Every November, AMEX runs a series of promotions for Small Business. Spending on an AMEX credit card at these merchants can earn some extra cash back. Although these promotions over the past two years have not been as strong as before, they are still a nice extra perk. Today I’ll introduce this year’s Small Business Saturday promotion and also summarize the promotions from previous years.
【10/28 update】The extra promotional reward should post 3-5 days after the charge posts. See: reward posting time
【10/24 update】List of merchants worth using: list
Contents [Hide]
AMEX Small Business Saturday (SBS) Introduction
AMEX Small Business Saturday (SBS) is an event that has been held since 2010 on the fourth Saturday of every November. It is initiated by AMEX and co-hosted with Small Business merchants that accept AMEX cards. AMEX provides these merchants with some decorations and subsidies, and also adds extra promotions for AMEX credit cards.
The SBS promotion is different every year. In 2016, all AMEX credit cards (including business cards) earn an extra 1x cash back or points when used at Small Business merchants. For a summary of previous years’ promotions, see the end of the article.
2. 2016 Small Business Saturday Promotion Details
Overview
This year’s promotion is rather average for AMEX cardholders.
- Promotion summary: All AMEX credit cards will earn an extra 1x in rewards/cash back on purchases at Small Business merchants
- Registration link: 2016 AMEX Small Business Saturday registration (once the primary card is registered, the authorized card follows automatically)
- Promotion period: From registration until 12/31/2016
- Eligible merchants: AMEX-designated Small Business merchant map
- Reward details: SBS rewards are added on top of the card’s existing cash back/points earning rate
- Membership Rewards cards will earn an extra 1 MR/$
- Hilton cards will earn an extra 3 HH/$
- Delta cards will earn an extra 1 mile/$
- SPG cards will earn an extra 1 Starpoint/$
- Cash back cards will earn an extra 1%/$ (excluding OBC)
- Plenti cards will earn an extra 1 point/$
How to Register
When registering, first choose whether it is a personal or business card, then register the appropriate card under the corresponding category.
Reward Posting Time
On the 24th, I tested this myself by using an AMEX Delta Platinum to pay a bill on Plastiq (tuition), for a total of $670. The credit card statement has not closed yet, so I have not received the base 670 miles, but the extra 1x promotional reward has already appeared in my Delta account. Based on the timing, the reward should appear 3-5 days after the charge posts.
This is consistent with some data points I’ve seen online. The reward points seem to be related to the time of payment and may not have anything to do with the billing cycle. I suspect it works the same way as AMEX Offers.
Best Ways to Use It
In-Store Use
I did a rough search near my home for merchants participating in SBS. The merchants we commonly use include:
- Basically all independent, non-chain restaurants
- Liquor stores
- Some independent gas stations
- Some small convenience stores and grocery stores
If you find places you visit often, congratulations — go register your AMEX credit card right away. If you have most AMEX cards, just register the following cards and use them depending on the situation:
- Restaurants: Premier Rewards card (restaurants already earn 2x, so with SBS it becomes 3x)
- Grocery stores or gas stations: Everyday Preferred card (grocery stores 4.5x+1x; gas stations 3x+1x), EveryDay Card (grocery stores 2.4x+1x), Blue Cash Preferred (grocery stores 6%+1%; gas 3%+1%), Blue Cash Everyday (grocery stores 3%+1%)
- All other merchants: SPG card (all purchases 1x+1x), Everyday Preferred card (other purchases 1.5x+1x)
When shopping at these merchants, it’s worth checking whether they sell gift cards. First, you can stock up on some gift cards during this 2x promotion period. Second, if these merchants happen to sell third-party gift cards such as Visa gift cards or Amazon gift cards, then you may be able to buy a lot of them. In my experience, some grocery stores or gas stations may have them, so take a careful look or ask a store employee.
Online Merchants
This time AMEX also specially listed merchants participating in SBS online. You can change the map search range to Online.
After browsing around, I found many independent travel agents, travel-related stores, and some custom souvenir shops. The only merchant I recognized was squretrade.com, which sells electronics insurance. If you have an iPhone, you can consider this insurance.
Merchant List Worth Using:
Plastiq:【10/24 update】Some people have reported that Plastiq also counts toward AMEX’s 2x Small Business promotion this year. Paying rent, tuition, or taxes to earn 2x SPG/MR is a very good option! If you use AMEX cards to plan future payments before 10/31, you can also get a 0.25% fee discount, and the value of 2x rewards is slightly higher than the fee.
- Introduction to the Plastiq bill-pay tool (signup bonus of $200 FFD)
Yami:【10/16 update】Yami (yamibuy.com), an Asian snacks site in the U.S., is also on the Small Biz list, so you can get 2x on snacks too! Yami may also code as Grocery, so you can try the AMEX grocery cards mentioned above~
- Yami signup link (signup bonus of $5)
Other Merchants
Of course, I don’t think all participating merchants are listed here. If you’re interested, you can test the following merchants:
- Websites selling used gift cards: Raise.com, Cardpool.com, Saveya.com
- Local grocery stores or grocery stores only available in your state
Having gift cards is the only way to really play this SBS 2x offer in volume.
Review of Previous Years’ SBS Promotions
- 2015: Some users received a targeted AMEX Offer. For Small Business purchases of $10 or more between 11/1 and 11/28, they could get a $10 credit
- 2014: All AMEX cards could register for SBS. On SBS day, spending $10 or more at participating merchants could earn a $10 credit, up to 3 times per card. Authorized AMEX cards could also receive it independently.
- 2013: All AMEX cards could register for SBS. On SBS day, spending $10 or more at participating merchants could earn a $10 credit, limited to once. Authorized AMEX cards could also receive it independently.
- 2012: All AMEX cards could register for SBS. On SBS day, spending $25 or more at participating merchants could earn a $25 credit, limited to once. Authorized AMEX cards could also receive it independently.
As you can see, the promotion gets weaker every year.