Thanksgiving is here and the holidays will soon be upon us. That means I see some shopping in your future. Whether you like to brave the stores Thanksgiving weekend through the holiday season or shop from the comfort of you own home, there are a number of offers in which you can earn A LOT of bonus points.
Like so many stores, the loyalty program shopping portals offer many deals and opportunities to earn bonus points on Black Friday and Cyber Monday. If you are scared off by the crowds on Black Friday but still love a good deal with some bonus points to boot, use the portals to shop. These same portals also offer many deals on Cyber Monday. Stay in the peace and quiet of your own home and take advantage of an abundance of good deals with bonus rewards. (BTW-my house is rarely peaceful).
If you are partial to Amazon and you have an American Express card that earns Membership Rewards, you likely have access to an offer in which you can earn 3x American Express Membership Rewards points shopping on Amazon through December 31, 2016. Log into your American Express account online and check your offers at the bottom of the page to see if this offer is available to you.
If you like to visit the stores instead, it is a win-win if you support your local businesses. If you have an Amex card, you can get double rewards per $1 spent when you use your ENROLLED Amex Card at qualifying small businesses on the Shop Small Map. This offer is available through December 31, 2016 and is up to $100,000 in purchases on regular Amex cards and up to $250,000 in purchases on business Amex cards. To see if you have a card that qualifies for the offer and to enroll that card, click here. My American Express Everyday Preferred card was eligible for the the promotion and I enrolled that card. If you have more than one eligible Card, you must separately enroll each card.
If gift cards are your gift of choice, consider purchasing cards at Staples, a supermarket or a drug store and use a credit card where you earn bonus points at those merchants. For example, if you have a Chase Ink Plus card, you can buy gift cards at Staples and earn 5x Chase Ultimate Rewards points. Similarly, you can use an Amex Everyday or Amex Blue Cash card and get bonus points at grocery stores. For those of you with a Chase Freedom card, drugstores is a 4th quarter 5X bonus category. Note, these are only examples. Check out my site where you can see which cards give you bonus rewards at certain merchants.
The holiday season is the perfect time to test out some bonus earning strategies. After all, you are likely going to be shopping anyway. It may just require a few extra clicks or a little more thought when you are making those purchases. It will be worth it when you see your rewards’ account balances really start to climb.
Happy Thanksgiving to you and your families and heres to some lucrative shopping!!
