Cruise Ship“The measure of success is not whether you have a tough problem to deal with, but whether it’s the same problem you had last year.” — John Foster Dulles

In the past, I’ve talked about predatory marketing practices of credit card companies especially with college students. Jeffrey at Saving Advice found the latest sneaky niche approach from the bank behind the bulk of Affinity cards.

“The largest lesbian lifestyle company in the world now has its own affinity credit card. The new ‘Olivia Credit Card’ offers one point for every $1 in net retail purchases. Points are redeemable for ‘Olivia Dollars,’ which can be used to buy down the value of Olivia trips, get upgrades, or even purchase entire vacations.”

According to Bank Marketing, “The number of credit cards in force in the United States is staggering. Sizeable portions of these cards were affinity or co-branded cards. These co-branded and affinity cards appeal to consumers who have specific interests and desires.”

“There are special programs for consumers who love animals, want specific perks or want to benefit their alma maters. Such programs are designed to cut through the marketing clutter created by credit card offers.”

“Marketing is intense for credit cards. You can’t go into the marketplace with a plain, vanilla offering and compete very well. Everyone is trying to add value to the consumer. The only people who the plain cards appeal to are the ones who are not able to get credit cards otherwise.”

Hopefully, the lesbians using the Olivia card will be responsible with their purchases. Adults should understand how, if and when to use credit cards. I’m more concerned about college students.

In Credit Card Nation, Robert Manning interviewed Jeff, a college student that accumulated $20,000 in credit card debt and a $10,000 debt consolidation loan during four years of college.

“Today, Jeff views his credit cards with disdain. He is delinquent on many of his accounts and has threatened to declare bankruptcy unless the banks offer him more favorable interest rates. Ironically, Jeff’s social odyssey of the last four years has brought him ‘full-circle’ in affirming his father’s mantra toward debt: ‘if you can’t afford it, don’t buy it.’ What angers him the most about credit card marketing campaigns on campus is that they extol the benefits of ‘responsible use’ but neglect to inform impressionable and inexperienced students about their ‘downside’ such as the impact of poor credit reports on future loans and even potential employment.”

This is crucial, as Jeff explains, because “the credit card industry knows exactly what it is doing [in encouraging debt] while taking advantage of students whom are trying to learn how to adjust to living away from home, often for the first time… Let’s face it, how can these banks justify giving me 11 credit cards on an annual income of only $9,000. These include a Gold American Express and several Platinum Visa cards.”

“Although Jeff does not dismiss his financial responsibility, he states that he almost feel victimized… giving credit cards to kids in college is like giving steroids to an athlete. Are you not going to use them after you get them?”

Financial education should be mandatory in this country… similar to sixteen-year-olds taking Driver’s Ed.