So this small blog is by no means as big as some of the bigger agencies out there but we thought it would be a good idea to have an annual report sort of which summarizes not only 2015 but also gives some look ahead on things that one can expect in 2016. This is not extensively data oriented or nuanced but it is well researched and presents our views, opinions, ideas and our take on the state rather than present the reality perspective. However, for an average reader, this will give some sort of closure and a good perspective on not only 2015 but also the years that led up to it and how things will likely be in 2016.
Credit Cards:
The main idea of this blog is to maximize credit card spend and rewards using various automated or close to automated means which would also be simple. Now, in the past the leading candidate has mostly been American Express. Any agencies out there will usually put them at the top across various segments. Rewards, just like their customer service, is no different either. So if you really want to not have to deal with a lot of cards and have just one, go with one from this bank and you are in good stead. In 2015, though Amex still leads the rest, the rewards are strictly hohum. I would not recommend applying for any old cards or go after anything particularly new ones at the moment. Discover has caught on with equivalently good customer service but not at all a match to Amex when it comes to rewards. Chase was as usual good. Like Amex, if you want to have one card with wider acceptability like Visa and Mastercards with Secure pins to boot, go with Chase. In fact, I would say they are good to have in your wallet and credit report in general. There are lots of cons too which we have detailed elsewhere but overall Chase is a close runner up to Amex. Citi was the surprise kid in 2015. Now, for those in 2000s know that Citi was the front runner for many years but got shanked in the financial crisis and they suspended many programs and cut down on credits drastically. But 2015 was good for citi lineup with many decent cards. We argued that some are not necessary or just entice you to give in for high fees etc. Nevertheless, it was good for Citi. Is it that one card with one bank that you can go with? I would say no. That would still be Amex or Chase in general. But if you have to go with Citi for whatever reasons, that card without doubt would be the Citi Cashback 2% card. And that card can easily beat the best from Amex or Chase or rather anyone in the market at the moment. The only downside is no sign up bonuses here. Those are the big three. No major credit unions offers. Barclaycards continue to climb up the US credit card industry with more and more cards and good offers all around. They seem to be loosening up a bit after losing US Airways but have landed Jetblue likely. And they are good too. At least better than the ones below such as US Bank or Fidelity or MBNA or whatever. These banks continue to lag at the bottom.
Bank of America and its cards are still decent but dont expect anything out of this world. BBVA is a new kid in the block with good Amex/NBA partnerships. It is a good card for sports fans. Discover ran some interesting promotions. Capital One was Capital One. Still decent and conservative and an indicator of excellent credit. That is it!
Airlines:
The airline industry in 2015 had a good year overall but for customers the rewards could have been better. The miles earnings models are shifting to more revenue generation. Which means the credit card earning route is all the more valuable. But you have to know how and when to go with this route. Southwest leads the pack with best program and the best card in Chase southwest card. This is one card where one need not mind the fees at all. Jetblue is second with fantastic service but credit cards wise they need to really amp up the game. United is pretty good amongst the rest of the legacy carriers. American comes in after United and that is mainly because of the tie up with their partners British airways whose avios points are still good. Delta is as usual dead last and even if you pay for this bird, you are coming out pretty unsatisfied. Foreign carriers are interesting nice. A lot of them are pretty decent with miles but let us keep this domestic. Virgin America, Spirit, Airtran, Frontier et al are there and have decent programs. But where airlines differ from some other industries is that airline sector is mostly static and slow. Things dont change and are less inspirational. More competition is needed so that prices go down and rewards accumulate. Even if you look back in the last 10-15 years, this industry is not exactly the trend setter in its space or something that excites others.
Hotels:
Hyatt/Marriott/SPG/IHG are all pretty good and depends a lot on the location where you chose to avail their services. Lot of mergers and acquisitions happened and continue to do so. Hopefully this industry does not go the way of airlines and gets stuck in the stagnated route. New sites like Airbnb are really creating a dent in this market. Likely will continue to do so in 2016. A shout out for the Chase IHG card which is the only card with a free night for an annual fee of $49. It is pretty much the lowest of the hotel cards right now and we would recommend keeping this card if you are going to use a free night worldwide on IHG Chain which are pretty good with holiday inn and the likes.
Rental Cars:
As is the line of this blog, we dont focus much on rental cars loyalty programs per se. It is one of those perks that if its there or you get a 20% off coupon, one just uses it. A big shout out to autoslash - a pretty nice algorithm that keep aggregating relentlessly to find you the best rates over time. I wonder why no one is doing the same for the hotel industry at least because that would be super tough to achieve in the airlines world - not technically but for the closed nature of this industry. I guess hotel lobbyists would also jump too much in arms if there would be more openness to reservations systems of a hotel. Expect Uber, Lyft etc to dent into this market and chip in the share so hard that the car rental guys will have no option but to cave in with way lesser rates similar to what is happening to taxi unions.
That is it! Hope this give you some perspective on things. Travelling for work sucks in general. Unless it is a different location and hotel etc. That adds some varieties and spice to your work life. The same old scenary and same old cramped plane - week in and week out just jades you. I think one can reasonably do travelling for about 10-12 weeks before they need a break and settle down to a more regular work travel rhythm or a work from home routine. For travelling folks, it would be tough to keep track of miles and often the preference should rightfully be to get to and fro destinations quickly. Same with hotel and other things. A best case scenario that is also humane for a decent travelling worker usually involves about 20 flights and with revenue based model that would give about 10, 000 points. You could wish the best case scenario of this being a southwest flight. Essentially this points can be redeemed for one or two short haul flights. Too much inefficiency! Forget about rental cars and the best in class hotel would give you something like 1 night free for about 15 nights or so. Unless you have a card such as Citi Prestige which gives you 1 free night every 3 booked nights! But then you might run into billing issues there. But keeping these things aside, I think hotel industry is also not up there in terms of efficient way to earn miles.
All of this pretty much lays emphasis on the need to use credit cards strategically, now more than ever, and the lead credit cards have over actual travel in the way one earns miles. There is simply something nice about credit cards rewards and redemptions which lack in the business travels. No matter how you spin it, those are business expenses and given a choice of your business expense, would you like to conduct business remotely and pocket in the travel expense or actually go thru the travel and pocket measily miles? In 2016, we predict the status quo would be maintained more or less. We will see some exciting offers, some changes, a few bonuses here and there but mostly the same.
