Since I once ranted about my unsatisfying experiences with rebates, I will use this short post to draw attention to the topic as it is covered in today's Orange County Register.
Despite the poor writing in the article, writing that belies a poor understanding of both math and grammar, it is clear from the presented statistics that the "rebate scams" I described in an earlier post are phenomena about which the world-at-large is well aware.
Caveat emptor!
Showing posts with label Rebates. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Rebates. Show all posts
Monday, August 17, 2009
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
The Rebate Scam
I am not sure if it is the manufacturers, the retailers, or both, but the the rebate shenanigans are quite annoying.
I understand business and I get the picture. Management wishes to implement promotional programs to drive sales while maximizing effectiveness and minimizing program costs. However, there is a line between honest value and disingenuous promotion and I think many rebate programs lie in dishonest territory.
If there is a rebate available, be it from the manufacturer or the retailer, why not make it automatically redeemable at check out? The answer of course is because the "slippage" in the system (those transactions where consumers who do not proactively request the rebate) allow for aggressive rebate promotions that attract attention and drive sales but are cost effective because many rebates go unredeemed. I guess I can live with that.
What I can't live with is the purposefully onerous redemption process put in place to discourage consumers from claiming the rebate they were promised. Get a receipt, get another piece of rebate documentation from the retailer, take a code or model number from the carton, make photocopies, send it all to some third party processor, and make sure it is all postmarked within a few days of your purchase. All this work is often buried under an advertised "low price" that is actually a calculated final cost assuming you successfully secure the rebate. It's dishonest.
If you bother to jump through those hoops, an advanced scam technique is to send the rebate check to the wrong address and then void it out once it goes un-cashed for 30-60 days. Only the most motivated consumers can track this process through the maze of promotion processing to get their due.
HP and Office Depot pulled that one on me last year so my $250 rebate on a new PC was lost. This morning I pulled out my papers from a recent dishwasher purchase and realized I missed the one week deadline for claiming my $100 rebate.
I don't have the time or energy to seek the value I was promised so I decided to just blog about it and move on. I guess I can live with it after all.
I understand business and I get the picture. Management wishes to implement promotional programs to drive sales while maximizing effectiveness and minimizing program costs. However, there is a line between honest value and disingenuous promotion and I think many rebate programs lie in dishonest territory.
If there is a rebate available, be it from the manufacturer or the retailer, why not make it automatically redeemable at check out? The answer of course is because the "slippage" in the system (those transactions where consumers who do not proactively request the rebate) allow for aggressive rebate promotions that attract attention and drive sales but are cost effective because many rebates go unredeemed. I guess I can live with that.
What I can't live with is the purposefully onerous redemption process put in place to discourage consumers from claiming the rebate they were promised. Get a receipt, get another piece of rebate documentation from the retailer, take a code or model number from the carton, make photocopies, send it all to some third party processor, and make sure it is all postmarked within a few days of your purchase. All this work is often buried under an advertised "low price" that is actually a calculated final cost assuming you successfully secure the rebate. It's dishonest.
If you bother to jump through those hoops, an advanced scam technique is to send the rebate check to the wrong address and then void it out once it goes un-cashed for 30-60 days. Only the most motivated consumers can track this process through the maze of promotion processing to get their due.
HP and Office Depot pulled that one on me last year so my $250 rebate on a new PC was lost. This morning I pulled out my papers from a recent dishwasher purchase and realized I missed the one week deadline for claiming my $100 rebate.
I don't have the time or energy to seek the value I was promised so I decided to just blog about it and move on. I guess I can live with it after all.
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