and mid-sized companies, the research shows less than one third of these companies overall have updated their travel policies within the last year. This oversight can leave companies exposed to losing hard-earned corporate negotiated rates, and more importantly, may put travelers at unnecessary risk.

"It's a new year and with any good business practice, corporate travel departments are setting goals, including bringing their programs in line with the competition and external marketplace dynamics," said Christa Degnan Manning, director of EXPERT INSIGHTS research, American Express Global Business Travel. "However, like many improvement resolutions, reviewing and revising travel policy tends to get neglected. Yet a healthy travel policy can help companies achieve long-term success. Policies can support business-critical goals such as risk mitigation and employee engagement, as they touch on issues from traveler safety and security to corporate social responsibility."

This new Best Practice Roadmap report on Travel Policy, produced by EXPERT INSIGHTS, shows many organizations still need to close the gap between their policy content and emerging industry trends.

Highlights of the policy gaps exposed in this report, based on 100 corporate policies reviewed, include:

• Only 12% addressed traveler security despite it being a critical issue for companies to consider as more and more employees embark on worldwide business travel today
• 80% did not address reimbursement of ancillary fees such as checked bags, reservation change fees, or other for-purchase services offered at hotels and car rentals
• Only 35% of smaller companies and large international organizations require an agency to book hotels, compared to 85% of global companies
• None of the travel policies addressed the use of mobile applications or even referenced tools they may have available for travelers to use on the road or when working remotely
• 70% of companies do not provide specific guidelines to travelers on when it makes sense to book airfares through a non-preferred supplier if the ticket price is less expensive

"Policy is the foundation of a successful managed travel program and maintaining this infrastructure by conducting regular check-ups is paramount," said Helen Brough, Advisory Services Global Policy Practice Director, American Express Global Business Travel. "In our policy practice we have identified over 300 areas companies should be reviewing in their policy for the best outcomes – for the company, for the traveling employees, and for ultimate travel management program success. Companies that are most successful are those that regularly review and update their travel policies based on changing market conditions as well as focus on communicating those policies to their travelers."

FILLING THE GAPS

• Security: Companies should provide guidance to their travelers for the range of areas associated with security, such as how to prepare for a trip, what to do during a trip, and after travel, particularly when traveling to high-risk destinations. Guidance around what to do during a travel emergency or disruption should also not go overlooked in policies, as well as information on security around company assets.
   
• Fees: Addressing the various fees that travelers are confronted with while on the road remains a policy opportunity. It should be made easier on travelers in understanding what is reimbursable as well as being made aware of waived fees and other benefits associated with booking with preferred suppliers, such as free checked baggage on airlines or complimentary wi-fi as part of a hotel rate.
   
• Hotel Compliance: Safety and security rank at the top of the list of reasons for traveler compliance to hotel policy. Knowing the city to which a traveler is headed is only half of the equation, particularly when locating travelers in an emergency. This area also poses the greatest area of leakage in travel policy, compromising negotiated rates when booking hotels outside of policy. Companies should communicate to travelers the reasons for booking hotels at the same time as air reservations.
   
• Mobile Technology: There have been advancements in travel technology that can help business travelers manage trip details before, during and after traveling. Company supported mobile applications can be used to facilitate communication, both during critical issues like travel emergencies and for day-to-day support, including policy and traveler benefits notifications. A successful travel policy should include rules for these resources, and help travelers find and take advantage of them to save time and increase compliance.
   
• Addressing Lowest Logical Airfare: Companies increasingly have introduced language instructing employees to find the lowest fare possible, regardless of whether or not a flight is with a preferred supplier. The reality of this practice is that the individual trip savings by booking cheaper fares with non-preferred airlines can jeopardize negotiated rates, unintentionally driving up overall travel costs over time. Guidelines should be established indicating when this practice should be used. Recent capacity constraints, merger and acquisition activity, and even low-cost carrier dynamics require that travel managers revisit this concept and communicate it appropriately in policy.

Tips for Making Policy Connect to Travelers
"As today's global marketplace is constantly changing, and the logistics of capitalizing on growth in emerging markets make travel more complex than ever before, it is not enough to just develop a travel policy and assume that employees know what to do with it," continued Brough. "Companies should be actively leveraging and communicating their travel policy to employees and enlisting influencers within the company such as Human Resources, Security and Legal to support these efforts."

• Make it Accessible: There are many ways a company can address communicating to travelers and encouraging compliance, including using pre-trip tools, policy messages integrated at the point of sale and even prior to booking. Intranets and other portals can also provide a channel to communicate policy to help travelers make the right decisions.
   
• Appeal to the Traveler: If travelers do not understand their travel policy or know where to find it, it is unlikely that it will be adhered to or that travelers will be able to benefit from the perks. Most employees want to do the right thing by the business, so businesses need to let employees know what is in it for the company and for them. That way the traveler can benefit from the perks of following the policy and the company can benefit from travel policy compliance.
   
• Revisit for Relevancy: Establish a policy team with representatives from all stakeholders, including those that can represent the traveler, and charge them with the maintenance of the travel policy. Then communicate changes to travelers so everyone can stay current.
   
• Eliminate Uncertainty: It has been reported that one in four expense reports is typically sent back to the traveler for clarification or additional documentation support. Travel policy should take into consideration the process for expense reimbursement. The better a traveler understands the reimbursement process, the less time will be spent on re-doing these reports.

About American Express Global Business Travel
American Express Global Business Travel, a division of American Express Company, is a global industry leader in business travel and meetings management committed to helping businesses succeed through cost-effective program management, world-class customer service, and enhanced traveler productivity support worldwide. Through leading online, offline and on-the-go solutions, consulting services, business insights and research, supplier negotiation expertise, and meetings and events capabilities, innovative services are delivered to clients to maximize the return on their travel and meetings investments. Learn more at americanexpress.com/businesstravel interact with peers on businesstravelconnexion.com and follow us onfacebook.com/businesstravelconneXion and twitter.com/btconnexion.

American Express operates one of the world's largest travel agency networks with locations in over 140 countries worldwide. Total travel sales volume processed in 2010 was $25.7 billion, including consolidated volume and non-consolidated volume processed through joint ventures and its partner network.

American Express Company is a global services company, providing customers with access to products, insights, and experiences that enrich lives and build business success.