BOSTON, MA--(Marketwire - September 11, 2007) - Purchasing cards ("p-cards") continue to streamline both ends of the procure-to-pay process while introducing greater levels of control and visibility to the management of low-dollar, high-volume categories, according to a new research report by Aberdeen, a Harte-Hanks company (NYSE: HHS).

"The Purchasing Card Benchmark" report, which captured the performance of nearly 300 enterprises, found that while p-cards are still used for lower ticket-item goods and services, enterprises are increasing their maximum limits and moving towards higher average value transactions.

"Best-in-Class enterprises have deeper card penetration across a wider range of categories," said Vishal Patel, Research Analyst in Aberdeen's Global Supply Management practice. "These enterprises also credit their ability to integrate p-card invoice data with their back-end system(s) of record as a driver of card usage."

"The availability of level 3 data capture in p-card statements enables procurement departments to identify more and better opportunities to aggregate p-card spend and negotiate superior savings because of their improved leverage," adds Andrew Bartolini, Research Director in Aberdeen's Global Supply Management practice.

Best-in-Class enterprises reported a series of advantages from their p-card programs, including:

--  64% superior cost savings
--  Higher percentage of spend managed in the program (22%)
--  Greater program administrative flexibility
    

A complimentary copy of this report is made available due to the following underwriters: P-Card System, Paymetric, and HSBC Bank USA, N.A. To obtain a free copy of this report please visit: http://www.aberdeen.com/link/sponsor.asp?cid=4127

About Aberdeen Group, a Harte-Hanks Company

Aberdeen is a leading provider of fact-based research and market intelligence that delivers demonstrable results. Having benchmarked more than 30,000 companies in the past two years, Aberdeen is uniquely positioned to educate users to action: driving market awareness, creating demand, enabling sales, and delivering meaningful return-on-investment analysis. As the trusted advisor to the global technology markets, corporations turn to Aberdeen™ for insights that drive decisions.

As a Harte-Hanks Company, Aberdeen plays a key role of putting content in context for the global direct and targeted marketing company. Aberdeen's analytical and independent view of the "customer optimization" process of Harte-Hanks (Information - Opportunity - Insight - Engagement - Interaction) extends the client value and accentuates the strategic role Harte-Hanks brings to the market. For additional information, visit Aberdeen http://www.aberdeen.com or call (617) 723-7890, or to learn more about Harte-Hanks, call (800) 456-9748 or go to http://www.harte-hanks.com.

© 2007 Aberdeen Group, Inc., a Harte-Hanks Company
260 Franklin Street
Boston, Massachusetts 02110-3112
Telephone: (617) 723-7890
Fax: (617) 723-7897
www.aberdeen.com

Contact Information: Media Contacts: Andrew Bartolini Aberdeen Harte-Hanks (617) 854-5310 andrew.bartolini@aberdeen.com Vishal Patel Aberdeen Harte-Hanks (617) 854-5245 vishal.patel@aberdeen.com