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Went Hot: January 2, 2008 - 3:44 pm
Posted By: BrentCsutoras 278 days ago
Topic Type: News Story (Jump to http://www.quicksprout.com)
Category: Other
25 Comments
Went Hot: January 2, 2008 - 3:44 pm
Posted By: BrentCsutoras 278 days ago
Topic Type: News Story (Jump to http://www.quicksprout.com)
Category: Other
25 Comments
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Comments
I hear that you can get a number for no other reason than you have one of these cards. Thats power... :)
Google Adsense Checks....AMEX Black Cards.....What's Next?? ;)
Neil is the man.
Even better for Neils friends... "up to 4 times a year you can take your companion (family member or friend) on a trip with you for free."
@ Brent - get a number? A number of what?
What a complete wank. I'm sorry, but the guy doesn't own a house or a car but spends over 250K on credit cards a year and is happy to pay an additional 7500 for a black one? If you ask me, he has his priorities all wrong.
Sounds like sour grapes there Kalena.
When my wife and I used to travel a lot we never got a black card but we did get lots of upgrades and still do and it helps make the trip a bit nicer. Nothing wrong with getting a nice 3 room suite at the end of the hall and a big jacuzzi in the room and flying first class to London didn't suck either.
Besides, which rental car would you prefer, some crappy economy car or a nice Cadillac for just a couple of bucks more?
I always roll in a Caddy DTS with a sun roof when I'm in Miami and Ft. Lauderdale, it's the only way to travel... guess I'm a wanker too ;)
Heh. While I'm just a poor wannabe wanker :P
I have a platnum card and probably the youngest person I know that has one. I think it makes you look like a chump. Just because I qualify for it and forced to use does not get me any positive attention.
I guess it could have been my upper class childhood! I guess being at the top of the pyramid looking down always made me want to be down there with the regular folks. Now that I am a platnum card memeber all I want is to ride in coach.
Some of this is just a patronizing comment. Guess you will have to figure out which part!
@Bill - I didn't call Neil a wanker, I just think the black card is a wank. Sour grapes? I don't think so. I HATE credit cards. Running a business means I have to use them but there's no way I'd contort myself financially just to get a certain color one as a status symbol. You have to admit that's what this is. The benefits don't add up financially (except maybe if his company pays his bills which it seems it does). Possibly he will get value out of the travel benefits given his lifestyle but I was shocked to read he doesn't own a house or a car and I think I'd be addressing those issues as a priority rather than plastic debt. The centurion's nothing but a black plastic penis extension if you ask me. But everyone has different priorities I guess.
@Kalena
I thought you called Neil a Wank too.. It seems in the rest of the comment you seem to think you know him enough to talk about his decisions..
Clearly without even reading the post, so i will make it easier for ya. The article clearly identifies how Neil got the card and he quotes "Because I am on the board of advisors for that company, one of the perks that they provided me was a Centurion card."
You would also know that an Amex card is much like a Debit card in that you pay off the balance at the end of each month so i am not sure how you tie in credit cards are evil and blah blah.
I think it is rather low to jump out there and slam someone for being successful enough to be given a black card... OH .. you didn't know.. You don't apply for them. They are given to you for being a good customer. So you are actually already spending the business expenses that are required before you get the card.
Additionally the perks you get for the card far exceed the cost of the card. Free upgrades on airline and in hotels is just the icing on the on cake...
Get a grib and basically... Shut the hell up.
Female Tourette's Syndrome strikes again.
-Dick
@Brent - of course I read the post. I wouldn't have commented otherwise. I don't have anything against Neil - I enjoy his writing and admire his achievements in business. I just don't think the black card is one of them.
And don't tell me to shut up. I've got every right to comment here.
PS - what's a grib? If it's made of black plastic, I don't want one LOL
@ Dick (that says it all really)
@Kalena
"of course I read the post. I wouldn't have commented otherwise." -- are you sure?
"but spends over 250K on credit cards a year and is happy to pay an additional 7500 for a black one?"
That statement kind of indicates Neil spends over 250k on credit cards a year and that he is happy to pay another 7,500 for a black one..
Yet if you had read the post you would know Neil doesn't pay the 250k on credit cards. The affiliate company that gave it to him does. Neil also doesn't pay the 7,500 because as he mentioned the affiliate company does.
All Neil has to do is spend their money... and as far as I can tell getting money for the work you do is .. good no?
"And don't tell me to shut up. I've got every right to comment here." -- Yes you do. It is just a poor decision on your part to do so.
@ Brent - as I stated above: "The benefits don't add up financially (except maybe if his company pays his bills which it seems it does)."
This isn't about Neil. Clearly he's in a unique situation where he's lucky enough to have all his bills taken care of. Fine, goody for him. My beef is (and always has been) the card itself. I don't understand why people get excited about such status symbols and why they would pay so much more for one. Unless they travelled extensively I still don't see the big financial advantage of having one and I suspect it's more the satisfaction they get from flopping it out, so to speak, in front of others. I wonder how many women have the black card?
Then again, I'm not a brand whore - I couldn't give a toss about the latest Gucci whatever.
