American Express is changing its ad campaign. The new catchphrase: "Are you a cardmember?" American Express will be spending four to five hundred million dollars on the campaign, which gives you some idea of how much money these guys are making. My favorite quote from the New York Times article about the change: Mr. Hayes said that the "My life" campaign "has done a great job redefining the notion of membership" as well as reminding consumers that "American Express is a company, not just about transactions, but about relationships."

Ohh ... So credit card companies are about relationships! Well, according to Indianapolis Mental Health counselor Dawn Kozarian, financial problems cause more divorces than adultery. And in his book Maxed Out, James Scurlock tells the story of a young man who killed his entire family as a result of stress over credit card problems. So I guess that credit cards really might involve relationships in that sense. But I somehow doubt that's what Mr. Hayes was talking about. Perhaps he was referring to the relationship between the credit card company (and its bill collectors) and the consumer, in which case Scurlock could also tell you a story about a young lady who committed suicide after receiving months of harassing and threatening phone calls from a collection agency. But I don't think that's what Mr. Hayes means either.