Qwest Small-Business Customers Receive Cash Incentive for Referrals

As a community, small businesses look to each other for best practices, advice and support to make their operations more efficient and innovative. A new initiative from Qwest Communications (NYSE: Q), the Qwest® Business Referral Program, gives current Qwest Small Business customers a cash incentive of up to $150 to help other small businesses connect with Qwest – a cash incentive that they can choose to invest back in their business.

KEY FACTS

• Through the Qwest® Business Referral Program, current Qwest Small Business customers earn up to $150 for each successful referral they make to Qwest’s communications services with no limit on the number of referrals.
• Qwest Small Business customers can enroll in the program and create referrals via www.qwestbizreferrals.com, or by phone at 1 877-299-0980. For each referral, customers will receive a cash reward of $50-$150 based on services purchased by the referred customer.
• In addition to Qwest’s competitive pricing and comprehensive product portfolio, new customers who are referred to Qwest through the Qwest Business Referral Program will receive extensive customer support as they transition to Qwest.
• This Qwest Business Referral Program is another step that Qwest is taking to further enhance its value to customers by delivering more than just connectivity. In 2009, Qwest simplified the complicated arena of IT with a single solution, Core Connect, designed to deliver essential small-business technology, including high-speed Internet, phone, business e-mail and a business Web site.

NATIONAL SMALL-BUSINESS FACTS¹:

• The United States has 27 million small businesses
• The small-business sector is responsible for more than 40 million U.S. jobs
• Small businesses generate $6 trillion in revenues accounting for 98 percent of all businesses with payrolls and 36 percent of jobs
• 10 percent of small businesses are minority-owned
• 28 percent of small businesses are women-owned

SUPPORTING QUOTES

Stephanie Copeland, Qwest Vice President of Small Business

"Small businesses are a vital source of innovation that not only drive the U.S. economy, but also provide a path to personal independence for millions of Americans. Using the right technology solutions can help them optimize their operational efficiency and better meet customer needs.”

"The small-business community is all about helping each other to thrive because the stronger the small-business community is, the more successful the individual businesses are. That’s why this program – the Qwest Business Referral Program – is truly a tool for small businesses to build relationships and earn cash rewards to help their bottom line as well.”

SUPPORTING RESOURCES

• To learn more about the program, or to make a referral, visit www.qwestbizreferrals.com.
• To learn more about Qwest Small Business, visit www.qwest.com/smallbusiness.
• For Qwest- and other third-party-produced online articles about small business in general, follow @QwestSmallBiz at www.twitter.com/qwestsmallbiz.

About Qwest

Customers coast-to-coast turn to Qwest's industry-leading national fiber-optic network and world-class customer service to meet their communications and entertainment needs. For residential customers, Qwest offers a new generation of fiber-optic-fast Internet service and high-speed Internet solutions, as well as digital home phone, wireless service available through Verizon Wireless and DIRECTV® services. Qwest is also the choice of 95 percent of Fortune 500 companies, offering a full suite of network, data and voice services for small businesses, large businesses, government agencies and wholesale customers. Additionally, Qwest participates in Networx, the largest communications services contract in the world, and is recognized as a leader in the network services market by a leading technology industry analyst firm.

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¹ State of Small Business Report, August 2009: Wave 2 of the Small Business Success Index, Network Solutions, LLC and the Robert H. Smith School of Business, University of Maryland