Day 7 - Loyalty Plans (Yay!!!)

The End of the Quest...

Hello there! Hope your week is painting a big smile on your face so far. It is Day 7 which means this is the last post on this Assignment which has been quite fun.

I was worried about today's topic, "Loyalty Plans", cause I don't have any!!! If they mean a royalty plan for cable I am afraid I cannot discuss about it, since I've said many times before that I do not watch cable. Buuuut... speculating, I can imagine a loyalty plan that perks me up with HBO, Showtime and Starz for unlimited time at a reasonable price LOL!!!

However, I was thinking about the brands I use the most, the stores I shop in and the restaurant chains I love to order from, which made me think about their "loyalty plans", what we call REWARD CARDS. Dontcha LOVE Reward Cards??? --- I confess myself to be an addict. They make my shopping experience just finer, funner and sometimes cheaper. Emptying my wallet, I found out I own A LOT of reward cards that I actually USE. 

Sephora's Beauty Insider offers wonderful rewards, as I get to buy a lot of makeup for theater and presents. Since I am also subscribed to their Beauty Insider Electronic Rewards program, I get lots and lots of emails from them with coupons, perks and gift sets for shopping online with them!!! I consider Reward Cards a Loyalty Plan, since they encourage you to return to them and keep buying, spending, visiting and revisiting their store.

GameStop's Power Up rewards card is awesome. Videogames are expensive. We all know that. So it is a great thing to own a reward card from a store specialized in videogames. Apart from very cool discounts, this card gives you incredible perks like pre-ordering advantage for up-coming games, which normally include amazing in-game rewards, like additional weapons, armors, videos, downloads and such for your gaming experience. With your Power Up card you can also gain access to special events like preview presentations, free demos and Q&A sessions with game designers, voice over actors and producers. Pretty neat, huh? It is for a hardcore gamer like me!!!

I also own the Best Buy rewards card. I have to confess I visit Best Buy at least once a week and end up buying something at least twice a month. Their online coupons and discounts go from 10 to 25% regularly, which helps economize a little. It also offers special pre-ordering advantages on DVDs, BluRay movies and videogames and they have a very flexible return policy for damage goods. 

Since I'm a costume designer I regularly need to buy material like watercolor tubes and paper, brushes, stylos, markers and more. Here is where Michael's rewards card comes in handy!!! This store is the one that provides the highest amount of loyalty points per purchase, allowing me to get huge discounts easily and quite often. Also, being a designer, my Mood Fabrics rewards cards comes in handy whenever I start a project and need to get yards and yards of fabric and trimming. With their online subscription I get previews of up-coming trends, collections and specific discounts on wools, knits, silks and some cottons. Cool!!!

Barnes&Noble has given me a NookColor for only 99 bucks! It is so easy to accumulate points in your card, especially if you read as much as I do LOL!!! Their plan include secret "codes" sent by email that allow you to freely download the "book of the week" to your Nook and get discounts of Nook accessories like covers, pens, reading clip-lamps, etc. 

Other cards I own include stores like Duane Reade, Subway, Pinkberry (make it to the 10th perforation on your card and you'll get one ice cream free!!!), Cosi and Godiva among others I don't use this much.

Talking about loyalty perks, my bank, Chase (and I love my bank) recently upgraded my debit card to the Disney Visa Card, which allows me to get discounts at Disney Stores, selective Disney merchandise, discounts at Theme Parks and Disney Resorts and Cruise Line. Since I am a HUGE Disney fan I'm pretty sure Chase and Visa have ASSURED my loyalty for a long while! 

As you can see, loyalty to certain brands, chains and franchises can have its uses, specially when you live alone in such an expensive city as New York and you do as much as you can to save a few dollars. They not only help you save money, they also make your entire shopping experience a lot FUNNER!!!