Mutual Win: do people really win-win with MutualWin?

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MutualWin is an interesting website that allows members to refer a friend and claim ‘free cash’ on many categories of products: from cell phones to gym memberships to apartment rentals – from right across the Web.

Referral deals provide a great financial incentive for blog owners and investorbloggers looking to create a passive income stream.

A good example from the website shows how it works:

Let’s say your cell phone company is offering a $100 bonus if you sign up a friend. It sounds like a great deal – unless all of your friends already have phones. MutualWin lets you post your offer so that other customers can see it. If one of them is interested and signs up for service, both parties split the bonus, even if you and the other person have never met. That means $50 for each of you, simply for clicking a button.

This is an intriguing way to earn money for a number of reasons:

  1. some deals are valued for $100s of dollars;
  2. the reach of the internet can help refer many people; and
  3. there’s quite a range of different types of promotions available.

If you earn money on this system, do leave a comment here! I’d love to hear any successes from this!

This is So NOT sponsored.

Loan.com: is this ‘lending done right’?

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(Ed. Note January 26th)
This is the second time I have done this post. I wrote a great 250-word post, published it, and now it’s history! Gone! I hit the delete button by accident! Poof! So if you read this before and it’s different, don’t be surprised!

There are tons of loan websites out there, but few of them really achieve the same level of success in incorporating both a personal and interactive element as Loan.com does. There are several good features that really help to make it an online loan center with a difference. It’s ethical lender policies, loan calculators, and articles really help to inform the potential clients.

But perhaps the most interesting aspect of Loan.com’s launch this week is its focus on ethical lending with its Borrowers Bill of Rights. This focus is on both aspects of the lending proposition, the borrower’s rights, and the lender’s obligations:

1. Competitive Rate Quote
2. Rate Quote That Won’t Change
3. Accurate Explanation of Credit Status
4. Fair Fees
5. Upfront, Full Disclosure of All Lending Fees
6. Accurate Closing Date
7. Immediate Notification of Underwriting Issues
8. Confirmation of a Rate Lock
9. Exceptional Customer Service
10. Advocacy With Lender/Underwriter
11. No Surprises at Closing
12. Help After the Closing

There are many kinds of costs that are included in mortgages, not all of them are usually clearly itemised. And in some cases, these costs can be hidden within the loan amount. Most borrowers are fixed on the monthly cost of the loan, as I was when I got my mortgage, rather than the actual cost, as a measure of its affordability, these costs can be easily overlooked when you are negotiating a mortgage.

With all the trouble over ARMs missellling, I think it’s important that someone should stand up for ‘ethical lending’ as there are too many ways for borrowers to face unexpected charges. In fact, it’s only when the borrower’s start to experience borrowers’ remorse that they discover the hidden charges and costs. And the costs run from 1% up of the loan amount. That is not chump change. This lending policy, coupled with the links to ethical lenders, should help borrowers avoid some of the unethical behaviors.

This posting has been brought to you by Loan.com.

Alexa Image Updater: Bingo

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This blog has had a lousy page image at Alexa for yonks… I tried to find a way to login so that I could update the picture. Nothing… So then I did a Google search for a way to update, and BINGO! The Alexa Image updater is linked here. Enter the URL right there. And Bingo! It says it’s done. I’m still waiting for the image, but it should be done soon.

Alexa information is quite useful for a number of reasons, e.g. Text-Links-Ads, etc., which sets the price of ads for your website. It’s quite a good idea to keep your information uptodate to make sure that any ad services will offer you the best prices on offers for your websites.