The Jason Richardson Appreciation Society

One of my banks has been spending a lot of money on marketing recently. I've mentioned one of their campaigns previously.

I still think they're wasting money but the embossed metallic ink does work well. My six-year old was very impressed.

The letter accompanying this certificate offered a fee-free credit card, which piqued my cynicism -- especially when I noted that info on a separate sheet of paper showed the card would only be free from fees for the first year.

I've come to expect strategic use of information from this bank since my meeting with them for a mortgage, when they attempted to demonstrate their interest rates were cheaper by applying a discount on the first year only. I'll spare you my disdain for their emotive appeals to purchase life insurance, which I gather is one area where banks are increasing profits at present through stripping benefits offered by other companies.