Ever wonder how many of those irritating credit card come-ons you get in the mail every year?
Carol Edholm used to wonder. Then she did something about it.
From July 1, 2004 until June 30, Edholm took every one of the credit card applications mailed to her home in Mountlake Terrace and pitched them into a cardboard box in her home office.
Earlier this month, she dragged the box out of the corner and counted them up. The grand total: 337.
“It kind of blew my mind,” she said. “I counted them again and I started thinking about how many of these we were getting a day and I thought, ‘This is ridiculous.’ “
Some days, of course, there were no solicitations. But on others, there were as many as three or four, Edholm said.
That may seem like a lot, but it’s really not too surprising.
Hundreds of companies, organizations and associations issue credit cards.
For just the A’s, you might be solicited for cards from: American Express, Alaska Airlines, America West, Anne Geddes, Asiana, AAA, AARP, AAdvantage (American Airlines), ABA, ADA. Academy of General Dentistry, Air Force Association, Amazon.com, American Association of Critical Care Nurses, American Boating Association, American Bowling Congress, American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, American Medical Association, American Skiing Co., American Society of Clinical Pathologists, America’s Bravest, Amnesty International USA, AOL, ASPCA, Avon, After Hours Formalwear, Associated Bank, AT&T Universal, American Eagle Outfitters, AAA Platinum, Amtrak Guest Rewards, Arizona Cardinals Extra Points and Atlanta Falcons Extra Points.
The snowballing numbers of card issuers combined to send 7.5 billion new-card solicitations through the mail last year. Yes, that’s billion, according to Comperemedia, a mail-tracking service.
That’s a lot. But the effort appears to be paying off.
The average American household has 11 credit cards, the Washington Post reported in a recent article, citing the Nilson Report, a card industry newsletter.
It looks like Edholm and I are pikers in the credit card game. I have two and mostly just use one. She admits to having several, but says she only uses one for personal use and two others for business.
For Edholm, the stacks of offers she’s received during the past year are strong evidence that it’s just too easy to get credit these days.
But the industry is just getting started.
If you look at the card solicitations you’ve been getting, you may have noticed that they’re not all about 0 percent rates for a short time or about a very low rate for balance transfers.
The new gimmick these days are card reward programs that pay you points or cash for every use.
Amazon.com, for example, offers a Platinum Visa which gives triple points for every dollar you spend there. You can earn $25 gift certificates for 2,500 points.
Starbucks also has a credit card that credits your account with a percentage of your purchases that can be redeemed for a java jolt.
The rewards programs can actually be a good thing, especially as more credit card companies raise their rates these days. So you might want to pay closer attention to your junk mail, which clearly isn’t going to diminish anytime soon.
But if that idea doesn’t appeal to you, there is a way to at least slim down the number of letters you’re getting from credit card companies.
On the Internet, visit www.dmaconsumers.org/cgi/ offmailinglist. You can fill out a form online.
By mail, you should send a post card to Mail Preference Service, Direct Marketing Association, P.O. Box 282, Carmel, NY 10512. Request that your name and address be removed from mailing lists of the organization’s members.
Members check the association list about four times a year and make corrections, so you may have to wait to see a drop in solicitations.
Not only will you save a few trees, but your postal carrier will likely thank you.
Mike Benbow: 425-339-3459; benbow@heraldnet.com.
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