How To Get Your Reluctant Partner Involved In Points And Miles
There are many benefits to having a partner who is involved in this points and miles hobby. This person is often referred to as “Player 2” or “P2” (a fun poke at the game aspect of all of this). A Player 2 is often a spouse or partner within the same household, but in certain circumstances could also be another relative, roommate, or close friend. However, your Player 2 may not always be eager to participate in the points and miles game.
Benefits To Having A Player 2
There are quite a lot of benefits to two-player mode.
Referral Bonuses
Referral bonuses are one of the top perks of having a P2. You and your P2 can refer each other for different credit cards. The referrer can get a referral bonus, while the person referred can get a welcome offer (which is sometimes better than the public offer). A win-win! Always compare your referral offer with the best offer out there – sometimes they are not the same.
Double Up On Cards
Many banks only allow an individual to hold one open card per card product at a time. There are many reasons you may want to hold two cards from the same product, like the card has a great welcome offer or you can easily max out the category spend. While you can product change that card in order to open a second one, some cards have rules on the timing of this. Two players gives you two times the opportunity to hold the card at once.
Take Advantage of Every Dollar Spent
If your partner does not hold a points-generating card, you are likely not taking advantage of every dollar your family spends. Is your partner using a credit card that doesn’t give anything back or even cash (gasp!) when he or she is grabbing coffee without you? Make every dollar spent work for you to take your family’s points and miles game to the next level.
Authorized User Offers
Credit card companies will often offer bonuses for adding an authorized user to your account. Amex is best about this but Chase and Citi have done it as well. These are usually easy points and a great way to pad your balances. Remember that these do often count towards Chase 5/24 as well.
More Cards = More Opportunities
Chase 5/24 Is Easier To Navigate
Last, but certainly not least, is having a player 2 makes navigating the Chase 5/24 rule easier. You can have one person in cooling off period, to get under Chase 5/24, while the other player continues as normal. And you can swap it back and forth. This helps for things like earning the Southwest Companion Pass etc.
Ways To Get Your Reluctant Partner Involved
Here are some tips that should hopefully help get your player 2 a little more involved in the process.
Make It Simple and Easy At First
If your P2 is just starting out in credit cards, it might be best to have them start with a simple card that does not have bonus categories or annual fees, like the Chase Freedom Unlimited. Have them use this card for their everyday spend. Using one credit card for everything is as easy as it can get.
As they get more comfortable with credit cards and acquire more cards, you could move to an easy system like writing on tape on the cards or keeping a note in their phone. Write one or two words describing when to use each card (i.e. “dining” or “gas”) so your partner doesn’t have to question which card to use for every purchase.
Make It As Painless As Possible
One of the most painful parts of the points and miles hobby is making phone calls for retention offers, reconsiderations, when things are not coding correctly, or other general issues that arise from time-to-time. To make these phone calls as painless as possible for your P2, try making a script/talking points for your partner, have your partner hand the phone to you once he/she has verified identity and given permission to you, and use online chat instead of a phone call whenever possible.
Show Them The Payoff
For most people, traveling is the fun part of all of this. Showing your Player 2 what all of their points and miles can get them might make them see how all of this is worth it. Enjoy that business class flight, nice hotel, or extravagant trip that they otherwise might not have taken.
Getting Your Reluctant Partner Involved – Final Thoughts
Not everyone is so lucky to have a Player 2 in this hobby. Even if you are, he or she may be reluctant to participate. Making it simple, painless, and fun can help convince your Player 2 that it is all worth it.
Have any other tips for getting a reluctant partner involved in points and miles? Share them in the comments!
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[…] How To Get Your Reluctant Partner Involved In Points And Miles. – Start them off slowly and realize that they’ll never be as into it as you are. Make it easy for them, and show them how a little bit of work can translate into huge savings or an amazing aspirational vacation that you’d never do if you had to pay cash. That’s what I’ve done. And, even with all of that, the majority of the miles & points duties still fall on my shoulders. It will probably be the same for you, but that’s ok. […]
I keep sending my husband tiktok videos about these big bonus travel credit cards- I think I’m slowly wearing him down!
If they’re still reluctant then do a trip without them. No points – no miles – no trip. On second thought maybe that explains why I don’t have a P2.