Lets go on another wild ride learning about the strange & murky credit card affiliate world, how to book awards from the East Coast, what an UberX driver does, more on the Ritz Carlton credit card, travel to Australia’s Gold Coast, Yangon and Buenos Aires, learn of retirement coaches, how to become millionaires, and all the latest in Blog Buzz. And what the hell is Spiderman doing lol!
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MILES/POINTS
The Strange World of Credit Card Affiliate Relationships. By Pointchaser. Educational post about this strange/murky world. Even Barclays now are starting to dictate editorial control and demand changes or else take the links away. The former FTG Editor is starting to get her former credibility back…and like it.
Award Booking Sweet Spot: East Coast Using Avios. By Miles4More. Oh how sweet it is…
The Brokest We Were in 3 Examples. By Travel is Free. I like stories. Suggestions for improvement: Please cut down on the word “like”. You can take some lessons in writing headlines. Perhaps you can get lessons from View from the Wing who wrote this abomination “Woman BUSTED for Using Her Breast Implants to Smuggle Cocaine”.
Andy at the Lazy Traveler’s Handbook makes a great case for the Ritz Carlton credit card “Just Got My New Chase Ritz Carlton Card–Is It the Best Reward Card Ever?”
Watch out for a Barclaycard Arrival card phone scam. Forward Cabin has a post to warn you! I think scammers should be executed!
TRAVEL
Australia’s Gold Coast in Timelapse. At The Adventure Blog. WOW, stunning is an understatement!
41 Photos That May Tempt You to Visit Yangon, Myanmar Immediately. By Migrationology. I am a sucker for great pictures. Hope these were not Photoshopped 🙂 Just discovered this blog…I LOVE street food. The free breakfasts at the Fairmont and Hilton and Andaz hotels are nice but give me a cheap local dish made in front of me and then eat it with the locals..and I am in!
21 Reasons You Should Visit Buenos Aires. I enjoyed my visit here in 2012. Having a fabulous stay and upgrade at the Hilton (with a ridiculous walk-in closet and all you can eat sushi at the lounge) helped a lot lol.
PERSONAL FINANCE ETC
Finding an Identity Beyond the Workplace – There’s More to Retirement Than Financial Planning. At the New York Times. A fascinating read. Retirement coaches are all the rage now it appears. There is a key word in here: Passion.
How to save a million bucks for retirement. At USA Today. Yes, it can be done!
Let’s Stop And Appreciate The Incredibly Low Level Of Jobless Claims. Yeah really!
BLOG BUZZ
Note: This section is for long time followers of this hobby and references to blogs/bloggers may not make much sense if you are new to this. You are welcome to stay and read it of course but if you go WTF just remember this note!
I know many bloggers read me so this post by Travelblawg may be helpful to you about “Tax Deductions for Blogging? Not So Fast“.
10 Best Credit Cards Offers for August. By One Mile at a Time. When it’s really 12 but who is counting…as “two are promotional offers” LOL!
The Friday interviews at Million Mile Secrets make me want to bang my head against, well, anything solid! And I think it is the first time we do not get the regular “sign up for credit cards” answer to the question on what is the one thing people can do to get more miles. They respond with, sit down please, to sign up for every email and newsletter from every airline and hotel. Whaaaaat, seriously? But hey they created an Excel spreadsheet…brilliant! And you can complain to get more miles too if you had a bad experience, WOW! At the end the interviewees say that they can not thank Daraius enough for the help and his amazing blog and how they can not wait to thank im in person in Chicago (WTF!!!!!). Final tip: Use your miles as quickly as possible. Shaking my head. What is even more ludicrous is MMS using these interviews to insert his credit card affiliate links in any spot he can. Or maybe it is the template that does this automatically. For the record, TBB has not done such an interview before we think very highly of our credibility and very lowly of our traffic numbers 🙂
View from the Wing‘s blog has become very hard to take lately…it keeps going down. And I was accused of tabloid stuff, seriously? I mean, look at these:
Here is the One Best, Most Rewarding Credit Card – Well, you don’t get one sucker, thanks for clicking. While reading click on my best four credit cards. And so ludicrous to still have the Chase Sapphire card in them! A mega link to other posts leading to gazillions of credit card links is conveniently thrown in there too. Stay Chase-y amigo!
Woman BUSTED for Using Her Breast Implants to Smuggle Cocaine – Deep!
