Ebates: An Ever-Ready "Big Fat" Coupon?
Written: Dec 19 '01 (Updated Mar 16 '02)
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Ebates is an online cash back program --- when you shop through them you will get a percentage of the amount you spend in return; So if you're shopping through an online merchant in any case, why not get money back if it's free and possible? Doing this is about the same as using coupons, only you get a "big fat check" instead. That's what I believe, anyway.
I joined Ebates a few months ago and have been nothing but happy with my experience with them. I was given $5 as a sign up bonus and was told that, to receive a check, I must have a balance of at least $5.01. That meant I only had to earn one cent and I would get a free five bucks. Cool! The only catch was that, to keep the $5 bonus, I had to make a purchase within 30 days of joining. Easy enough.
I am an avid Barnes&Noble shopper. Luckily Barnes&Noble is one of the 400 stores where Ebates members can receive cashback; So every time I make a B&N purchase through Ebates I get a 4% rebate. The first time I shopped through Ebates, I spent $48.84 at B&N and received a rebate of $1.95. The best thing about this is that my account was credited within four days of my purchase all the three times I shopped! Other cashback programs take as much as a month to credit me --- Netflip, for instance.
I know some people complain about not getting credited for their purchases at all, but since I have received rebates every time I shopped, I don't think it is Ebates' fault at all! You have to have images and cookies turned on, for one, otherwise Ebates' won't be able to track you, and you absolutely MUST be logged on and follow their link. I recently downloaded IE 6, which for some strange reason disallowed third-party cookies by default. Ebates detected this and a window popped up telling me exactly how I can fix this problem.
Ofcourse Barnes&Noble is not the only store Ebates rewards for; there are around 400 others. Bear in mind that some stores that are listed at the website do not give any rebate, and are only listed there for the sake of coupons. If this is the case, like it is for Amazon, then the text "COUPONS ONLY" (in capitals) sits beside the name of that particular store. For a list of all the stores go to http://www.ebates.com/all_stores.go As a preview, Ebates rewards for Hallmark (5%), GAP (4%) and Bluelight (3%), among others. The highest rebate given is 25% for Blue Dolphin Magazines, Enews, GiftWrap, Mr. Inkman and Value Mags.
Coming to the rebate amount, it all depends on how much rebate an online merchant gives Ebates. Since Barnes&Noble gives its affiliates 5% of the purchase, I think it's pretty darn generous of Ebates to give their members 4% and keep only 1% for themselves. (Side note: B&N affiliates receive 6% if they sell above $20,000 and 7% if they sell above $1,000,000 --- I don't think Ebates makes that much from a single merchant)
The referral system is amazing! Every time a person you refer joins and makes their first purchase, you get $5. This is like spending $125 at Barnes&Noble with a 4% cashback --- but for free!
Payments are made quarterly --- that's every three months --- as long as you have a balance of $5.01 or over. Some people may whine that 3 months is way too long, but think about this: On an average, most rewards programs have their minimum cash out levels set at $20. If it is lower than this, then it may take ages to reach that minimum --- perhaps three months in any case. My first check will arrive in February 2002 for purchases made between October 1 and December 31, and I have full confidence in Ebates to deliver it to me as dozens of people have reported back to me as having received their checks, as promised, on time.
UPDATE: Checks were cut as scheduled on 2/15/02. I received mine on 2/20.
Recommended:
Yes
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About the Author
Member: Navin
Location: New York, NY
Reviews written: 61
Trusted by: 46 members
About Me: If ignorance is bliss, why aren't there more happy people?
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