Mommy Points

Of course no one is required to use anyone else's link, and everyone is entitled to the pursuit of getting links for their own sites. The info in this thread that says it isn't as simple as putting up a site and just receiving links to the cards most people here would want is accurate. For the most part you first need a site that has a certain level of traffic, and is on a topic consistent with what the affiliates want. It's certainly not rocket science, but it is a bit more complex then just starting a site and throwing up links.

I think it is easiest when starting a site about something that interests you comes first, and then the affiliates may come later, rather than trying to figure it out in the reverse order.

However, I am mainly responding to the inaccurate comment above. That is not what I said, or would ever say. I encourage people to be conservative with card churning (in fact I am probably one of the more conservative bloggers when it comes to applying for credit cards), and advise to typically take off a year or so before a major purchase like a mortgage for exactly the reasons you lay out.

That said, if someone really wants a specific card, I have said that all things being equal, I doubt opening a card in the year before your mortgage will be the end of the world for someone with good credit. In the most reason exchange I remember on this topic (which I am assuming you are referring to), I told a person who said they would be looking to buy a home next spring and had "pristine credit" that I personally would highly doubt one credit inquiry six months before obtaining a mortgage would a real problem for someone with a pristine score, but that if they do get the card that they wanted would not get any additional cards before the mortgage.

In my mind, that exchange and the one in your post are very different, but perhaps that is just me. Sorry to get off topic a bit, but my blog (and the ones I personally read) are not out there handing out intentionally or blatantly bad info to bring in affiliate income. I'm sure we all make unintended mistakes with info provided from time to time, but it is not at all like the Dr. Evil style picture that was painted in that post.

captaincool

I miss the days of incentive offers like "free ipods" and the like. Made out very well doing those offers. From the age of 18-22 (college years) I must have pulled in a little over $150k! I can only imagine what the affiliate marketers were making!

It's too bad those have all but dried up now where the payout isn't worth it.....

farwest101

What a surprise. All the bloggers come out to defend themselves on FT - the very site where most of them get their ideas from in the first place...

What people need to realize is that it is the readers who are the valuable commodities in the equation - NOT the website and not the bloggers. Readers can leave just as fast as they came.

But of course, we all know the inertia and bias most people have - even a grossly outdated site like FT still generates big traffic - this website reminds me of websites I saw on AOL 10-15 years ago...yet people still come because a critical mass has developed.

I refuse to use any link on a blogger's website unless I am unable to find an equivalent link somewhere else. And Google works wonders to find most of those non-affiliated links...

elBulli

Okay, but then you say here that you:

So on one hand you "encourage people to be conservative with card churning." But on the other, you don't think it would be a problem for someone to get a credit inquiry six months before obtaining a mortgage...hmmmm...

In any case, you advised someone, as you stated above, that it wouldn't be a problem to have a credit inquiry six months (six months at best--the recent post we are discussing referenced getting a mortgage in the spring, not next spring--as little as four months away) before getting a mortgage. This is shaky advice at best and certainly, if that advice is going to be dispensed at all, should not be dispensed without caveats such as "it depends on when you're applying for a mortgage" or "in general, it could be okay, but it depends on your situation."

Caveats that you did not add.

And it doesn't look good that you gave this advice on something from which you stood to make monetary gain.

Just so you're aware, some lenders will actually turn people away wanting to apply for a mortgage who have any new credit inquiry on any of their three credit reports and say "come back after six months or a year of no new credit inquiries." Not all lenders of course, but many take a hard line on this. And your advice potentially will put that commenter in a bad situation come mortgage-application time and cause a lot of headache so you can make a few dollars, or points, or whatever, from an application via affiliate link.

I have nothing against you personally, or bloggers in general (one of my favorite sites is a blog [subtle plug for how a blog should be done--fresh content, non-recycled posts, interesting posts, and he makes money from it (certainly from me at least as I click his links anytime I buy anything related to the site, and keep ....... disabled there!]), but I think this was bad advice that you shouldn't have given out in the first place and certainly shouldn't have given out in a potentially biased situation like the one you were in.

