Prepaid Long Distance and Wireless Phones
Even without any credit history, a prepaid cellular phone or long-distance card puts convenient calling within reach of anyone. Primarily distributed through Gift Card Mall™, these products are extremely popular for calling across borders, during travel and for those rare occurrences where consumers don't have a landline service established.
Partnering with the top name brands in the long-distance industry, Blackhawk Network has been able to grow sales in a category that has otherwise suffered steady declines. In fact, we were named "Most Valuable Partner of the Year" by Sprint for two years running. Much of our success in the category reflects a focus on regional international calling. With about half of the prepaid long distance market comprised of international callers, our extensive distribution network and demographic research allow us to evaluate the market and determine the best product choice retailer by retailer.
With no contracts, no hidden fees and no credit check required, prepaid wireless has been a significant growth category as well, with gains of around 64% in the past year alone. Our partners include leading carriers such as Verizon and GoPhone by AT&T, as well as many non-proprietary brands such as Tracfone, Virgin Mobile, and Boost Mobile. Our ability to tailor distribution to very specific demographics has made Blackhawk Network an attractive choice for niche brands targeting narrowly defined markets. Furthermore, we can assist phone providers with card production, printing, quality assurance and just-in-time inventory.
With an average 18–24 months of use per phone, our retail distribution partners enjoy the frequent customer visits generated by customer phone reactivations and additional purchases of minutes. To keep our partners’ product selection competitive with mass markets, handsets are changed on a quarterly basis and partnered with retail-specific marketing campaigns and promotions.
In this way we have created a shift in consumer behavior, moving wireless purchases out of electronics stores and into grocery, drug and convenience outlets.