Are bloggers ruining Flyertalk????
May 8, 2012, 4:52 pm
#16
May 8, 2012, 4:53 pm
#17
Join Date: Dec 2005
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Agreed but it's certain bloggers who tend to post detailed screenshots with step by step by step by step instructions making what was something that required finesse and knowledge something that an untrained monkey could complete.
May 8, 2012, 4:54 pm
#18
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Apr 2001
Location: PSM
Posts: 69,232
I'm not one bit surprised to see a post like this from somebody with a link to his blog right underneath his post. 
BTW, I never said anybody "owned" certain deals, I just said that all the exposure from bloggers seem to be killing deals much more quickly than used to be the case.
BTW, I never said anybody "owned" certain deals, I just said that all the exposure from bloggers seem to be killing deals much more quickly than used to be the case.
Yes, more people knowing about deals makes them disappear faster. Remember when FDs suddenly got a lot harder? Publicity hurts the ability to exploit mistakes. If you believe that the best way for mistakes to be handled is only privately then don't share the ones you discover. But I do find it rather cynical for anyone to suggest that only certain people deserve to know about deals because they're the "FTers" or some such nonsense.
I've been around here for over 11 years now with my share of posts. Some of them have even been useful. And the one thing I've seen in those years that makes me question the community every single time is when someone decides that their subset of the community is somehow better or more special than the others and deserves a deal more than others. I've yet to find a case where an objective look at such a situation would agree with that view.
May 8, 2012, 4:57 pm
#19
Original Poster
Join Date: May 2003
Posts: 6,359
FWIW, I have been doing exactly this for several years. Whenever someone signs up through an offer on my site, they can opt to receive half of the commission back as an Amazon GC (as much as $150 on the Amex Plat for Business card). Right now, I'm only able to offer it on Amex, though I'd certainly be inclined to look into doing it with Chase, Citi, etc if it was popular enough.
Or Chase/Citi/etc application options. ^
May 8, 2012, 4:58 pm
#20
Join Date: Sep 2009
Posts: 1,758
You need to move away from deals that any brain dead person can do. Look for deals that involve risk and large amounts of capital to accomplish.
May 8, 2012, 4:59 pm
#21
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Apr 2001
Location: PSM
Posts: 69,232
Pretending that there is "finesse" involved in playing this game is quite a stretch.
May 8, 2012, 4:59 pm
#22
Join Date: Aug 2011
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Posts: 1,091
I'll preface this by saying I know I'm rather new here compared to the other join dates, but I have tried to contribute as much as possible since I found this site. You bring up some excellent points, I've noticed this quite a few times just over the last few months. I was somewhat upset with the latest 5x office depot deal. Honestly a knowledgable FTer could figure it out with common sense but with step by step instructions being given, I'm sure it will go away quickly. The other problem I noticed was with the "zombie" links a few FTers (sun_aa and chased) found and were posting. They do all the hard work, share with FT and all of a sudden every blog known to man picks up the 60k Bold, 35k Freedom, etc. I'm not sure what the answer is honestly.
May 8, 2012, 5:04 pm
#24
Join Date: Mar 2012
Location: EZE
Posts: 123
Recently it seems that the bloggers have been really ruining deals for us FTers. Tricks/deals that some of us may have known about and kept on the downlow (sometimes for years) somehow get on the radar of a blogger who then disects it and spoonfeeds it to their blog readers step by step.
The bloggers ruin it by spoonfeeding all of our hardearned info to lazy people who can't be bothered to take the time to browse through FT on their own to find deals. Now I'm sure there will be plenty of FTers with under 100 posts who will come out to flame me and defend these bloggers as doing a "needed service". However for the rest of us who are mad about losing out on deals to the lazy blog leeches, maybe we should try to do something about it, preferably hitting bloggers where it hurts (ie, credit card referral signup links).
First, I think blogs put out a lot of content that isn't available or easy to find on flyertalk. Frequent Miler's 5% reload, Lucky's find of Aer Lingus with Avios, my thorough valuation of each mileage currency.
And I don't think they've killed all the deals you claim. For instance no surcharges on Avios from Brazil was not killed by blogs. This is back as a current deal.
But the main issue I have is that you, and I, and most of the people complaining about deals being killed didn't actually start the deal. Instead someone else found the deal, told us here, and we used it.
So, as I understand, you're advocating to still get access to the free deals and tricks but to limit other people's access to it, so you can exploit the deals and tricks longer.
Why? I don't understand what superior claim you or I have to those tricks as compared to a blog reader.
I appreciate your position though, and I think a vigorous debate on the issue is warranted.
May 8, 2012, 5:07 pm
#25
Original Poster
Join Date: May 2003
Posts: 6,359
Answer:
If the bloggers stop getting paid massive amounts for referral kickbacks, then they would have much less incentive to expose deals left and right to compete with each other to gain more readers. Instead they might be more likely to keep it to themselves so that they too can get some use out of the deal rather than killing it......
We FTers are a smart group of people, can't we collectively figure out a way to stop the CC referral money from going into the bloggers pockets, and instead go back into our own pockets?
May 8, 2012, 5:12 pm
#26
Join Date: Dec 2001
Location: NYC
Programs: AA LT PLT, SPG Gold
Posts: 2,564
So who exactly should be in the know regarding these deals? Seems like a lot of sour grapes to me.
May 8, 2012, 5:12 pm
#27
Join Date: Sep 2004
Location: Maryland
Programs: DL Gold, Hyatt Diamond
Posts: 67
I'm afraid that's impossible. For every FTer there's 100 average joes who would rather have the information spoon fed through some blog than sort through hundreds of posts here on FT.
May 8, 2012, 5:14 pm
#28
Original Poster
Join Date: May 2003
Posts: 6,359
LOL, before I posted the OP, there were 2 groups that I thought would be completely against my argument:
1) Bloggers
2) People with FT post counts below 100
You happen to fall in both categories. How am I not shocked in the least that you don't agree with my perspective?
And how am I not shocked the only other person in this thread so far to strongly disagree with my perspective is also a blogger.
1) Bloggers
2) People with FT post counts below 100
You happen to fall in both categories. How am I not shocked in the least that you don't agree with my perspective?
And how am I not shocked the only other person in this thread so far to strongly disagree with my perspective is also a blogger.
May 8, 2012, 5:15 pm
#29
formerly known as daveland
Join Date: Oct 2003
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^^^^^ Hallelujah!!!! Exactly what I have been looking for. I sure wish you would have publicized this more in the past here on FT. You would almost certainly have gotten boatloads of applications through you. I highly recommend people apply through this FTer's links (disclaimer: I don't know this FTer for beans), and in fact maybe if this takes idea off there will be more competition for applications and the next person will offer 60% of the commission back, and so on. Or Chase/Citi/etc application options. ^
Or Chase/Citi/etc application options. ^It also took a fair bit of programming to get the tracking working right so I could properly run the program.
PS: If anyone has any questions about the program, they are welcome to PM me...
May 8, 2012, 5:20 pm
#30
Original Poster
Join Date: May 2003
Posts: 6,359
Yes, that is 100% correct. I don't think bloggers finding deals here on FT and then spoonfeeding their readers step-by-step instructions helps anybody here on FT. It just rubs me the wrong way. Why should people even post their ideas here on FT when bloggers are just going to kill the deal in record time?