Chances are that you’ve received plenty of credit card offers in the mail. When it comes to earning bonus points you may find a gem here or there, but you probably just consider most of it junk mail.

So, why do you get such offers in the first place? What does the lingo on such offers mean? Are you guaranteed to get such cards? How will your credit score be affected? Most importantly (for some of you) – how can you stop getting these offers?

Generally the credit card issuer will obtain your information in one of the following three ways:

1. Through charities, clubs and organizations, credit card companies, magazines, manufacturers and retailers that rent customer (or member) lists to them
2. Through credit reporting agencies that provide lists of creditworthy consumers
3. This one will probably strike a nerve in most people - Through “List compilers”, which are companies that purchase information from various private and public sources to compile lists of consumers for specific marketing purposes.

After obtaining your name from one of the above lists, the issuer then decides whether or not to send you an offer in the mail. If you receive an offer, you are eligible under the initial standards that the issuer has set.

Q: Dear CreditShout. I have decided to finally get an airline miles credit card which is LONG overdue considering how often I fly for business. I mainly fly on JetBlue out of JFK, is there a particular rewards card you would recommend? – John

There are actually several credit cards on the market that work well for JetBlue Airways frequent flyers, so you are not limited to one card – which is good because each card is tailored a bit differently. Let’s explore a few of them and see which card will be best for you.

Secure Application

CREDITSHOUT RATING:

Excellent

You’d get nothing back if you spent cash and won‘t find that big of a bonus with most other cards, so this is a fantastic deal – in fact it’s one of the most valuable credit card sign up bonuses currently on the market.

You’ll also earn 2 points per dollar spent on travel and dining. All other purchases qualify for point per dollar spent.

Chase Sapphire Preferred also comes with a 7 percent annual points dividend on all points that you’ve earned, whether you’ve used them or not. Also, points that are used for travel are worth 25 percent more, meaning that $500 (50,000 points) will get you $625 worth of travel.

I’m not sure where you’re business takes you, but If you travel abroad, you won’t pay a foreign transaction fee with this card. That’s an important factor to consider if you do so frequently, as that could save you hundreds of dollars when compared to other cards.

All of this comes at an annual fee of $95. However, this fee is waived in the first year, so you won’t have to suck up that cost until you’ve had this card for a while.

You’ve just earned 25,000 bonus points by spending $3,000 within 3 months after signing up for Chase Sapphire. What will you redeem your points on – a new mp3 player, a bunch of movies, taxes or some clothes? Wait, did I just say taxes?

You may not have thought about paying taxes on your credit card rewards, but Uncle Sam surely has. After all, it could be another opportunity for him to reach into your pockets!

So, will Uncle Sam have his hand out for a chunk of your rewards or will you keep what you’ve earned? Let’s take a look.

The Internet has revolutionized just about every aspect of modern life. Fortunately, the credit card industry has adapted to this fact of life and many related online shopping portals have sprung up. Users of such portals often qualify for enhanced rewards, typically in the form of higher points, miles or cash back than is offered through traditional shopping outlets.

So, without further ado, let’s compare two of these online shopping portals. We’ll take a look at the Chase Ultimate Rewards Mall and ShopDiscover. Each offers unique benefits to Chase or Discover customers, respectively. Which is better? Let’s take a look.

Of course, a major piece of the rewards pie is the value of the rewards.

In this regard, ShopDiscover offers a greater benefit than Chase Ultimate Rewards. When using ShopDiscover, customers earn from 5 to 20 percent back on their purchases through over 200 retailers.

On the other hand, Chase customers can earn from 1 to 10 points per dollar spent on each item in the Ultimate Rewards Mall. These points can be exchanged for cash back, just as ShopDiscover customers earn cash back. However, as each point is worth one cent, this effectively amounts to a savings of 1 to 10 percent on purchase, which is less than Discover’s mentioned offer.

Secure Application CREDITSHOUT RATING: Excellent

VS

Secure Application CREDITSHOUT RATING: Very Good

If you are in the market for a rewards credit card, you’ve probably heard of the Capital One Venture Rewards Card and the Chase Sapphire® Preferred Card. Each has plenty of strong benefits to offer. However, as you probably don’t want to overload your wallet with plastic, you probably want to know which is better? Let’s find out!

The Chase Sapphire Preferred card comes with double the amount of bonus points that Capital One offers. With the Sapphire Preferred card, you’ll receive 50,000 bonus points if you spend at least $3,000 within the first three months. With Capital One’s offer, you’ll receive 25,000 bonus miles after spending at least $1,000 within the first three months.

Basically, if you intend to spend at least $3,000 over three months – something that most people do – then Chase offers a must better upfront bonus.

So, you want to increase your credit limit and have no idea how.

This is a familiar problem among credit card users. Just ask any Capital One cardholder who has tried to do so and you’ll get the idea. They feel responsible enough to get a credit limit increase and the issuer balks at their demands. What can be done?

You may be surprised, but you won’t have to walk over hot coals with bare feet to get your credit limit increased. You won’t have to plant the issuer’s flag at the top of Mount Everest, either.

Getting your credit limit increased can be as simple as a phone call. It can also be more difficult than that. Let’s examine what you can do to increase your credit limit.

We’ve all gotten gifts that we don’t like. They are well intentioned, but we just have no use for them. We end up re-gifting them, selling them online or just throwing them away.

With gift cards being popular these days, you may wonder what to do with that gift card to a store that you’ll never visit. You may be a vegetarian who received a gift card to a steak house or maybe you received a gas card, even though you don’t own a vehicle. Whatever the case may be, you’ll probably want to get rid of that card and get something back for it.

You may or may not be aware, but there are plenty of websites that offer an eBay-style service for gift cards. Such sites typically offer payment in check and electronic form. They tend to pay higher sums via check, so that is your best bet on such sites if you have the time to wait.

Let’s explore how much you will receive for your gift card with various sites and some other factors that you may want to consider.