Small business leaders demonstrate their desire to help peers succeed
New American Express research spotlights the fraternity and strong bonds underpinning the SME community, with more than four-fifths (84%) of small business leaders recommending specific products or services in a desire to help their fellow SMEs succeed.
The survey of 500 senior decision makers from small and medium sized companies (SMEs) explores how this group supports fellow businesses and those that run them. Over eight in 10 (82%) think offering recommendations to peers strengthens their professional network; and over three quarters (77%) do so as a way of giving fellow small businesses more time to focus on driving growth.
Recommendations and referrals from their small business network are also highly important to product purchasing decisions; over three quarters (78%) of business leaders rank them as more influential than all other channels, except for spending their own time on research.
In terms of other ways they support their peers, recommending small businesses to prospective customers (39%) featured highly among respondents, followed by buying products and services from fellow SMEs (38%). One in five (20%) even said they mentored new business owners.
Amanda Salt, vice president, small & medium enterprises, UK Card Services at American Express said: “Our research reveals business leaders are passionate about supporting each other, whether that’s through product recommendations, sharing insight or buying directly from them. It shows the power and impact this community can have. American Express is committed to backing small business owners and rewarding them for their hard work, along with providing incentives they can use to drive business growth.”
Refer a Business and earn points
The research comes as American Express launches a Limited Time Offer that gives American Express® Business Gold Cardmembers the chance to earn additional Membership Rewards® points for recommending a Business Gold Card to other business owners in their network.
Until 14 November 2023, Business Gold Cardmembers will receive 14,000 bonus Membership Rewards® points for every successfully approved referral (to a cap of 90,000 points). For the first successful referral made during the offer period only, they will also be eligible to earn 2 bonus Membership Rewards points for every £1 spend, up to a maximum spend of £10,000, for one month only. Full terms and conditions below.
Those being referred can earn 30,000 Membership Rewards points as a Welcome Bonus, if they apply for the Business Gold Card using the unique referral link, are accepted as a new Cardmember by 14 November 2023 and spend £3,000 in the first three months of Cardmembership.
The Business Gold Card features a wide range of existing benefits, including:
- Cashflow Management, with up to 54 days to pay for purchases, cash can stay in your account for longer, making money management more flexible.
- The ability to transfer Membership Rewards points to one of our partner’s frequent traveller programmes, and to use them for hotel stays, flights, dining and more.
- Access to AmexExpense, American Express’ digital expense management tool to simplify expense filing. It’s free to use, simple to set up and integrates with accounting software, making it easier for business leaders to handle cashflow at a crucial time for cost management.
