Offer mentioned below is no longer available.

Credit cards often reward new customers with welcome bonus offers. But even after you’ve been a cardholder for a while, you can receive additional bonus offers. Card issuers occasionally send existing cardholders lucrative targeted offers that provide extra rewards.

I recently received a targeted offer on my Prime Visa that boosted the rewards I earn on everyday purchases from 1% and 2% cash back to 4% cash back.

Here’s a break down of the offer I received compared to the ongoing rewards:

  • New rewards until February 11, 2021: 5% cash back at Amazon.com and Whole Foods Market and 4% cash back everywhere else.
  • Regular rewards: 5% cash back at Amazon.com and Whole Foods Market; 2% back at restaurants, gas stations and drugstores; 1% back on all other purchases.

As a result of this offer, I switched to making this my default card nearly everywhere I shop since it earns me double the amount of cash back compared to my Citi Double Cash Card®  (2% cash back: 1% on all eligible purchases and an additional 1% after you pay your credit card bill).

Over the years, I’ve received several targeted offers across a variety of cards. Below I share some of the actions I take that could help you get a targeted offer.

How to increase your chance of getting a targeted offer

Card issuers send out targeted offers to cardholders for a variety of reasons, such as an applicant's existing relationship with the issuer or online search history. There isn't really a clear pattern for how issuers select who gets a targeted offer, but there are some things you can do to potentially increase your luck.

In order to maximize the chance you receive a targeted offer on your card, follow these tips:

  1. Sign up for marketing emails: In order to receive special offers, you typically need to be signed up for marketing emails through your card issuer. You may have selected this option when you applied, but you'll always have the ability to access your online account and opt-in to marketing emails at any time.
  2. Use your card regularly: If you don't actively use your card, you may not receive a targeted offer. All of the offers I've received are on cards that I use regularly, which works out to roughly two or more times a week.
  3. Maintain a good relationship with your card issuer: Paying on time keeps your account in good standing and may make your card issuer more likely to extend a targeted offer. And if you always pay in full, that can be another plus. Poor payment history can hurt your relationship with your issuer and may make them unlikely to offer you limited-time perks.

Keep in mind that these tips are recommendations that may help you get a targeted offer. There's no guarantee that following any of these actions will result in an offer.

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Information about the Prime Visa has been collected independently by Select and has not been reviewed or provided by the issuer of the card prior to publication; if you purchase something through Select links, we may earn a commission.

Editorial Note: Opinions, analyses, reviews or recommendations expressed in this article are those of the Select editorial staff’s alone, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any third party.