December 9, 2008
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News: Online Bill Payers; Who Are They?
Recent studies have revealed a high level of concentration toward certain demographics among those who bay bills online. Their particularly prone to manage and organize different accounts online. Online records-keeping and consumer searching are readily used by this group also. So, it only makes sense they would take advantage of the ease in bill-paying online. Naturally, they lean toward credit cards for most of their transactions. Credit cards are not only the medium of choice by most venders but they also offer more protection as well. Credit cards also offer great records-keeping tools.
With all these great tools at their disposal, this group rarely gets stuck with late fees. Automatic reminders advise them when the time for a credit card payment is getting near. There are also a plethora of tools easily available to pay most bills automatically. Of course this can also be accomplished VIA E-Checks, but allowing access to one's personal banking account can be very risky. Bank accounts are the #1 target of the financial black market because theft of cash, which is a first-level liquidity, is much harder to trace and very difficult to prevent. Therefore, this savvy group prefers credit cards.
So who are the members of this group? About a third are ‘baby-boomers', over half are over 45, over half have attended college and over half of that half has obtained a college degree. Almost all of the online bill-payers have credit cards (about 90%) and only about half of those carry debt on their cards. Of all the online consumers only one third of them don't pay bills online. Card-based online bill-paying is expected to rapidly pick up speed and become the standard before long. This group is plush with the affluent and low-risk members. They are, largely, very responsible.
Statistically paying credit cards online accounts for, not only the greatest number of bills paid, but also, the highest amounts paid per bill ($602). Various utilities and insurance payments are also very popular.