The Amex Gold card is one of American Express’s premier rewards charge cards – with better travel rewards than the Green Card and without the $450 annual fee of the Platinum version.  And until November 14, the Business Gold Card from OPEN is offering a signup bonus of 50,000 Membership Rewards Points to anyone who spends $10,000 in the first four months.

This promotion makes The Amex Gold Card one of the best business rewards cards out there, at least for the next two months, since those 50,000 bonus points will net your business either two domestic plane tickets, or a check for $500.  Additionally, putting $50,000 or more of business expenses on this card will get you an additional 25,000 bonus Membership Rewards Points every year you have the card.  This $250 worth of annual bonuses is double the $125 annual fee that kicks in after the first year.

Is this a good choice for my business?

Whether this card is right for you and your business depends what your business needs are.

If you need access to credit and will occasionally carry a balance month-over-month, then this card won’t help you.

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The Pentagon Federal Credit Union (PenFed) is doubling the reward points you can earn on everyday purchases during the first year anniversary celebration of their PenFed Premium Travel Rewards American Express® Card, now until December 31, 2010. The PenFed Premium Travel Rewards American Express Card offers exceptional earn rates, including 5x points on airfare, and, for a limited-time, 3x points on hotels and dining and double points on virtually all other purchases. There are no caps or limits on the number of points cardholders can earn, and there are no foreign transaction fees.

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America’s worst credit card?

The November 2010 edition of Consumer Reports Magazine names what it believes to be “America’s worst credit card”. It’s the First Premier® Bank MasterCard®. And if you’re used to mainstream credit card rates and fees, be prepared to be shocked.

Because the magazine claims that with this card:

• If you have a $300 credit limit, you could pay up to $170 in fees in the first year even if you make every payment on time and stick to your limit
• The APR on your purchases could be 23.9 percent
• The APR on cash advances could be 59.9 percent
• The fee for increasing your credit limit could be half of that increase (so you’d pay a $50 fee for a $100 rise in your limit)

Credit cards can’t be all the same

That does sound pretty outrageous, but you have to remember that First Premier is offering a very specialist product to a niche market: those whose credit scores are so badly damaged that they no longer qualify for normal credit cards.

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The authors of the report, published in America, wrote: “Cash payments are psychologically more painful than card payments, and this pain of payment can curb the impulsive responses to buy unhealthy food items.”

The authors conducted an analysis of actual shopping behaviour of 1,000 households over a period of six months. They found that shopping baskets had a larger proportion of food items rated as impulsive and unhealthy when shoppers used credit or debit cards rather than cash. In follow-up studies they found that people held back from putting unhealthy food in their baskets when paying in cash because of the “pain” of paying in cash, and that the effect is stronger in consumers who are more sensitive to the pain of payment.

“The notion that mode of payment can curb impulsive purchase of unhealthy food products is substantially important,” the authors wrote.

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Instant approval credit cards offer the quickest way to apply for a credit card. Many of these cards provide decisions as to whether you are approved or not within 60 seconds of submitting your application. All you do is complete an online application and you will get your answer right away. An instant approval credit card does not necessarily mean you automatically get approved, as you do still have to meet the credit criteria for the card. Here are a list of 5 American Express Rewards Cards that offer an instant approval after you complete and submit the online credit card application.

American Express Blue Cash

• When you shop with Blue Cash, you can earn up to 5% cash back on every eligible purchase
• No Annual Fee
• 0% Intro APR for 6 months on purchases
• Express Approval.

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