International multimedia news agency Reuters reported on Thursday that Google is introducing a credit card for its advertisers. To try to improve online business as competition in the online advertising market heats up, Google is introducing a credit line for its AdWords vendors.

According to Reuters, the search giant is offering the credit card to select U.S. customers with a competitive interest rate. The credit line is ample with no annual fee, wrote Reuters reporter Alexei Oreskovic. “The catch, however, is that it can only be used to buy search advertising on the world's No.1 Internet search engine,” wrote Oreskovic.

As per the report, it is Google's first foray into the world of AdWords vendor financing. In reality, it is common amongst hardware giants such as IBM and consumer-oriented companies like Macy's and Amazon.com who have offered credit cards for years to drive purchases, and inspire customer loyalty, Oreskovic wrote.

Quoting Claire Johnson, vice president of global online sales at Google, Reuters wrote that the credit card was designed to help small and medium-sized businesses that advertise on Google but who do not have the funds to support a heavy ad campaign ahead of a big sales season, such as Valentine's Day or Halloween.

She added, "They are resource-constrained and they are often cash flow-strapped. Many of them are trying to grow a business without the kind of means that, say, your classic company has."

Though the company started emailing credit card offerings to some of its customers, it will initially be available as a beta test to select advertisers.

Google said, according to Reuters, the AdWords card is a MasterCard that will be issued through the World Financial Capital Bank. While the company talked about the card's 8.99 percent annual percentage rate, which is the ongoing rate and not an introductory rate, the search giant did not provide any other details, wrote Reuters.