Got An Offer To Sell MileNerd

I think the title of this post probably sums it up. Yeah, I recently got a decent-sized offer to sell the blog. So this is some of what went through my head…

  • When I started MileNerd, there wasn’t anything like it. That isn’t intended as a brag…it’s just a fact. There were only a few blogs and all wrote in the same straight, cookie-cutter style. Hard to read…almost like a textbook. For some, that was because affiliates limited their content. But it was also because they weren’t particularly interesting people. And they weren’t really writers.
    Beyond that, the main difference was that I chose to put readers first. Not money, not credit card sales. Readers. And I think it’s a pretty big difference. Probably the reason so many people found me. Maybe why so many of you have been loyal for years. You trust me as a person. For whatever reason, you could always tell the difference. I still don’t know how exactly…are people just that perceptive? But real trust was something other bloggers didn’t have. It was something they didn’t deserve.
  • Well, times have changed. There are now other bloggers who can be trusted. Not many. But a few. A couple have been very respectful and gave me credit for being the pioneer of a lot of this stuff. Even for little things like the pictures. The truth is, I feel great about it. I know I helped pave the way for a different kind of blogger. I know what my impact was, even if some don’t. But this new environment made me wonder if it was a good time to consider the offer.
  • I literally couldn’t have treated this blog less like a business. As you know, I don’t use ads and didn’t make any money here. No social media. Haven’t even tracked the number of hits for years. So I started brainstorming what value MileNerd would even have to a buyer. And then it hit me – it’s you guys. This thing has a reputation now…it’s a name people can trust. That’s a very rare thing in this game. It takes a long time to earn it. Most bloggers never will.
  • I don’t know if mine is the best way. This is just how I chose to do things. So…at this point, the real question is if it’s time to retire my keyboard?
  • Writing a blog isn’t necessarily “hard,” but it does take some energy. It might be nice to have a few more free hours in my week. So should I sell?

The answer is, not yet.

I turned down the offer for now.

If you have any thoughts either way, feel free to let me know.

 

3,000 American Miles

What’s that you say? It’s been more than 90 minutes since I posted a Rocketmiles deal? Well, here’s the latest one. Get 3,000 bonus American miles if it’s your first booking.

Avios For Economists

Grab 13,200 Iberia Avios points for a Print + Digital subscription to The Economist. As always, those can be converted to British Avios easily. For a few less bucks, you can also choose print-only or digital-only for 10,200 points. This was supposed to be dead, so thanks to reader Jason for letting me know it was extended through October 31st.

 

Monday Recap

Catching up after a few days of napping…

  • Get 500 Virgin America points in 15 seconds here. Thanks reader Bruce.
  • Use your Ink card for another Staples Visa gift card deal through Saturday.
  • And use it for $15 off Mastercard gift cards when you spend $300 at Office Depot or Office Max. Also through Saturday.
  • If you have a Flexperks card, some readers are seeing new bonus offers.

The Top 25 Credit Cards

(If you see any errors or missing cards, please let me know. I try to keep a full list, but it’s a lot of information and I do make mistakes).

Significant Changes Since Last Month:
-Asiana card added back to the list.
-New Hilton Surpass link worth 100,000 points.
-Sapphire Reserve card was born.
-FlexPerks added bonus through September 3.
-Chase Ink bigger in-branch offer extended.

Time for the monthly edition of my Top 25 Credit Cards. I call it “Top 25” out of tradition, but you get a lot more links than that below. Again, if you’re a rookie, make sure you read The Newbie Guide. It’s a little outdated but many of your questions can still be answered there. Basic things like not applying for 3 Chase cards at the same time should be known before you continue. For people running out of cards, remember there’s often a Business card option. I listed a few here but not many, so it might be worth exploring more Business cards. Also, “churning” might be an option. The dates here were a guideline but things always tend to vary individually.

Miles and points aren’t an equal currency. 50,000 Delta Skymiles are worth less to me than 50,000 miles from Singapore Airlines. 25,000 Hyatt points mean more to me than 25,000 Hilton points. And so on. These links work right now (September 1st at midnight). If you read this later, many of the offers will have changed. Things move fast in this game so read offer details and terms before applying. Especially all that small print when you’re trying to get bonuses more than once on the same card. Ok, enough blabbering…here we go! My “Top 25” current credit cards in order are below…

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