Synovus Business Rewards Visa® Credit Card

Synovus Business Rewards Visa® Credit Card Review

Synovus Bank has designed an easy-to-use business credit card, the Synovus Business Rewards Visa® Credit Card, to be both versatile and lucrative; it gives business owners the opportunity to decide just how their money goes to work for them by enabling cardholders to choose a Dynamic Earn category that accrues points at triple the rate other spending categories do. That’s just the start, as this card couples great potential for earning rewards with great potential to save money – those who plan ahead when using this card can maximize their business’s efficacy thanks to a lucrative rewards program that doesn’t charge outrageous fees.

How to Earn Rewards with the Synovus Business Rewards Visa® Credit Card

Business owners who are approved for a Synovus Business Travel Rewards Visa account will be able to earn reward points from each and every business purchase. Rewards are accrued at two different rates, thanks to a flexible Dynamic Earn category that enables business owners to choose how they’d like to earn the most points. These rates are broken down below:

3X on a Category of Your Choice: Business owners can select a spending category that best suits their budget and spending, for which they’ll earn 3X points for every dollar spent. Points are earned at this rate on up to $3,000 in net spend each quarter for all purchases in this Dynamic Earn category that is selected at the beginning of each quarter. For example, if you cater meals to the office regularly, you might select the dining category to earn the 3X rate for a given quarter; alternatively, if you make a lot of shipments through UPS® or buy office supplies in bulk at a store like Office Depot, you might select the retail spending category. Once the $3,000 spending limit has been reached, rewards are accrued at a rate of 1X per dollar spent; the Dynamic Earn category can be changed before the beginning of each quarter, so if your business’s spending needs change, you can adjust accordingly and maximize your rewards. The flexibility to choose a category in which to earn bonus points is a rarity among business credit cards, so plan accordingly to take full advantage of this perk.

1X on All Other Eligible Purchases: Cardholders earn 1 point for each dollar spent on every eligible business purchase made with their card. There is no cap or limit to the number of points that can be earned.

Redeeming Rewards Points

Rewards that are earned with the Synovus Business Rewards Visa Credit Card can be redeemed online, or by phone. Cardholders can log in to their My Purchase Perks account, or call 1-888-SYNOVUS (1-888-796-6887) to redeem their rewards points towards a variety of great reward options, including:

• Travel – Cardholders can redeem points towards travel in the form of airline tickets, hotel stays, and car rentals. They can also be exchanged for the equivalent amount in the form of a travel gift card.
• Merchandise – Points can be exchanged for merchandise from many top retailers; choose from jewelry, handbags and luggage, toys for kids and babies, electronics, and much more. Find an espresso machine or a new microwave for the break room at the office, or splurge on new desktop monitors for your employees.
• Gift Cards – The My Purchase Perks program offers gift cards from many popular brands and retailers; hundreds of retailers, including Amazon, Walmart, Target, Best Buy, Starbucks, Panera, and Lowe’s offer gift cards in exchange for rewards points. There are even travel gift cards available from brands like Carnival, Best Western, Choice Hotels, and Budget.
• Cash Back – The flexibility of this credit card culminates with the cash back points redemption option. Business owners can redeem points not only for merchandise and gift cards but for actual cash that can add up to big savings for their company. Rewards points can be applied towards a statement in part or in full; if you prefer to apply the point total to pay down the total balance, you can opt to receive a statement credit. Alternatively, a direct deposit can be made into your Synovus back account as a cash deposit. Finally, points can also be used to pay for specific purchases – thanks to the Pay Me Back option, you can select a specific transaction, and pay for it with the points you’ve earned with your card. This is particularly useful when creating your business’s budget for the quarter, since the transactions that you target will be taken care of, freeing you to use your money to grow your business in other ways.

Save Money with the Synovus Business Rewards Visa® Credit Card

Most business credit cards are accompanied by extra fees, some of which may even be hidden. Fortunately, there are no hidden costs associated with the Synovus Business Rewards Visa. It’s not uncommon to see an annual fee that exceeds $100 for a business rewards card; Synovus business cardholders need not worry about this, as there is no annual fee associated with the Business Rewards Visa.

Often, banks and card issuers charge a fee to transfer a balance, too. Luckily, cardholders who transfer a balance to their Business Rewards Visa will not need to pay a balance transfer fee when they request to transfer their balance over the phone, or in person at a Synovus Bank branch.

