Dissecting credit card offers

I am always more than a little skeptical about signs that shout out "Zero Percent Interest" or "Flat Fifty Percent Off". The only thought that runs through my mind at those times is: "Where is the catch?" There usually is a catch. The question is: Does the catch overpower the benefits? That is the question that I ask myself just before I buy a new credit card or enter a sale. I usually find that the catch is somewhat insignificant when you compare it with the bigger picture.

I usually have a lot of these cynical moments when I am on the lookout for a new credit card. It seems to me that there are too many great offers going. It is as though they are too eager to sell me those credit cards. Why is there so much enthusiasm?

I mean, why would a company offer something like interest free credit cards? What is in it for them? And what about the zero percent balance transfer credit cards? What is the deal with them?

Well, I think once you do away with the skepticism, you find that most of these offers are more or less true to what they say. Most interest free credit cards provide a deal where you don't have to pay interest for a given number of months. After all, credit card companies are bogged down by immense competition. Each has to attract more customers than its nearest rival.

The same logic holds with 0% balance transfer credit cards. The credit card companies want to do business with you. They want to sell you their credit cards. So they have to take the help of gimmicks like this to win you over to their side. In fact, balance transfer credit cards are a prime example of how credit card companies lure away the customers of other credit card companies.

How does this work? Suppose you have a credit card with one company but wish you could get a different credit card that charges a different rate of interest, you could consider getting a hold of a balance transfer credit card. And there will be lots of cards that make you offers that you will not want to refuse.

Competition is everything in the world of today. Everyone is in the rat race to make more business, and everyone is in the rat race to win. So even though you should not be taking offers like "Zero Percent Interest" at face value, remind yourself that you are a potential customer. In this day and age, it is the customer who is the king!