Dammit... I hate adding to this (well, clearly not enough not too... damn my interfering nose), but Kalena, when you say:
"This isn't about Neil. Clearly he's in a unique situation where he's lucky enough to have all his bills taken care of. Fine, goody for him. My beef is (and always has been) the card itself."
... you have to bear in mind your original remark of:
"but the guy doesn't own a house or a car but spends over 250K on credit cards a year and is happy to pay an additional 7500 for a black one? If you ask me, he has his priorities all wrong."
... because I think this is what most people here are reacting to. That really seemed a comment on Neil himself. So to say that your comment wasn't about Neil is a bit hard to swallow.
@ Burgo - fair call, I did say I think Neil has his priorities wrong, but I followed this up with "but everyone has different priorities I guess". But as so many people have misinterpreted my comments, they must have seemed like a personal attack or I worded them poorly, so my bad.
Just to make it clear: I've got nothing at all against Neil personally. I just don't understand the logic of people (particularly male rock star bloggers) who make it a priority to attain status symbols. I understand even less the fan club attitude people have for persons who own such status symbols. "He's the man" because he has a special bit of plastic? I truly don't get it. It's a personal choice, yes and everyone is entitled to spend their money they way they see fit, but if you're going to blog about it, post a photo and tell the world, you have to expect feedback.
*Added* - Just noticed that Neil himself admits in the comments of his post that "For most people there isn't much value in having the card. If you do not travel that often, you will not get $7500 worth of benefits." So the main advantage of the card for most people is the flop factor and apparent impact on female bartenders.
If memory serves me right, the reason most people claimed they stopped reading ThreadWatch.org was because of noisy, circle jerk/ fanboy / attackfest posts that had little to do with Online Marketing posts being popular / on the homepage. For someone reason this post reminded me of that; not sure why though? ;)
Wonder when that Sphinn Down button is coming....
Regardless of the context (and no, I'm not going to get involved in an argument over a piece of shiny black plastic), I applaud your use of the phrase 'complete wank' Kalena. And there was me under the apparently mistaken belief that you were American.
@ Baidu - Nope. I'm pure Aussie through and through. I'd forgotten that Yanks aren't used to seeing wank used as a verb until my (American) husband reminded me when he read my comment. I can see now how some readers assumed I meant "wanker" and assumed I was talking about a person.
Since my comment got voted down I am going to re clarify my point. I am a new reader here to Sphinn and I am in total disbelif at the lack of professionalism by this post. This is nothing more than someone showing off. How did this make it to popular? I am a product of many of the finer perks in life and having them does not make you any better off.
Neil I have no clue who you are. I am glad that you have status symbol of a black card. The gimics and tricks that are thrown out by AMEX apparently worked for you. AMEX is getting rich off you having the Black Card. Congratulations on finding someone else to pay for your expenses. Sincerly, that is a goal anyone hopes to have. The manner in which your post was made was most likely geninune... In my case I read it as you infliating your own ego.
I have subscribe to your blog feed on a trail basis as this is my first interaction with you. Apparently if someone is going to give you a Black Card, Pay for it all, and let you flaunt it you must be pretty good at something. So there is recourse with the reader.
From Neil's Blog Post:
"I probably do 40 to 60 trips a year, which means I end up sleeping in hotels a good amount of the year."
That means Neil is one hell of a road warrior. Living out of a suitcase gets very tedious and personally trying. The occasional upgrade is very nice. And now it looks like Neil will be getting more than the occasional upgrade, increasing his quality of life a bit. For something that is merely a 'status symbol' it sure seems to have a tangible benefits for Neil. I say, congrats, Neil!! You've earned it!
Yup, 40-60 trips a year would make $7500 chump change if you really did get all the airline, hotel and transportation upgrades. Even if you assume as little as $150 in upgrade value per trip it adds up to $7500 in just 50 trips so it's easily break even money-wise and definitely a worthwhile perk comfort-wise.
Heck, I'm lowballing the perk amounts because I usually save about $250+ just to rent a Caddy for a week, and some 1st class upgrades were free or a modest $50 fee, $150/day for $500/day hotel suites, etc. so compare that to the actual rack rates paid by the average Joe and you get the value quickly assuming you're really a road warrior like Neil it's definitely worth it.
I just don't get Kalena's aversion to the credit card.
Nothing wrong with using them if they're always paid off, like mine always are, and being that Neil's is American Express it's paid every month unless he rolls it over to Sign and Travel or some other time payment plan Amex has which could get him into serious trouble with $250K rolling through the card.
FWIW, does that black card match the color of Neil's SEO hat? :)
Since we're on the topic, a mildly amusing side story, with a moral to the tale...
I once made a $700 purchase on my Amex and the lady accidentally typed an extra zero and it cleared for $7K instead of $700. She was stunned when she saw the mistake because she claimed Amex had never cleared any transaction for that amount without asking to speak with the customer and verifying it was really me.
The sale amount was corrected, but after the amusement passed it was actually kind of scary to realize how much someone could've stolen using my good credit.
It was a real eye-opener and the reason why I now leave most of my credit cards home in a secure place.