How The Ink Business Preferred Is Now Within Reach Of Smaller Businesses

The Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card is currently offering 100,000 points after spending $8,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.

That’s roughly $2,667 per month in spending, which can still be high for independent contractors and self-employed individuals. However, it’s much lower than the previous $15,000 threshold, which translated to $5,000 per month.

In addition to a strong welcome bonus, the Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card offers 3 points per dollar on the first $150,000 spent on travel and select business categories each account anniversary year and 1 point per dollar on all other purchases.

Depending on how your business spends its money, you could rack up a lot of points quickly. Keep in mind though, that the base rewards rate is relatively low. Pairing the Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card with another Chase Ultimate Rewards®-earning card could help you maximize all of your purchases, not just the bonus categories the Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card offers.

The Ink Business Preferred charges a $95 annual fee, but the card offers some solid benefits to make that cost worth your while.

Redeeming Rewards

The Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card offers a lot of flexibility with how you can redeem your rewards. You can opt for travel, gift cards, cash back, online shopping and more, but if you use your points to book travel with Chase, you’ll get 25% more value—that translates to 1.25 cents per point.

You can also transfer your hard-earned rewards to one of the card issuer’s 13 airline and hotel partners, which can open up opportunities to potentially get more than 1.25 cents per point in value on your travel redemptions. Partners include:

• Aer Lingus AerClub
• Air Canada Aeroplan
• British Airways Executive Club
• Emirates Skywards
• Flying Blue Air France/KLM
• Iberia Plus
• JetBlue TrueBlue
• Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer
• Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards
• United MileagePlus
• Virgin Atlantic Flying Club
• IHG One Rewards
• Marriott Bonvoy
• World of Hyatt

Travel and Shopping Benefits

The Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card offers a handful of travel and shopping insurance protections that could help you out in a pinch, including:

• Trip cancellation and interruption insurance: If your trip is canceled or cut short by a covered reason, you can get up to $5,000 per person (up to $10,000 per trip) in reimbursements for prepaid, non-refundable travel expenses.
• Auto rental collision damage waiver: If you’re renting a car and decline the collision damage waiver offered by the car rental agency, you’ll be protected against theft or collision damage to your vehicle. The coverage is primary if you’re renting the vehicle for business purposes.
• Cellphone protection: If you use your card to pay your phone bill, you can get up to $1,000 in protection against theft or damage to your cellphone for you and your employees. Note, however, that there’s a $100 deductible per claim, and you can only file up to three claims per 12-month period.
• Purchase protection: Eligible items you purchase with your card will be covered against damage or theft for up to 120 days after the transaction. There’s a limit of $10,000 per claim and $50,000 per account.
• Extended warranty protection: If an eligible item you purchase with your card has a manufacturer’s warranty of three years or less, your card will extend that warranty period by one year.
• Roadside dispatch: If you have a roadside emergency, Chase’s benefits administrator can help you with a tow, jumpstart, tire change, lockout service, winching or gas delivery. Roadside service fees will be provided when you call and will be billed to your card.

The card also doesn’t charge any foreign transaction fees, making it a solid choice for international travel.

Before you apply for the Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card, consider whether you have a good chance of getting approved. Here are some tips to help you gauge your approval odds and improve those odds:

• Check your personal credit. The Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card is designed for business owners with good or excellent credit, which typically means a personal FICO score of 670 or higher. Check your credit score to get an idea of whether you’re in the clear or need to do some work.
• Review your credit reports. If your credit score is at or below the 670 threshold, it may be a smart idea to work on improving your credit before you apply. Get a copy of your credit reports and pinpoint areas that need to be addressed. Actions may include paying down high credit card balances, getting caught up on past-due payments or disputing inaccurate credit report information.
• Check your 5/24 status. Chase typically won’t approve your credit card application if you’ve opened five or more credit card accounts in the last 24 months—this is known as the 5/24 rule, and it includes authorized user accounts and other business credit cards that report to the consumer credit bureaus.
• Call the reconsideration line. If you do apply and get denied, consider calling Chase’s reconsideration line at 888-609-7805. You’ll be able to get a clear answer as to why your application was denied and potentially plead your case. While some reasons may be non-negotiable, you may have some flexibility with others. For example, if you have too much available credit with Chase, you could move a portion of your credit line with another card to the new one.

It can also be a good idea to compare the Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card with other top business credit cards to ensure that it’s the right fit for you. Look at welcome bonuses, rewards rates, perks, annual fees and other features that are important to you to determine the best business credit card for you.

The Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card’s already lucrative rewards structure is now being paired with an affordable but still substantial welcome bonus. Small businesses looking for a way to get extra value out of their spending should consider this card, so long as they can meet the financial obligations that come along with it.