You know how the Delta Amex credit cards pretty much disappeared overnight at the Delta Points blog. Even if you clicked on something so clearly titled the link led you to the page of all the credit cards that earned income to the blog. Not even a link to leading to the Amex site! So, what does Amex do? They reward Delta Points by getting back in bed with the blog. So, dear readers, warn your friends that if they go there by accident they will suddenly see the Amex credit card links appear just because…they now pay the blog once again! We don’t have to live with the freaking Arrival card praise as much anymore, phew. So, as I said, never underestimate the stupidity of US banks. Funny how all pro Amex posts virtually disappeared over night when Amex yanked them away. Unbelievable. I tweet what goes through my mind as it happens so when I saw this I tweeted:
Breaking News: Expect posts abt the amazing Delta @AskAmex cards every day now at Delta points again.Why? Because the blog gets paid again!
Proof there is no God. Or God likes pumpers! @Amex gets in bed with Delta Points again. The Amex links will no longer point to other cards:(
Update: On Sunday, right on schedule, Delta Points discovers the Delta Reserve and SPG Amex links suddenly again. No more leading readers to the DP Affiliate credit card page or not even to the Amex website! Oh, he says he calls out Delta for doing dumb things. Next you will see Amex being called out LOL. What nonsense mon Dieu!
The Points Guy shoots some video and picks questions that are soooo prime to, what else, sell more credit cards!
SPG Amex or Sapphire Preferred for Rental Cars? – Of course it is the CSP but here is the SPG Amex link too because some sucka landing here from a google search may just fall for it!
Should I Get the US Airways Card Before the Merger? – Oh God, how many times will we get pumped this card? Can’t wait for Barclays to stop selling it, enough! A simple yes would have sufficed here. But then again we specialize in drive by clicks from Google searches so we need to sell it, enter template 69US.
Should I Downgrade My Amex Platinum to the Everyday Card? – Actually I could care less about this as long as some dude googling things finds these and clicks on one of my lucrative Amex Platinum credit card links. If I really cared about this I would have a link for them to apply for the Everyday card too. We don’t have that link because we most likely do not get paid for those cards. When we do we will make sure we will update the links so we can get paid.
Does Million Mile Secrets even care anymore? Why is this blog invited to speak at “Expert” seminars with gems like these:
Sneak Peek at New Chase Ink Chip Cards! <———Notice the strategic exclamation mark placed there by the…template;-)
Blog Giveaway: 10,000 Starwood Points <——– What, where is the exclamation mark, template #321 is fired! Press Delete.
AMEX Serve Targeted Offer: Up to a $25 Credit When You Make 5 Purchases – Deep!
Can You Get Both AMEX Delta Personal & Business Card Bonuses? – Yes. But here is where I go my ghostwriter goes on and on and on pumping about a dozen Amex credit card links so I show up first in the google searches when some poor soul does a search looking for a Delta Amex card.
Save Chase Points When Booking IHG Hotels! – Again? How many times we need to hear of this “trick”? And hey dude there is an 80k offer, we knew you didn’t really like your mother in law after all!
Just Another Points Traveler had a disappointing post pumping the heck out of the United Mileage Explorer Visa, FIVE affiliate links before readers alerted her to the better offer with the $50 statement credit…which she added. The five affiliate links stayed of course. As I was saying, the resistance to pump is breaking you little by little because…well, let’s compare the revenue from this pump post to my Amazon revenues for the year…I bet I lose big #losing 🙂 Funny how this was posted late on Friday night…was it perhaps to avoid the TBB wrath? Hmm, discuss.
Flyertalk member farwest101 in post #75 in this FT thread wrote:
Perhaps in the SHORT TERM a specific deal may be more widely exposed, but when we continue to shame and shun the selfish greedy pimps pushing CC affiliate links, there will be less of it in the future.
There has been visible success since many have begun to criticize and expose the greedy scumbags outing deals. We now see many of the pimps agreeing to stop outing deals.
And we now see more people being educated on what many of these pimps really are – credit card marketing businesses masquerading as “travel blogs” with so-called experts pushing inferior signup links.
Most people surely have little idea that the credit card pimps get as much as $100-$300 per signup (“conversion”). And when the community understands how much money is at stake, they can judge for themselves how believable the pimps self serving arguments are when it comes to exposing deals.
Of course, many pimps will continue to be greedy selfish scumbags and we need to castigate them for their scummy behavior. Some will see the error of their ways – others won’t give a damn if that means it stops/slows the gravy train of easy $$$ from pimping themselves and their readers for a CC affiliate income – otherwise they’d have to get a real job instead of pretending to be so-called “experts”.
Or, in other words, as they say in that world:
No words to describe this but I think Barclays may have some issues with it if I was their sales rep? Lol.
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Tricky you, posting in the afternoon. First!
Second! Again!
At least I medaled.
Fourth?
Any medals left?
Tricksy hobbit! fifth!
@ Helixcardinal: Been trying to fix your script…I succeeded finally!
