Study on the financial behavior of Greeks by Mellon Technologies and the Athens University of Economics and Business

Mellon Technologies in cooperation with the Athens University of Economics and Business announced today the completion of the study that was designed and realized during the summer in order to address issues related to the financial behavior of Greek consumers. The scope of the study was to create the new module “Financial Mosaic” that will be incorporated in Experian’s Mosaic Micromarketer target marketing tool for Greece.

The study was conducted for the second time in Greece (the first study had taken place in the summer of 2008) through telephone interviews to a representative sample of the financially active population (9,500 consumers) across Greece. It was based on the geographical and demographic distribution of the 2001 census by the National Statistical Service of Greece. The aim was to accumulate data on the way consumers in Greece manage their income and use financial products.

The results were indicative of the financial situation in the country and the prevailing climate of insecurity, especially when compared to the corresponding results of the 2008 study. It is noteworthy that to questions regarding the expectations of the respondents for next year’s financial state, as well as their welfare, 50% appears pessimistic. 

In terms of individual questions, the most important can be summarized as follows:

• Developments’ awareness: 79.5% of consumers are updated daily on developments rising from 63.0% in 2008.
• Income availability: 80.5% spend all or more of their monthly income, whereas in 2008 the corresponding percentage was 52%.
• Savings’ account selection criteria: 25% choose the bank’s reputation as the most important criterion, compared to 11% in 2008, while 27% chose the bank with which they do most of their business compared to 6% in 2008. It is worth noting that in the age group 35-44, the percentage that considers reputation as the most fundamental selection factor reaches 34%.
• Bank update: 24% wishes to be updated by their bank for the choices they have for investing their spare income, in comparison to 6% in 2008, while 24% prefer a letter in comparison to also 6% in 2008. E-mail preference remains low (7%), however at the age group 35-44 the percentage climbs to 14%. Information received at the bank branches is the preferred choice of 12% overall, however in the case of purchase of bank products, this percentage rises to 26%.
• Credit card possession: the percentage of consumers who stated that they own a credit card rises to 42% from 31% in 2008, with the majority located in prefecture of Attica.
• Card selection & usage criteria: The key factors for selecting and using a card (45%) remains the interest rate, and cash return follows doubling from 2008 to 22%. It is worth mentioning that among card holders, the percentage which is indifferent to potential benefits from the card’s usage has doubled this year reaching 22%.
• Debit card preference: the majority of consumers (85%) think a debit card would not be convenient for them. This percentage drops significantly in the age group 35-44, reaching 68%.
• Insurance products: the respondents percentage not interested in purchasing insurance products in 2011 reached 74%, importantly increased from 56% in 2008. However, this percentage drops to 60% for the respondents in prefecture of Attica as well as for the age group 35 to 44 years old.
  

“Mosaic Micromarketer segments the Greek population into types with similar consumer habits, according to geodemographic, financial, geographic and life style characteristics. With the addition of the new parameters on financial behavior as they derive from the study, we can have an even more conclusive image of the Greek consumer. This dimension will be of special interest to financial organizations, but also to companies that provide products and services utilizing credit lines, such as automotive companies, super markets and multistores, retail chains etc.” mentioned Maro Hondropoulou, Business Unit Manager, Mellon Technologies.

The new edition of Mosaic Micromarketer that will include the Financial Mosaic module, will be ready in December and will be provided along with the analytic findings of the study.

About Mellon Technologies
Mellon Technologies is one of the largest Greek IT companies with a leading role in the electronic transactions market, for financial institutions and increasingly for the retail and public sectors. Today, Mellon Technologies has an excellent record of performance in virtually all major electronic transactions projects that can no longer take place without novel and complex technology infrastructure and support. Mellon Technologies is the parent company of Mellon Group of Companies with subsidiaries in Albania, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Egypt, FYROM, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Egypt, Ukraine and Turkey.

About Mosaic Micromarketer
MOSAIC Micromarketer is a unique "Target Marketing Tool" that segments the Greek population into types with similar consumer habits, according to geodemographic, financial, geographic and life style characteristics. The segmentation of Greek Consumers is defined per building block and has particular applications in the growth process and profitability of a company.

For more information on MOSAIC Micromarketer please visit http://www.mellongroup.com/en/products/mosaic