My husband and I are still working on the minimum spending from our last credit card applications. However, we have received a few lucrative offers in the mail that we are considering for our next credit cards to earn us miles and points for free travel. Don’t throw away those targeted snail mail credit card offers before you read all the fine print!
Advantages of Targeted Snail Mail Offers
Some, but not all, targeted snail mail offers are better than regular online offers for two reasons:
Higher/Better Sign-up Offers: Sometimes, the sign-up bonus will be higher than any offer you can get online through blog affiliate links or other online offers. Or, the offer could contain a statement credit or a waived annual fee that isn’t available to the general public online.
Fewer Sign-up Restrictions: Many banks now have strict card approval restrictions in place. For example, Amex has a one bonus per lifetime rule. Chase has a 5/24 rule and limits bonuses to once every two to four years. Sometimes, targeted snail mail offers circumvent these restrictions and have no such language in the fine print.
Don’t worry, you don’t have to do a paper application and send it through snail mail. These snail mail offers typically come with a link and special invitation code so that you can complete the application online.
The down side is that many of these offers are invitation only. You can’t simply enter another person’s code and expect to get the same offer.
Offer #1: Citi Premier 60k
My husband recently got this offer in the mail. The details: 60k bonus ThankYou points (worth $750 in airfare) after spending $3000 in the first three months. Annual fee is waived. No restrictions for previous cardholders in the fine print.
Why is this a good offer? While we have seen a 60k offer before, it has expired and the current affiliate/public offer is 50k points (although you can still get 60k through a personal referral link–see Leana’s comment below). The minimum spending requirement to get the bonus is also lower than the current/previous offer, just $3000 instead of $4000.
Most importantly, the offer does not have this typical restriction in the fine print:
“Bonus ThankYou® Points are not available if you have had a ThankYou® Preferred, ThankYou® Premier/Citi PremierSM or Citi Prestige® card opened or closed in the past 24 months”
Leana and her husband both got this card earlier this year and used the points toward a cruise. My husband and I had this card a few years ago and used it for an all-inclusive resort in Puerto Vallarta.
If my husband applies for this card, we have several ideas in mind for the ThankYou points. We could use them to pay for flights between Australia and New Zealand for our trip next summer. Or, we could transfer them to an airline to use for flights to Japan for the 2020 Olympics. Of course, we might be tempted to use the points for another stay at an all-inclusive resort.
Offer #2: Gold Delta Skymiles 75k
I received this offer in the mail the other day. The details: 75k bonus Delta miles. 50k awarded after spending $2000 in the first three months, and an additional 25k miles after spending $1000 more in the first six months. Annual fee is waived the first year. Other benefits include a $50 statement credit with a Delta purchase, Zone 1 priority boarding and first checked bag free for each family member flying under the same reservation. No restrictions for previous cardholders.
Why is this offer worth considering? The current public offer is only 30,000 bonus miles. But the biggest advantage is that it does not have the typical American Express restriction for one bonus per lifetime:
“Welcome offer not available to applicants who have or have had this Card”
My husband and I both had this card before. We didn’t find a good use for the miles, and we cashed the miles out for Amex gift cards. However, Delta has gotten better with award availability and I’m more confident we would be able to use the miles for a future trip.
Bottom Line
Ideally, I would apply for all of my credit cards through our affiliate links. However, those links don’t always have the best offers. I will always apply through the best offer link, whether it’s online, through a referral or through snail mail. I encourage you to do the same!
Have you received any great targeted offers via snail mail or email recently?
Click here to view various credit cards and available sign-up bonuses
Author: Nancy
Nancy lives near Dallas, Texas, with her husband and three kids. Her favorite vacations include the beach, cruising and everything Disney.
is it still possible to cash out SkyMiles for Amex gift cards?
@Harv–I don’t see them in the SkyMiles Marketplace anymore, but when I purchased them I remember it was a special thing only available to card holders. I’m not sure if that’s still available. I do remember that it wasn’t a great ratio, less than 1:1.
You guys get some seriously sweet offers! I usually get a rock, the banks are on to me. On Citi Thank You Premier: it is possible to apply for 60k points as long you you use a personal referral link. I sent mine to one of the readers the other day. Of course, it will have the usual limitations, unlike your targeted offer.
@Leana We get so many offers in the mail, it’s crazy really. Most are cards I’ve never heard of with “meh” or no bonuses. We get a lot of 0% interest offers.
My husband and I have done both of those offers over the last six months. We did the Citi Premier earlier this year, and just signed up for the Delta Gold 75K offer a few days ago. We also got targeted snail mail but our statement credit is for $200 if you spend $1,000 on Delta purchases.
Anyway, I love Citi ThankYou cause they transfer to FlyingBlue. No idea how I’ll use our 150K+ Delta Sky Miles but I’m sure something will come up. =)
@Holly Nice! I hope that my husband also gets a targeted 75k Delta so that we have more of one currency.