So Many Gift Cards, So Little Time!
If you’re a seasoned miles and points junkie, you’re undoubtedly familiar with concept of manufactured spend using a credit card. Of course not all methods are equally lucrative, and some require a little more “work” than others. However, sometimes those can be the most fun if you’re up for a challenge. Here’s taking a look at some of the more crazy things I’ve done for miles, points, and even cash back (blasphemous, I know) and what I’ve learned from my experiences:
Staples FAR (FREE after rebate)-ongoing
The Angle- Use a miles-and-points earning credit card (preferably one with a 5x category bonus) to buy stuff you get your money back on via rebate
Weapon of Choice- Chase Ink card or cashing out previously acquired Staples gift card
The Story- goes something like I’ve had a $150 Staples promotional gift card sitting on my desk ever since Black Friday of last year and I’ve been meaning to get rid of it. Thanks to Frequent Miler, I was made aware of a SlickDeals thread that outlined how to make money off of this week’s FAR items after stacking them with a $10/50 coupon. It took a few reads to decrypt the thread (and you thought flyertalkers had their own language!) before coming up with a game plan. I downloaded the Staples app to gain access to exclusive coupons that weren’t limited to one time use, then headed out to my local store to make my purchases.
The Take- 4 reams of pastel colored paper (rebate limit 4), 4 packs of photo paper (limit 4) and 1 ream of “HM” (Hammermill) paper (limit 1). If you think that’s a lot of paper, you should have seen the stack of rebate receipts the register spewed out! I spent $57.20 and will receive a rebate of $63.21, so a $6.01 “MM” (money maker), plus I’m finally liquidating a portion of my gift card left over from Black Friday.
Miles and Points- Not this time
What Went Wrong- I had originally planned on getting just 2 packs of photo paper and saving the other 2 and the HM paper for another trip with a $5/25 coupon. When my order didn’t ring up to the $50 before tax I panicked and just bought all of the paper at once. I seemed to have caught the attention of a disapproving assistant store manager lurking nearby, and honestly I just wanted to get out of there before she started scrutinizing my purchase. Luckily there’s still plenty of free stuff and new FAR items almost every week in case I want to go back later with another coupon.
Safeway $10 Coupon with Purchase of $100 Visa Gift Cards- ends July 16th
The Angle- $3.05 or $4.05 worth of free groceries (depending on which gift card you buy) after fees.
Weapon of Choice- Any card that has a generous category bonus at the grocery store. In this case- an American Express Blue Cash Preferred Card that earns 6% and a Chase United MileagePlus Select Visa that earns 2xs miles.
The Story- Where do I even begin? I’ve been to just about every Safeway in the neighborhood by now. Yesterday, after having just paddled 9 miles to prepare for Tahoe’s Emerald Bay and Race the Lake of the Sky this weekend, I stopped by a newly-discovered Safeway on the way home from Lake Natoma. Still dripping wet, reeking of the American River, and wearing a bright pink rash guard, I went in the store to buy another $1,000 worth of gift cards for the promotion. What a way not to draw attention to myself! Next I visited a nearby Walmart (at around 9pm at this point) to buy some $.25 money orders, then hit the In-N-Out Drive Thru for dinner before ultimately calling it a night. Just another typical Thursday evening in the Mai Tais household!
The Take- United miles, cash back, and a year’s supply of coconut water
Miles and Points- Unfortunately, the $500 variable load Visas ($5.95 fee) that I’d typically go for to manufacture spend are excluded from the promotion (I tried), so I’ve been buying $100 ($5.95 fee) and $200 ($6.95) ones instead. I don’t yet have a final tally, but I have broken the numbers down by card. In addition to the $10 grocery coupons the-
- $100 Visa gift card earns $6.30 cash back or 210 United MileagePlus Miles
- $200 Visa gift card earns $12.36 cash back or 412 United MileagePlus Miles
What Went Wrong- I managed to generate a fraud alert on one of my cards after several transactions for the same amount went through in such a short period of time. I had to call the 1-888-number on the back of my card and talk to a computer in order to regain control of my credit card. I’m happy to report Operation VitaCoco is now back on in full effect, and I’ll be well-hydrated throughout the remaining SUP racing reason.
I’ve also had some trouble with the register not accepting the coupons, but the cashiers have so far been nice enough to manually override the system to give me the $10 discount. There are reports on Flyertalk about people getting cash back from customer service, but I personally draw the line there.
Safeway 4xs Gas Rewards on Gift Card purchases- ends Sept 10th
I previously shared by thoughts about this deal here, but when my tank went empty, I caved in and bought $250 worth or Arco and Target gift cards, sold them to Cardpool for a $1.50 profit (after saving $25 on gas) plus earned $15 cash back from my America Express card.
OfficeMax $10 off $200 Visa or MC Gift Card Purchases (ended)
The Angle- Free or close-to-free manufactured spend using everyone’s favorite Chase Business card
Weapon of Choice- Ink Bold for 5xs points at office supply stores
The Take- $21 profit and 14,625 Ultimate Rewards points
Miles and Points-
- $1000 worth of $100 gift cards (5 x $201.90) = 5025 UR points, costing $9.50
- $2,000 worth of $200 gift cards (10 x $196.95) = 9800 UR points, earning $30.50
What Went Wrong
Having to get the spouse involved after reaching my Bluebird limit. Also, finding $200 gift cards at my local store turned out to be a problem. Luckily there was another store in the area that had them, but since it was far away, I only went there once and I feel like I didn’t get to take full advantage of the promotion. I also had a slightly unpleasant conversation about money laundering with an OfficeMax store manager. Come on, it’s not like I was paying cash!
So there you have it- a few examples of all the fun things you can do with a miles-and-points earning credit card. Some of these deals have ended (OfficeMax), some will be around for a limited time (Safeway), while others are a perpetual gift (Staples FAR items). Next time you receive a weekly ad from the office supply store, or see a promotional banner on display while you’re buying groceries, pay attention. There are plenty of opportunities for free, or better-than-free, miles and points all over the place!
Finally, a few words of advice- take it or leave it- don’t go too crazy with your credit cards and be sure to pay them off in full every month. Interest and debt are no fun, so don’t go there. Keep track of your stuff, save your receipts, and start off small until you get the hang of things. While I am happy to share my experiences, I am by no means an expert, and it is your responsibility to figure out what works best for you and your situation.
What’s the craziest thing you’ve done for miles and points recently?
For live coverage of all my miles-and-points earning (and other) exploits, be sure to follow @hulagrrl210 on twitter as I’ll typically tweet when I’m out and about and up to no good 