Spring break is quite literally the holy grail for credit card marketers. Students are already a favorite demographic for card issuers because they tend to be active credit users with a lot of brand loyalty. Spring break brings together large volumes of students from across the country in centralized location. When you add alcohol, impaired judgment and freebie give-aways; the credit card issuers can&39;t lose.

The most popular spring break destinations are often full of corporate sponsors eager to reach out to the student market. Mr. Youth, a marketing firm geared toward college students, is the official ad agency hosting spring break in Panama City Beach for the third year in a row this March. (The bikini and booze filled promotional video on the site is a nice touch). Their website offers up "400,000+" students to clients including Miller Lite and Heineken each year.

Offering a free t-shirt or some other ten cent give-away, credit card issuers can potentially get tens of thousands of students to apply for credit cards over spring break. Of course, each credit card application damages the student&39;s credit score with a hard inquiry. If approved for the card, the student is stuck with the card on their credit report for seven or more years even if they cancel the account a few months late. I wonder how many students return from spring break with five or six brand new credit cards in their name.

Hard to believe? Pretty ridiculous? The producers of the The Daily Show agreed! The news satire show did a segment on the prevalence of spring break marketing last year called "Beach Ploys." You can watch the must-see clip staring Dan Bakkedahl online here for free.