An Australian mother and small business owner has revealed how she accumulated 1 million frequent flyer points in just 12 months simply by paying her bills. Kate Gannon, from Brisbane, who runs a risk advisory firm, has used the points to book free flights for her team and secure business class tickets for an upcoming girls' trip to Europe.
The mother-of-two started her company five years ago, but it was only after meeting Steve Hui, Australia's 'points whisperer' from The Flights Club, that she learned how to maximize points for both personal and business travel. 'I met Steve at a coaching seminar. He has such a passion for small business owners who are working hard and not finding the dollars or time to take a break,' Kate told news.com.au. 'I was like, that's me. I am working really hard to make this a viable business and pay my mortgage, but I need motivation. I have these points sparkling at me, saying there's potential opportunity for travel, which I use for business as well as personal. The idea that I could get some return out of costs I am already incurring was a no-brainer.'
Kate said small business owners often become allergic to admin due to the volume of work. 'I don't have the time to trawl and find flights myself. Steve and his team do the flight searching for me. It means I can focus on my work and just collect the points and say, can you help me find flights and take that burden off me. It just made it all that much more possible.'
Kate uses pay.com.au for payment processing, which allows her to earn frequent flyer points, and an American Express Platinum card for work expenses. The card has a $1,450 annual fee, but she says it is worth it due to the returns. 'Steve showed me there were things I was spending money on where I was paying directly through my bank like BPay, but with Amex they have longer payment cycles, so I could spread out my cash flow ins and outs and get the points.'
Credit cards usually have a 30-day payment cycle, but Kate's Amex card offers 44 days. 'It's not just points; it's also a cash flow management technique. Obviously, you pay everything off every billing cycle so you're not getting yourself into trouble. As for the fees, it becomes worth it for both points and cash flow management.'
In September, Kate will fly her team to Hobart for a weekend strategy meeting. The total cash fare for two Brisbane-to-Hobart return flights and one Newcastle-to-Hobart return flight was $1,360, but it cost her just 62,000 points. 'This is the difference between getting together and not getting together,' she said.
Kate's entire team is female, and they all work from home in different parts of Australia. She values work-life balance highly. 'It means my team can live their life flexibly and work, which is very important to me, and I can use the points to bring us together and stay connected. We travel to our clients, and where I can minimise costs, particularly for my charity clients, we try to use cost-effective travel. I have managed to keep a highly qualified group of women who, for family reasons, live in different parts of Australia, and have us come together frequently through my points.'
Kate also contributes $10,000 of her business revenue annually to local charities, which she says is a big commitment but also a motivating factor. 'I am very focused on the costs in my business because I am trying to deliver good value to my clients and offer some sort of contribution to the local community.'
For personal travel, Kate is planning a girls' trip to Italy next year. The Flights Club is currently securing her return business class flights using points, with only taxes to pay. With 1 million points to spare, she looks forward to more long-haul travel in the pointy end every few years.
