MasterCard Helps Small Issuers Deliver Big Optimization

As the competition in the payments landscape continues to heat up, issuers have to use every resource at their disposal to stand out and stay relevant.

But in order to truly understand what they’re up against, issuers, especially those that are smaller in size, need to know exactly what they are bringing to the table.

Without an understanding of their own portfolio and performance, issuers may not have all the relevant information they need to go up against the competition.

To help provide some clarity into the existing business portfolios of its issuer partners, MasterCard is launching its new MasterCard Optimization platform to deliver immediate and personalized performance analysis. The new offering provides issuers with business portfolio evaluations against competitors and customized recommendations to help them stay one step ahead.

The solution looks to address and highlight in real-time the places where issuers are underperforming, and then provide suggestions for areas such as fraud prevention, digital payment technologies and personalized marketing campaigns. Cheryl Guerin, MasterCard Group Executive of Global Products and Solutions, joined PYMNTS to discuss why real-time portfolio insights are critical to keeping issuers future growth.

PYMNTS: What was the inspiration behind MasterCard’s Optimization solution?

Guerin: There was no singular inspiration for Optimization Solutions. Rather, the platform functionality and features surfaced out of cross-functional teams always asking, “What can we do next?”

Strategically investing in tools to grow our partners’ business is top of mind at MasterCard, which is why we are introducing MOS, a project plan that spanned approximately six months in order to deliver first-rate insights and support at no cost to help our partners drive better business.

PYMNTS: What hurdles did you have to overcome during the development phase of the project?

Guerin: In the digital world, hurdles and roadblocks are expected and this project is no different. Data privacy was a critical area of focus. Our goal was to provide the ability to compare performance against competitors, without compromising our strict privacy guidelines. Having navigated through these hurdles, we are proud to be introducing this new set of tools that will help our issuing partners enhance their business portfolios and differentiate against the competition.

PYMNTS: After going through the trial and error process, what changes did you end up making before completing the project?

Guerin: As project development neared conclusion, teams fine-tuned the platform — refining and simplifying the experience and ensuring that the user flow and recommendations offered were intuitive, clear and actionable. By delivering a simplified experience to our partners, MOS enables them to assess and identify solutions to increase performance, maximize profitability, and improve the cardholder experience for their customers.

PYMNTS: What differentiates your platform for those already in existence?

Guerin: MOS is unique to the market because it delivers immediate and personalized performance analysis and solutions. The platform offers users a customized diagnostic report that corresponds to a set of recommendations, tools and resources.

What makes MOS an attractive option is the immediacy of results it delivers. There’s no need for partners to rely on generic information or wait for a customized analysis. The platform’s intuitive manner, in which goals and recommendations are delivered in real-time, enables our partners to obtain insights quicker and easier than ever before.

PYMNTS: Will customers have direct access to all MasterCard executives?

Guerin: Issuers will have direct access to industry experts and MasterCard executives through the Thought Leadership section, which offers access to relevant infographics, recent webinars on a variety of timely topics, white papers, and a calendar of industry events at which MasterCard will have a presence.

If an issuer needs additional assistance in evaluating the diagnostic report or implementing a recommended solution, our Advisors team is available at the click of a button directly from the Optimization tool.

PYMNTS: What type of marketing materials will be made readily available to consumers?

Guerin: The “Marketing Resources” section provides a direct link to a wealth of marketing programs, campaigns and materials. Marketing materials range from turnkey promotion opportunities, best practices, video insights, and product solutions like fraud protection, and safety and security.

PYMNTS: What group(s) would you say this platform is best suited for?

Guerin: All of our financial institution partners will benefit from the platform as it was designed to help our partners, particularly small-sized issuers, drive their business forward.

PYMNTS: What, if any, changes might we see down the road with respect to the platform?

Guerin: As we’re always asking ourselves, “What’s next?” The sky is the limit. We are constantly enhancing our services to best support the evolving needs of our partners. In the near term, expanded Thought Leadership content is on the horizon.