UPDATE-I changed my mind, and Rob kept his Gold card and now he even converted it to the latest version. 4X points is quite worth it!
Rob has had the American Express Business Gold Rewards Card for as long as I can remember. It has been quite lucrative for him in terms of Membership Rewards points because he advertises frequently for his business and had selected advertising as his category to earn 3X bonus points. In addition, he earned 2x points on all of the other categories which recall are airfare purchased directly from airlines, gas stations, shipping, and computer hardware, software and cloud computing purchases. The card has a $175 annual fee.
All had been moving along quite smoothly until American Express introduced the American Express Blue Business Plus Card. With this card, business owners earn 2x Membership Rewards points on ALL PURCHASE AND THERE IS NO ANNUAL FEE!
I actually couldn’t pass this card up so I got one for myself a few months back and even scored a 20,000 sign up bonus, which unfortunately is no longer available. Then I started thinking about Rob’s card inventory and spending habits.
I decided that Rob does not spend enough on advertising nor enough on the other 2X bonus categories to make it worth it to keep the Gold Business Amex card. Overall, I think Rob will earn a lot more Membership Rewards points by using the Blue Business Amex card where he will earn 2x points on EVERY purchase even with the $50,000 2x bonus cap. (You can only earn 2X points on the first $50,000 of purchases, after that you earn 1X point). Rob applied for the Blue Business card and was immediately approved.
Next on the list-I canceled Rob’s Gold Business Amex card. I will make sure to keep an eye out for the $50,000 annual 2x bonus spend cap. If he hits it, I will likely have him switch to another card like the Chase Ink Business Preferred for the remainder of his business expenses.
