Confessions of a Corporate Shopaholic

Trying to take advantage of all the bargains and promotional offers in town is not an easy task.  It takes efforts to do the necessary homework to hopefully save a few bucks.  Lately I have been following closely to all the promotional cash back deals offered by virtually every other credit card issuing bank in the city, and I have to admit it is much harder than it looks.

A couple of years ago cash back promotions were less common.  The banks were more focused on acquisitions and to grow their card holder base as quickly as possible.  Most deals were focused on flat screen TV, Sony Playstation, or the latest mobile phone model as welcome gifts.  It seems that most cardholders nowadays own enough cards that the acquisition base is getting smaller.  The issuers need to now focus on initiating spend value on cards.  If we don’t swipe, they will not make merchant fees. 

So you now have all the major supermarkets, electronics stores, department stores and pharmacies linked up with different card issuers, offering cash back to induce spend on cards.  The catch is that they make it so complicated that it requires diligence, preparation and photographic memory to figure all this out.

1. Get the mailings

First you need to know what deals there are available for your card(s).  Some issuers send you direct mailing, but usually by the time you receive them, a few days have passed since the limited promotional period begins.  For those issuers who have a huge card base, they advertise on newspapers instead since direct mailings are relatively more expensive.  The digitally inclined may get to hear about the offers via e-mail. 

2. Remember the promotional period

Each offer is valid only through limited time.  Most concentrate around the holiday season when we do most of our purchases.  Some however limit the offers only from Fridays to Sundays. 

3. Know the qualification spending threshold

Each offer requires a minimum spending amount per transaction in order to qualify for the cash back.  It’s not entirely out of reach, but it means you should accumulate your purchases to a particular day during the weekend to meet the threshold.

4. Register

I don’t know why they cannot let everyone just enjoy the offer provided the above criteria is met.  No no, they need you to register for it by dialling their hotline, or online via their website.  If you don’t, you have no cash back.

5. Figure out how much cash back you are entitled

They make it so tempting on the flyers that your cash back entitlement can go as high as 50% of your purchase amount.   So when you register, you will get into a draw and realize how much percentage cash back you will get for the entire promotional period.  You register once and the same percentage stays on throughout the whole period.  Of course, I presume most cardholders get the lowest cash back entitlement, which is normally around 8%.

6. Understand the maximum cash back you can get

Even if you are satisfied with the 8% cash back (a penny is a penny), they also tell you what maximum cash back amount you can ever get within the period.  So no point of making any advance purchase if you have already met your rebate ceiling.

7. When will I see the cash?

Finally, you will be pleased to find out the rebate will be credited back into your account 6 months after the promotional period ends.  Remember to check your account, and hopefully you wouldn’t have forgotten about the whole thing or terminated your card for whatever reason.

Alright, multiply the above steps by 3 or 4 times for the total participating issuers and I guarantee you will be as lost as I am.  Now when I need to make a purchase, I have lost count as to what else I should buy, which card I should use, what day today is, and most likely, why I am seduced to spend more by the illusionary savings programs. 

Bravo on the marketers!