The credit card industry is being shaken up by the maturation of millennials and Gen Zers, who should have been the next generation of credit card users, but they aren’t signing up for credit cards at the rate they were expected to. However, it’s not necessarily that they don’t want to take out credit cards, but that the products offered by credit card companies aren’t what they are looking for.

VITAL Card is an innovative new credit card aimed at the millennial and Gen Z markets to help young people learn responsible spending habits. VITAL Card’s three core pillars are community sharing, cash back, and building credit. By targeting these three principles, the team has not only identified what is important to these two core demographics that have largely been missing from the credit card industry but also an exciting way to provide them with an essential service.

Appealing to a younger demographic

The team at VITAL Card has learned that millennials care about creation, curation, connection, and community, so these are the core factors around which they built their unique financial product. “Millennials are a new force in consumer culture, representing a tremendous amount of spending power,” explains Chris Bridges, CEO and co-founder of VITAL Card. “And better yet, they are an underserved market in terms of financial services.”

As a result, VITAL Card has focused on influencer marketing to grow its community and user base. This marketing method reduces consumer acquisition cost (CAC) while allowing it to target the market for which it has been designed. “The ideal VITAL Card user is active on social media and cares greatly about community,” says Bridges. “This will allow them to make the most out of VITAL Card’s product.”

The nature of millennials and Gen Zers is that they are digital natives. Many people of these generations grew up on social media and learned how to live their lives online. However, this has left many woefully unprepared to deal with important issues in the real world, like financial responsibility and credit building. Thankfully, resources like VITAL Card are coming along that empower millennials and Gen Zers to take the initiative on their own financial responsibility.

Empowering millennials and Gen Zers with financial responsibility

The central feature of the VITAL Card credit card is that it helps users learn how to improve their credit score, creating engagement around the idea of responsible spending. Users connect their bank account with VITAL Card and will receive notifications with advice on how to improve their credit score and spending habits throughout the month. This simple guidance will hopefully put users on the path toward financial well-being.

Additionally, the rise of the gig economy, particularly among millennials, has left many in need of extra income and disposable funds. Every penny counts when your income is highly variable, and you are living from gig to gig, so having a credit card with good cashback will give users a way to earn back some of their spending for their own use.

How VITAL Card appeals to millennials and Gen Zers

One of the main draws to VITAL Card’s program is that users can earn up to 3% cash back on purchases, with rates starting at 1.5% on all purchases. This rivals or even exceeds the cashback incentives offered by several major and established credit card offerings, making it an appealing option for young people looking for a way to earn back some easy money with only their regular spending habits.

VITAL Card’s card also offers no annual fee for its users, removing that obstacle for anyone who might be hesitant to take out credit cards for their debt. While there is a place with credit cards with annual fees, those cards are typically designed for people who have a high level of usage. Given that VITAL Card largely serves younger users, for many of whom VITAL Card is their first credit card experience, a credit card with no annual fee makes sense.

Many VITAL Card users have singled out the referral program as one of their favorite aspects of the offering. Although many credit cards offer a basic referral program, VITAL Card’s is robust, emphasizing creating engagement around growing the VITAL Card community. The team at VITAL Card knows that their best tool in this digital age is word-of-mouth, so they offer cash rewards forever for sharing VITAL Card with their friends. There are no limits to the rewards a user can receive, and not only do they receive rewards for the people they refer, but those referred by their referrals.

To further emphasize the role of community in VITAL Card’s offerings, the credit cards issued by VITAL Card are elegant metal cards made of anodized aluminum in several colors. This design gives them a sleek, personalized look that they will proudly showcase when making purchases. People used to be proud of the look of their upscale credit cards, and with VITAL Card, it is time to return to those days.

VITAL Card is set to revolutionize the credit card industry by providing millennials and Gen Zers with a product that takes advantage of their distinct social characteristics and provides them with the financial education they need. “We hope we can enable this powerful spending base to learn greater financial responsibility, empowering them to become better spenders,” asserts Bridges.