Letter to the Editor: No Market 'Mountain' for Payroll Cards

To the Editor:

"Payroll Cards Seen Having an Acceptance Mountain to Climb" [Aug. 29] was a timely story, as Sept. 1-5, 2008, was National Payroll Week!

However, online research is not the ideal mechanism for measuring the success of payroll cards, as it does not adequately capture the voice of the underbanked.

Payroll cards are a terrific solution for employers with an underbanked employee base, such as QSRs, retailers, and agricultural workers. Payroll card issuers, the card networks, and card processors have really stepped up their marketing and communication efforts about payroll cards, and the marketplace is now generally well informed about the value proposition for payroll cards.

The "acceptance mountain" is no longer daunting for payroll cards. It is an established product. Interest in and adoption of payroll card products continues to grow. Patricia Loria and I wrote about payroll cards reaching a tipping point in 2007 ["Finding a Tipping Point for Payroll Cards," Sept. 7] — this is definitely more true now than ever.Philip Philliou
Philliou Selwanes Partners LLC
New YorkEditor's Note: Philliou Selwanes Partners is a New York consulting firm specializing in payments.