Justin Bieber to Promote New BillMyParents Prepaid Card (Jan. 2, 2013)
Jan. 2, 2013
Bieber Fever is spreading beyond music and fragrances to prepaid cards. Pop star Justin Bieber soon will be promoting a MasterCard-branded prepaid card offered by BillMyParents Inc. The San Diego-based provider of payment solutions targeted to teens, young adults and their parents, announced late last year that Bieber will act as “brand ambassador” for a teen prepaid debit card, drive awareness of BillMyParents and encourage responsible spending.
Early this year, BillMyParents will be launching the card, which will generally follow the model of its MasterCard-branded, Paybefore Award-winning SpendSmart prepaid card, a company spokesperson tells Paybefore. The name of the card or its issuer has not yet been announced.
BillMyParents emphasizes that the card is not a celebrity-branded card—Bieber is promoting the card, but neither his image nor his name will appear on the card. The card’s campaign will employ, among other means, social media and a series of videos featuring Bieber encouraging responsible spending among teens.
“Our mission is to help families teach responsible spending habits,” said Mike McCoy, BillMyParents chairman and CEO. “By combining our new teen prepaid debit card with Justin’s vast reach and financial educational materials, we can empower countless families with teens to think about responsible spending in a new and better way.”
The strategy of using celebrities to promote prepaid cards has not always been successful. Politicians and consumer groups attacked the celebrity-branded Kardashian Kard, endorsed by sisters Kim, Khloe and Kourtney, soon after it was launched in November 2010 for what were labeled exorbitant fees. Sales of the card were suspended shortly after. Last year, financial guru Suze Orman announced The Approved Card, which received mixed reviews. More recently, NBA Hall of Famer Earvin “Magic” Johnson launched the MAGIC Card.
