Those simply discarding their credit card offers without looking at them may be throwing away an opportunity to easily improve your credit score.  When used responsibly and wisely, credit cards can be used to increase your credit rating.  Vice president of public education for Experian, Maxine Sweet said, "Put the credit to work for you.  Credit is not bad, its bad if you use it badly.  I encourage people to look at it as a tool that they manage.  You can get good rates, rewards, frequent flier miles.  You use it, don't let it use you."

Those who wish to apply for a student or car loan will definitely require a credit history.  Every loan you have ever taken out will reflect in your FICO score.  This score is used by banks to determine your credit standing and loan eligibility.  Unlike a car loan, credit card balances can fluctuate from month to month.  By showing banks how well you can manage revolving credit, you can increase your chances of taking out a low interest loan.  Maxine Sweet added, "The most important thing to improve your score is to have a credit card. An installment loan is a fixed payment and you don't have to manage surprises.  A credit card is self managed and you decide how much you charge each month, how close you get to your limit, whether you let it grow each month or pay it off."

The first thing people should do to improve their credit standing is to know what is on their credit report.  A free credit report can be obtained once a year from each of the nationwide credit reporting companies.  Jeff Kreici, president of First State Bank in Lincoln Neb, suggest consumers to aim for a FICO score about seven hundred.  Kreici said, "At 600 to 620, it would mean a higher fee.  Up to around 700 and about that -- no additional fee."

Kreici also suggested that though credit cards are a good way to build a credit history, cardholders should not go overboard with their spending.  Credit cards can carry interest rates often as high as ten to twenty percent. 

"So many people are using credit to live beyond their means," Sweet said. "In an ideal world, everybody would pay in full and you'd use your credit card for convenience. There are times when it is neat to be able to use credit where you can spend more than you pay in one month, or at holidays, or for emergency, but you've got to stop and create a plan to get it paid back. It keeps your revolving balance low."

Kreici added, "Manage your debt so that 28 percent of gross monthly income is your housing payment -- 38 percent for all payments to creditors."