In any case, I'm going to still click on your blog and add to your traffic, as I said before. I was just making a point as to why I don't click affiliate links and use ........

Mommy Points

Fair enough if you don't agree with what was stated, but I just want to ensure that if you are going to quote what I said that it is accurate. I stand by the info provided that if you have pristine credit, wanting to get one card months before a mortgage will probably not have a real effect. Churning multiple cards potentially would which is why I recommended if he does get that card not to get any more. I certainly wouldn't be out there with a bullhorn saying "sign up for cards now if you are about to get a mortgage", but everyone has to make that risk/benefit decision for themselves.

Read and visit the site all you like. No fees and no clicking on affiliate links is required. It is free info for the taking...or the leaving.

Marathon Man

I dunno but i thought this thread was not about attacking the bloggers, but instead, a discussion on how non blog owners could get in on the affiliate action.

Im not jealous that any blogger was savvy enough to pull it off--its my choice if i want to try that on my own or not.

So while i like some bloggers or their style or not doesnt matter here. Instead this thread is about how to do a part of what they do...i think

mm

jrreynolds

Is there anyone who will publish how much a blogger makes per referral.
My quess is the SPG Amex and Ink cards pay the most as they are recommended the most.
Certain volume providers probably get more.

How much does Cit, AMEX and Chase pay

So lets hear it

josephstern

I've asked this a few times before and no blogger will say definitively. I believe they are prohibited by their contracts from disclosing this info, and it may even be different for different bloggers.

That said, I have reason to believe that the top tier cards refer north of $300 per approved, linked app, in the best situations. If that sounds amazing, don't forget that they're also typically rewarding the cardholder with even more, so this payment would be less than half of the new customer acquisition cost.

Maybe a blogger who has lost their contract due to inactivity can give us some more concrete information?

farwest101

The silence is deafening...

yerffej201

Bloggers/affiliates are legally bound by contract so that they can't reveal payout amount, but for most midtier cards you're looking at $50++

elBulli

I do not agree with your original statement. And I don't like how you keep trying to move the goalposts by subtly introducing new information/language/caveats to your posts.

Logical fallacies aside, your statement is opinion which uses lots of waffling language ("wanting to get one card months before a mortgage will probably not have a real effect" "Churning multiple cards potentially would") while mine is verifiable fact ("many [lenders] take a hard line on this"). But of course it's your right to say whatever you wish and probably my fault anyways for holding bloggers to a higher standard than the average person. Bloggers are people and I don't begrudge them making a living like any other person. My feelings on the methods by which they make that living are irrelevant.

I apologize for calling your blog out in my initial post; I didn't intend to attack you specifically. The thread came to the subject of my post (why we don't click affiliate links) and your comment was the most recent example in my mind of why I don't click: potential blogger ignorance or misleading people for profit. I should have phrased it as a general example rather than mentioning the specific comment.

Will do! Thanks for your hard work!

mnscout

Uhm, no, they won't. And if they do, it means there are other issues in play. Lenders may ask you to pay up and close one or more credit cards it they believe you're overburdened with debt. However, they will not punish you (and themselves) by denying you a mortgage because you had the "audacity" to apply for 1 credit card within the last 6 months. If you personally know the bank who has really done that, by all means tell us all so we could avoid those idiots in the future.

mnscout

Let me try and answer this: why do you need to know?

josephstern

That's your best stab at an answer? A diversion in the form of a question?

And who said "need"? This is FT! "Want" is more than sufficient and reasonable for a post.

I *want* to know as do several others here.

tjbrooks

Can you verify your fact here? It doesn't match any experiences of great credit, mortgage & card churning I've ever heard of/seen. That might be a good thread to start, with personal experiences in card apps/mortgages.