The Shop Small promotion runs for a fairly long period, through September 20. You can even complete it after returning to China, especially with some online merchant types. Note that the offer must be activated by July 26.
Some new DPs
- Many small online merchants actually count. You can search in the Shop Small map.
- Buying gift cards in Samsung Pay should not qualify, but it did trigger, so it is not recommended. Non-qualifying gift card purchases carry some risk. HT: WeChat reader Yuli
- VoIP (virtual phone number) provider: Callcentric. I suspect many small U.S. VoIP providers qualify as well.
Callcentric is a VoIP service I recently tested. I originally thought it had a lot of potential, but after testing it, I felt it was basically useless (KUKU will later publish an article about it). Overall, I do not recommend using it, because there are free alternatives to Callcentric. When I added funds, I guessed it might trigger Shop Small, and I still went ahead and added $10 even though I knew I might not come out ahead. I did indeed receive an email notification. I know many readers in China are using Callcentric; if you have a real need, adding some funds is fine too.
Complete summary
Online:
- Buying gift cards with the Fluz App (friendly reminder: when making repeated purchases, avoid using the exact same amount. Try amounts like 10.01 and 10.02 to avoid triggering Fluz risk controls. HT: Mask Brother)
- Buying gift cards with eGifter (credit card purchases for Amazon gift cards are not supported)
- Asian food delivery platform Chowbus (HT: WeChat reader Nate. For the first order, use code: YUMMY7 to get $7 off; not a referral)
- Yami (HT: focusing)
- Mobile bills from MVNOs: Tello, H2O, etc. (HT: WeChat reader)
- Small VoIP providers (virtual phone numbers): Callcentric, etc.
- CTExcel, the China Telecom Americas card (HT: WeChat reader Wangbo)
- Riot Games top-ups (the operator behind League of Legends, LOL)
- AfterPay (HT: WeChat reader Elliot)
- Hospital bills (HT: WeChat reader Elliot)
- Subscription services for some blogs
- Some Chinese shipping companies, such as 4PX
Offline:
- Most Chinese and Asian supermarkets in various locations (some may allow online ordering and delivery): 99 Ranch, H-Mart, Great Wall, ParknShop, Uwajimaya, Wellcome, etc. (some small Chinese supermarkets may not accept AMEX cards; most does not mean all. It is recommended to confirm whether the supermarkets near you work via the AMEX Shop Small map below. YMMV)
Online and offline:
- Domino's pizza (HT: az. It is recommended to confirm whether the stores near you work via the AMEX Shop Small map below. YMMV)
Unexpected trigger (use with caution)
- Buying gift cards in Samsung Pay should not qualify, but it did trigger, so it is not recommended. Non-qualifying gift card purchases carry some risk. HT: WeChat reader Yuli