CREDITCARDS: That amazing 75k sign up offer for AMEX Business Gold Card is still active

For those of you who are regularly following other blogs in the miles & points blogosphere undoubtedly have seen this somewhat elusive, but still amazing, 75k Membership Rewards (MR) points sign up offer for the American Express Business Gold Reward Card floating around everywhere.

The increased promotional offer–50% higher than the normal 50,000 MR points sign up offer–is the highest many miles enthusiasts have seen for this card. In fact, 75,000 MR points is roughly worth:

• Roughly $750 when redeeming for gift cards
• Or $1,000+ in value for flights or hotels stays when either transferred to airline/hotel programs or simply redeemed for travel via AMEX

Let’s put that last figure into tangible perspectives for you.

• 75,000 MR points transfers to 60,000 JetBlue TrueBlue points (you are also hit with a $45 tax for transferring; alternatively you can pay the tax with 9k MR points.) You can get a San Francisco (SFO) to New York (JFK) roundtrip flight for 26k TrueBlue points. With 60k TrueBlue points, that’s two roundtrip tickets from coast to coast on JetBlue, and some leftover points for another trip!
• 75,000 MR points transfers to 37,500 Virgin America points ($45 or 9k MR points tax also applies). You can get a San Francisco (SFO) to New York (JFK) roundtrip flight for 18,745 Virgin America points. That’s just enough for two roundtrip tickets from coast to coast on Virgin America as well!
• 75,000 MR points also converts directly to $600 in Hyatt Hotel gift cards (at the cost of 64,800 MR points), with 10,200 MR points still left for you to play around with! Imagine what you could do with $600 of cash credit with Hyatt. :]

Unfortunately for me, this sign up offer is not valid for anyone who currently holds an American Express Business Gold Card (which I currently do), nor is it valid for anyone who has had the card within the past 12 months. I had a few friends, however, sign up for the card (after much effort..which I will explain shortly) yesterday and get automatic approvals as well as the full 75k offer. (I’m completely jealous.)

Now, it’s important to note that this is the Business Charge Card version of the AMEX Gold. The personal version is called the American Express Premier Gold Card. You will be asked for your business information, but as with other business cards, you can simply use your legal name as the name of the business, and your social security number as the employer identification number (EIN). In most states, including California, you are legally allowed to do business under your full name without having to register your business anywhere.

What could you business be, perhaps? Private consulting on great eats in your local city? Private tutoring if you are helping anyone with anything? Private food and travel reviewer? The possibilities are endless. Also keep in mind that all credit card companies, including American Express, ultimately want your business and just want to make sure you are a good, law-abiding citizen that will pay your bills. As long as that sounds like you, the details of your business can be left rather vague.

What are the inherent perks for the card?

• Card earns Membership Rewards points (an exclusive program for AMEX)
• 3x points on airfare when purchased directly from airlines
• 2x points on U.S. purchases of advertising in select media, shipping, and at gas stations
• 1x points on all other purchases
• 24/7 service & concierge support
• Purchase & travel benefits (including purchase protection, extended warranty, return protection, etc.)
• OPEN Savings program (discounts at select merchants and vendors)
• Since it is an American Express card, it qualifies for all American Express Sync rewards
• It is a charge card, which means there is no “hard” limit on your purchase power

The card comes with a $0 introductory annual fee, and then $175/year after that. You can cancel the card before you are hit with the annual fee next year, but if you do decide to do that, make sure to spend all your Membership Reward points before you close the account, as those will disappear with the account if unused.

Personally, I have been renewing my card and paying the annual fee because I think the card justifies the value for me at the moment. I will admit, the nice little retention bonus that I received for not closing the account did help sway my mind. But decide that later, as your first year’s fee is waived.

That all being said, how do you get in on this offer? See…that’s the tricky part.

The offer itself is undoubtedly a very limited time offer. It also has decided upon itself to act stealthily for many, and not properly show up if you have any sort of cookies with American Express saved. Here are some instructions on how you can reproduce the 75k offer:

• This is the link for the AMEX Business Gold Card’s 75k offer: http://www262.americanexpress.com/landing-page/business-cards/sclp/bgold/pm0003/42732?PID=14&BUID=SBS&PSKU=BGR&CRTV=BGR50K&VEID=1581924753
• Go to the link directly (or copy and paste it somewhere). You should see an offer for 75,000. However, if you are unlucky, you will see the 50,000 offer. If you see the 75k offer and want to apply, go for it!
• If you do NOT see the 75k offer, then here is what you have to do: clear all of your cache and cookies for your browser and then close all instances of your browser. Then open it up again and go directly to the link again.
• If you still do not see the 75k offer, I would advise to attempt switching to another browser. I literally went from Google Chrome to Mozilla Firefox to Apple Safari before I had the 75k offer show on my screen, despite clearing the cache on all my browsers.
• Remember, this offer can be pulled at any time. Hopefully if you are interested in this offer, you will be able to get this to show before it expires.

The application boasts about how you can get a decision within 60 seconds. From listening to the experiences of the friends who applied, it sounds like if you have existing (and good) credit history with American Express, you should get instantly approved, even if you have no prior business products with them. It also sounds like if you have a solid credit score and history, you will also get instantly approved. For anyone who gets denied, I highly encourage you to simply give their reconsideration line a call. Chances are, as long as you have good credit history, you will get approved. Remember, they want your business. Here are the reconsideration numbers and some tips.

Note to Readers: I do not receive any sort of compensation for you signing up. The link is copied and pasted from the Slickdeals thread (not sure if they have any affiliate ID linked on it…), and I genuinely believe this is one of those amazing sign up offers where it’s worth taking the leap for. I love sharing good finds, and credit card sign up offers are a powerful way to jumpstart your miles & points collection–whether you are new to all of this or even if you’re a veteran.