@ Nick: Why don’t you sign in as Nick @ Avis? 🙂
@ Rich: Hardware! Well done!
@ yuneeq: Nope, thanks for trying/playing along!
@ anonymouse: Tricksy indeed. I like variety as I get bored easily 🙂
Just recently spent a week in Buenos Aires, couchsurfing. No big closet or free sushi, but a resident guide to show me interesting aspects of the city. And, no cash, no points, FTW. I generally dislike all cities, but I plan to bring my spouse back to BA.
Best part was eating some BBQ sandwiches in a dive next to the Boca stadium. Much better than the refined steak that cost an arm and a leg in a restaurant I heard at The Points Guy 🙂
Yeah I liked my time in BA, felt like…Athens lol.
Points and Credit Card Pimping Pixie just published a review of the Park Hyatt Paris Vendome. Who says original content on BoardingArea doesn’t exist?
Pimping Pixie. Got a nice ring.
#vendomed
This circlejerk again?
Making fun of BA Bloggers for Vendoming is officially the new Vendoming.
I think it is a requirement to be accepted in Boarding Area to be Vendomed? 🙂
I went to Myanmar (I call it Burma) a few years ago and thought it was fantastic….thanks for the pics!
Sure, no problem. Share here stuff that resonates with me!
Correction to that Buenos Aires article: it would be easier to find gelato at one of the numerous Freddo franchises around the city, and there are more teams in Bs. As. than just Boca and River. In fact, one of the Buenos Aires teams just won Copa Libertadores. Also, see a show at Teatro Colon instead of just taking the tour. The acoustics, shows, and people-watching are fantastic.
Went running today along the banks and thought of those frustrated women, who have to be in by twelve o’clock….
I think we tried gelato from Freddos while there. I have a photo of me next to the Maradona statute with my brother. I went running today too…in my gym 🙂
How can you run inside when there’s no snow on the ground? Buzz, we aren’t going to have summer for much longer. {{Sniff.}}
I use the weights too so I am lazy to go to two places lol. Well, gym closes for 2 weeks now for annual maintenance…so I am forced to run outside and do no weights 🙂
Freddos dolce de leche…mmmm
Thanks for the mention George. But seriously, this is one hell of a card, and the funny part is, it has very little to do with Ritz Carlton! 🙂
Got so many of these credits around. Kids’ schedules are restricting me…so I will let you have it. Check your email, sent you one.
While MMS turned into garbage awhile ago, and I can’t remember the last time MMS had anything of value on it, but you have to admit the interviews are pure SEO genius.
Yes they are.
On Friday night I noticed an ABC World News teaser that there will be a “How a blogger gets thousands of miles for free travel” segment sometime this week on ABC World News Tonight. The way the teaser was presented seemed to imply MS in my opinion, but maybe I was reading too much into it. Who wants to place bets on what “famous travel blogger” will be featured? Will the blogger be wearing a Chase or Barclay’s polo shirt? The suspense is killing me and the DVR has been set, LOL!
Hmmm, is this the repeat from the Nightline era? Don’t know but please share details when you know more!
Bet it’s that Mighty Travels guy who keeps trying to get attention.
You may be right…
What do you mean Ariana is ‘formerly’ FTG editor? did she leave? what site is she with now?
@Jeff: She did leave! She went back to just her own blog, ‘PointChaser’.
LOUIS C.K. on a………………. “Generation of spoiled idiots’ don’t know how good they got it.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uEY58fiSK8E
I just sat down in my huge First Class seat and the flight attendant went up and down twice without getting me the predeparture drink. This is totally unacceptable…..and other stuff like that 🙂
My nuts arent warm enough and I would like the Purser to come and coddle them to warm them up. And, I would like them to say “my pleasure” instead of “sure” when I ask them for a glass of water.
A nice article from The Economist on the failures of state owned airlines:
http://www.economist.com/news/business/21612190-why-governments-are-so-keen-keep-their-loss-making-airlines-aloft-flags-inconvenience
>>>>>>Olympic Airlines was forced to deliver newspapers for a pittance to keep the country’s press barons happy. The Greek national carrier went to the wall in 2009.
Oh the pride and joy of the Greek Nation lol.
Post was posted late Friday night because I had to recoup the damage of my hair appt! Come on George, let me be a lady 😉
I want to go to LA to do my hair but the Amazon link revenue can only buy me a medium (up from small, yes!) coffee #sadface
Next Panera outing is on me…oh and in all seriousness, do know that all of my baby diaper/formula orders from amazon go through a very special affiliate link 😉
Your next Panera coffee is on me :-). Click through to AMZN.
Thanks!
Muchas gracias, much appreciated. Keeps the insanity going, woohoo!
GlenGarry Glen Ross <– Great flick.