- December 9, 2009 • Posted by Michael Ferrari
- “Gaming” SmartyPig: Turning a Profit by Shopping
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A new customer recently shared her plot to beat the SmartyPig system. It was so genius, we had to share it.
I had heard about SmartyPig before, but when I read about the new redemption program recently I decided to check it out for myself. Holiday bills were already piling up, so I signed on for a SmartyPig savings goal to cover next year's gifts. But it was while tooling around the site, I realized I could actually "game" the system THIS CHRISTMAS by depositing money into a goal and taking it out on gift cards a few days later.
So I started a goal, deposited $500, waited for the money to clear and then loaded up on cards.
My gift list:
- Mom and Sister—$100 Macy's gift cards - I get $24 back in cash for getting them through SmartyPig
- Brother—$100 GameStop card - I get $3 back
- Dad—$100 at Sears - I get $4 back
- Niece—Baby Gap $100 Gift Card - $5 for me!
I "earned" $36 in free money and finished shopping for my family all at once! Plus, I've still got the account set up for next year's gifts, so no headaches there. I'm also opening up a spend account for the ordinary stuff I have to buy, like socks and underwear. Since I already shop at Macy's I might as well buy them there and make a profit.
We applaud the creativity! After all, our goal is to wean customers off plastic and stoke their love of saving by making the process easy, social and rewarding. If you can also get some real cash in the process, why not do that too? It sure beats paying 18% in credit card interest. Whether it's gifts this holiday, next summer's vacation, a down payment for your dream house, or regular purchases of underwear and socks, we're here to help you make it happen, and rewarding you with cash incentives for the things you want and need most.
It's the SmartyPig difference. And we always love to hear from you! Thanks!
- The SmartyPig Team







5 Comments
I wish I had thought of this!
Ingrid, you can still do it - and put me on your holiday list.
Kudos to SmartyPig for posting this - love it.
I never thought of this! Something to think about next year.
Interesting, but doesn't necessarily work for everyone. There are people on my list that I know for a fact would not appreciate just a gift card for the holidays regardless of the $ amount on it (some of my family is a bit old fashioned. Think of grandma!) Alternatively, I suppose you could bulk up on gift cards if you know what and where you want to buy from and then use the gift cards for purchasing tangible gifts from stores, but then there's really not much of a difference between using your money vs a gift card other than a few extra bucks of "free money."
Not sure that $500 in gift cards vs $36 in "free money" weighs out evenly, but it is an interesting concept for anyone who would appreciate just a gift card.
One thing to consider before taking the leap and doing this is that if you start now, you might not get it in time for the holidays.
I am in the process of doing the same thing for a trip I'm going to spring on my wife as a present, and will book the trip with a Travelocity gift card. I made my initial deposit on Dec. 3 (for the full amount of my goal), but it took 6 days for me to be able to close it because I couldn't do so before the funds cleared my bank. Now that I've closed the goal and asked for a travelocity gift card, it will take 2-3 days to process that so I can finally book the trip.
This might be a great way to stretch your money for a few people, but looking back, I think I would have been better off just booking the travel and forgoing the price discount on the gift card. I wouldn't be surprised if the price has jumped more than the savings I get out of the gift card by the time I book our trip.