Issuing companies have long known that rewards and sign-up bonuses were an excellent way to lure new customers, but these offers have changed over time.
According to USA Today, many of these changes started taking place after the 2008 financial crisis when banks decided that enticing customers with good credit and high incomes was the safest bet.
Before the crisis, it was common to find relatively small and easy to earn bonuses such as 1,000 points upon making a first purchase with the card. Now, the standard is a 50,000-point sign-up bonus, but holders have to spend $4,000 in the first three months to get it.
Rick Good spent ten years in the newspaper business, including with The News & Observer (Raleigh, NC) and The Greenville News (Greenville, SC). He co-wrote, with Melinda Coleman, Rutledge to Riley: Governors of South Carolina, 1776–Present (Published by The Greenville News), and is the author of Mind Games Trivia #1 (Amazon). He has recently spent 15 years creating original trivia content through Sounds Good Mobile Entertainment and continues that with his new company, SGME Software. He edits The Smart Reader’s money, real estate, and business coverage.
