Sometimes just for fun I will log into different sites I know has the SCT add stuff to my cart and see if I get a pop up. I have only accepted 2 which was Overstock and VS as I shop there often.
What I have found though is if you x out of them and they really want you they will mail you a pre approved offer. I have gotten pre approved offers from Williams Sonoma for their visa card after the pre approval popped up on the website and I xed out. I have gotten Lenovo letters, Wayfair and a few others. So if you truly are pre approved and you x out of the page they will send you a letter to accept your offer and like I said a few of them have been for the Visa version of the store cards.
Make sure when the pop up pops it says Pre Approved not Apply that will make the difference in a hard or soft pull. Make sure you really want that card and will use it before accepting it. The downfall I have seen time and time again on here is people get caught up in the approval high of all the pre approvals and just start accepting knowing they will never ever use the card. They justify by saying they are using for util padding or to build their credit back up so on and so forth. What I see happen time and time again is commenity shutting cards down right and left after people have taken the hit for their account age because they applied for too many cards at a time. Now you are stuck with a lower AAoA and no card at all. I also see people denied for better cards with better limits because they went on a spree with the SCT and now those big creditors are denying people because of too many new accounts or they get very low starting limits if they are approved at all because they have a bunch of toy limits from the SCT.
Like I said earlier I will admit for fun just to see what I can get to pop up I go on those sites and play around for sh*ts and giggles but I never ever accept them I just like seeing the pre approvals pop up. I also do this on pre qualify sites for the big guys too. Not because I want more credit but because there was a time I couldn't get approved for a free paper bag and now I can run a pre qualify for just about anywhere and something will pop up for me and that is good enough to make me happy. Silly I know.
