Money doesn't actually talk. We do.

Getting Chased by Puppies

Who can resist the cuteness of a puppy?

Chase has discovered the weak spot shared by millions of college students who march back to school this month. Marking a new, bizarre turn in on-campus promotions, students reported seeing Chase employees camped out with what one freshman described as “a really cute, small puppy” in front of Weinstein Hall, a hub for NYU freshmen. There, they were inviting students to come and pet the doggie while handing out fliers for Chase and other Chase-sponsored events on campus during orientation week.

Both Chase corporate and an employee at the nearby Chase branch said that they were not familiar with any specific dog-related promotions.

The canine and non-canine influenced marketing has spawned a new term on NYU campus: “Getting Chased.” Although the term derives from Chase’s marketing blitzkrieg, it can also refer to any on-campus marketing push (or in the puppy’s case, the sidewalk in front of campus) by a major financial institution. The puppy promotion is also fairly clever, given that Chase has promised to stop giving away “tchotchkes” on campuses in an effort to distance itself from the recent student-loan industry scandal.

Each fall, banks bombard students with an array of giveaways - fliers, iPods, Frisbees and now puppy-petting. Then, they promise free checking (which you promptly lose upon graduation, as fees ensue) and the “financial independence” of high-interest credit cards. Some offer online information on how to use credit responsibility, while others do not.

Consumerist (full disclosure, I also work for Gawker Media, which publishes Consumerist) points out a Business Week article that highlights Citibank’s sketchy move in hiring college students to get other undergrads to sign up for credit cards and online merch.

So these institutions are technically no longer handing out freebies, but is this sort of marketing a step in the right direction?

And as much as I love dogs, I ponder my peers graduating with an average of $2,327 in credit-card debt and wonder if the cuteness is worth it.

-Mary Pilon

Photo: Cuteoverload.com