I did get one thing of value from the article:
"The ideal place to be is under a 10% utilization rate but over 0%," FICO's Paperno said. "There needs to be some kind of recent activity" to activate a score.
First time I've ever seen them admit that in public - usually, when a Fair Isaac/myfico.com/whatever person is quoted, they say something like "lower is better... less than 50% is good..."
Otherwise, there isn't much solid advice. If I'm reading between the lines correctly, it sounds like he's saying he carries a small balance here or there, to get the rewards. And he doesn't necessarily pre-plan his spending, just looks back over his statements to figure out where the money went.
BZZT. He's almost certainly paying more in interest and overspending than he's earning.
Unimpressed.