Membership rewards from American Express

NEW YORK

In time for the holiday shopping season, the Membership Rewards program launches Mobile Gift Cards, allowing Cardmembers to use Membership Rewards points for smartphone-enabled gift cards and use them instantly to pay with their smartphones. Mobile Gift Cards are currently available for eight different retailers including: Banana Republic, Gap, Old Navy, PBteen, Pottery Barn, Pottery Barn Kids, West Elm and Williams-Sonoma.

We know our Cardmembers want the flexibility to use the points they’ve earned for rewards they want, when and how they want them, said Christopher Besendorfer, Vice President Loyalty and Membership Benefits, American Express. As the worlds of online and offline converge, we’re finding new ways for Cardmembers to use points, whether at home, on the run, and now instantly in-store with a Mobile Gift Card.

In addition to in-store purchases, Cardmembers can also use Mobile Gift Cards to pay for items online or over the phone. According to a recent American Express Spending & Saving Tracker, a survey of U.S. general consumers, almost a third of Americans (32%) plan to use their smartphones for holiday shopping this year, an increase of 8% from 2011. More will also turn to reward points to offset the cost of holiday shopping (16% vs. 13% in 2011), with the trend most prevalent among affluent consumers ( 21% vs. 17% in 2011).