Additional savings come in the form of a special introductory APR rate which applies not only to purchases, but also to balance transfers and overdraft protection. Ideal for anyone who wishes to pay down their existing business debt by transferring a balance from another business credit card, or who will use their new card to make a large purchase for their company, there is 0% interest for the first 12 months that the account is open. Cardholders who plan ahead can take advantage of this limited-time APR by budgeting to pay off their big-ticket balance in full, before the standard APR rate comes into play; once the introductory period is over, interest charges will begin to eat away at the savings that can be found by eliminating the balance in the first 6 months. If you’re planning to make a large purchase for your business – new office furniture, new computers, or new servers, for example – using this card can help to give you and your business a leg up on savings.

Synovus Bank Perks

Synovus Bank has added several useful perks to make life easier for business owners. Cardholders can enroll in Cardview®, which is an online account management portal that gives quick and easy access to your credit card account. You’ll be able to manage account activity, review the date and amount of each recent transaction, and make your monthly payment without the hassle of writing and mailing a check. Cardview is simple and intuitive; cardholders also have the option to set up automatic payments, and reminders that will notify of upcoming payments or when a certain amount of money has been spent – particularly useful to monitor the spending on cards that are issued to employees.

Speaking of employee cards, Synovus Bank allows business account holders to issue up to 19 credit cards for employees. Employers can set an individual spending limit for each card issued, which helps to prevent employees from overspending on the company dime, and proves useful for business budgeting as well.

Visa Benefits

The Synovus Business Rewards Credit Card has a suite of benefits and protections from Visa. These Visa benefits  are meant to make doing business as a business worry-free; rest assured that you’ll be covered even if the unexpected happens, thanks to:

• Travel Accident Insurance (Up to $500,000)
• Travel & Emergency Assistance Services
• Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver
• $1,500 Hotel Theft Protection
• Lost Luggage Reimbursement (Up to $5,000)
• Purchase Security
• Extended Protection
• Emergency Evacuation and Transportation Coverage

Should You Apply for the Synovus Business Rewards Visa® Credit Card from Synovus Bank?

If you own a business and are in the market for a lucrative rewards credit card designed to help your company save money while rewarding you for spending, odds are the Synovus Business Rewards Visa® Credit Card is one that will catch your attention. It’s a flexible tool for any business, allowing you to earn up to 3X rewards in a spending category of your choice – maximize your rewards by choosing a category in which you regularly make business purchases, and you’ll see your point accrual skyrocket.

There are many competitive business rewards cards on the market, and no two are exactly alike – but choosing the credit card that suits your business needs best ultimately boils down to personal preference. Some things to consider:

• How much money are you willing to pay for an annual fee?
• Will you carry a monthly balance? If so, you’ll want to take a closer look at the interest rates available for each card.
• Is there an introductory bonus?
• Is there an introductory APR?
• How much flexibility will you have when it comes to how you earn rewards, and how you redeem them?

While there is no introductory bonus with the Synovus Business Rewards Visa Card, the Vectra Bank AmaZing Rate for Business Credit Card steps up to the plate with a lucrative introductory reward for business owners: Receive $500 back when you make $5,000 in purchases within the first 90 days of opening your card – or, receive $1,000 back for spending $7,500 in the same time frame. This is an incentive to spend money with the card – and it’s a generous bonus offer, but it may not be a good fit for a cardholder who does not plan to make some big purchases soon. Budgeting to hit that spending target will be important, too; luckily the business offering from Vectra also has a 12-month introductory APR period for purchases and balance transfers, which means that you’ll be able to pay off those large purchases interest-free for the first six months the account is open.

It’s also worthwhile to compare the different credit card offerings from Synovus Bank. The Synovus Business Rewards Visa Credit Card  shares many of the same features that its sister card, the Synovus Business Travel Rewards Visa® Credit Card, brings to the table. There are three primary differences, however:

• The Business Travel Rewards Visa earns 5X points for purchases made in the travel category (on net annual spending up to $5,000), while the Business Rewards Visa does not.
• The Business Travel Rewards Visa will give an additional 20% value for rewards points that are redeemed towards travel rewards, while the Business Rewards Visa does not.
• There is an annual fee of $50 associated with the Business Travel Rewards Visa (waived for the first year) that cardholders will not need to pay if they sign up for the Business Rewards Visa.

When it comes to choosing between the cards that Synovus Bank offers, it’s a good idea to take a look at your budget and financial goals for your business. If you find that you travel often for work, there’s a good chance that despite an annual fee, the Business Travel Rewards Visa may be better suited to your financial needs. The opposite rings true if you decide that you do not want to pay an annual fee; however, $50 each year for an additional way to earn rewards points can easily be offset by the rewards you earn – but only if you intend to make lots of travel purchases.