I found what I think may be an ultimate deal.

You can purchase giftcertificates for many stores, AA, Marriott etc from a website called sparks.com. They currently have a promotion for $10 off on a $25 or more purchase which works more than once, and they are partner with ebates, so you get 25% rebate on your purchase, and they are OPT-IN partners with clickrewards (be sure to check the box for miles), so you get 50 miles for $10 purchase and 100 miles for $20 or more purchases.

Final result:
For each $25 GC= $11.25 and 50 clickmiles, $50GC=$30.00 and 100 clickmiles. AA is $50 or $100 amounts (100=$67.50 cost), marriott $25 (sold out now) and $50 (available). Many other stores are available for $10, $20, $25 amounts.

Now I don't know exactly where the visto promo came from, but I would suggest you go to visto.com and sign up with them, they give a free email account and web page if you want it, that way you are legitimate.


Heres how to do it: (you might want to print this out)

1. Go to ebates.com
2. Sign up with ebates if you havent already (you can use me as referral: [email protected])
3. Now go shopping through ebates to the sparks.com site (ebates banner will always be at the top). (you will login with ebates to go on to the sparks site-sparks is listed under flowers/gifts category)
4. Create an account with Sparks.com. Use your [email protected] email address, not your regular one!
5. Now, open a new window in your browser. goto (link hes been edited to correct on 1/6 10pm): www.sparks.com/partners/vistopromo/vistopromo.html
6. Login where it asks you to on this new page. Then close this window.
7. At the ebates/sparks window, go ahead and find your macys GC.
8. The visto promo gives 10 off any purchase of $25 or more.
9. Go ahead and checkout.
10. At checkout, make sure you click the box to earn clickmiiles (you get 50clickmiles for $10 purchase, 100 miles for $20 or more).
11. Checkout. A $25 GC costs now $15, $50 costs $40. The discount will show there, if it doesn't something has gone wrong, try again with step 5.
11(a). At the order confirm screen, note your order number and below it asks if you want to continue shopping, say yes, and go and order another giftcertificate, THE COUPON IS REUSEABLE and automatically stays with you as long as you keep this session going.
12. In a few days GC comes.
13. About same time, email comes from clickrewards you get your miles (you will need to go set up account with [email protected] email address as this is the account the miles will go to).
14. In a few months (on quarterly basis -45 days after quarter end) ebates mails you a check. Purchases at ebates earn 25% from sparks. So for each $15 purchase you get another $3.75 back, a $40 gets you $10 back, so final cost for each $25 GC= $11.25 and 50 clickmiles, $50GC=$30.00 and 100 clickmiles.

If you haven't signed up for ebates, feel free to use me as referral, [email protected], and then I get a bonus for your orders (doesn't reduce your ebates).

This coupon expires i believe on Jan 14, but the ebates and clickmiles do not end then (but of course can change-check the respective site fromtime to time).

If anyone has problems, email me.

Cheers

Tummyg


[This message has been edited by tummyg (edited 01-06-2000).]

The AA certificates are now completely sold out, but it does work for GAP and many other stores.

rich

ps. u should not include the last part (vistopromo.html) in the link provided to get to the discount screen.

pps. it does work for GAP. got to the checkout and 10 bucks was taken off gift certificate.

pps. great find. even without the 10 dollar discount. if ebates is for real that reduces the cost of flying on AA by 25 percent. I really hope these guys have a lot of venture capital to burn!!!!

Tummyg - looks like you found a real winner here....

Although, I do NOT think that you are going to get the ebate rebate in addition. If you take a look at the FAQ's on the ebate site, it states, under Point 10, 'List of Exceptions': "Gift certificates purchased through affiliated merchants are not eligible for rebates." It also states, "the portion of any purchase made with gift certificates or coupons does not count towards your rebate. ", so by using the Visto coupon, this should invalidate it as well. Double whammy here on the gotchas.

Hey, it might slip through, but don't count on it.

Plus, you can get 100 MyPoints for signing up with Visto!

Just tried to get in to the visto link -- no luck. Sparks says that the page is "temporarily unavailable or no longer exists" on their servers. Any suggestions from here?

MarshB - try this: http://www.sparks.com/vistopromo/

Steve 100, and all, I think the ebates exclusion for gift certs that Steve100 mentioned applies if you buy that stores giftcertificates, so if going to barnes and noble and buying barnes and noble GC, no ebate. However, for Sparks, the GC's are regular merchandise, you arent buying sparks gift certs, you are buying merchandise which happen to be GC's. Anyhow, I have already had sparks orders show up on ebates, although it does take about 3-4 weeks. Now the coupon promo makes it even better. I hope they do reorder those AA and marriott GC's.

I forgot to mention before, for anyone who hasn't looked already, shipping is free.

tummyg

p.s. they also sell cards and such and holiday cards are now on clearance.

I came up empty handed. Looks like this one may be gone. Page for link in step number 5 (see above) is "not available or has been removed from our server". Checkout shows no $10 discount. Anybody else seen this? las24: you got your signup referral on me.

BJJ - try the corrected Sparks/Visto link that I posted above, it still works and gives $10 off.

BJJ, I corrected the linnk in 5 above, i had left off the partners part in the URL. The link Steve posted will automatically take you to the page I have listed (thanks steve for finding it and posting it). And thanks for putting me as referral BJJ (note if i can track the referral monies it will all go to Unicef thailand (on CC for miles of course).

Sparks is very quick with the clickmiles too (again be sure to opt in by checking the clickmiles box on the checkout screen). I got 6 confirmations for miles 3 days after I ordered (and that was over new years weekend!).

cheers, tummyg.

just wondering if anyone has been able to shed some insight yet on whether you can get the additional rebate through ebate.com

i've never shopped with them before, and i'm not sure if it's unusual that they don't have a record of any of my orders (although i've got the e-mail shipping confirmation from sparks.com). either o'm doing something wrong, ebates is slow, or they don't show a record if the purchase isn't elgiable.

tummyg -- I followed your instructions (using the new link from steve100) and I still did not get the $10 discount at checkout. I did step 1 - 4 and then on step 5, I opened a new window using steve100's link. It did show the promotion and I logged in and then closed that window. I went back to the ebates/sparks window and tried to purchase a $25 GAP certificate. The discount did not appear at checkout. I have tried this 3 times and the same thing happens. what am I doing wrong? Thanks for your help.

Kim, I think your problem is either your cookies aren't working (no, not your mind, the cookies in your web browser) or there is a problem with your logging in and being recognized in the sparks/ebates window. Can you try again, go to ebates and then sparks, open the new window for coupon, keep it open and go back to ebates/sparks, and login on that screen. then proceed to checkout. just to be sure, keep that coupon window open, but be sure to checkout using the ebates window. let me know if that doesnt work.

TeamMJS, You are expecting too much of ebates. I have made many purchases with various sites and they never show ip right away, as i posted above, expect it to take 3-4 weeks before it posts. ebates waits until after a vendors ship and return period before crediting the order i believe. It doesnt have anything to do with what you are ordering, it is just ebates is slow, probably extra slow right now because of the holiday orders were probably overwhelming them.

give it a few weeks, it doesn't matter as rebates are quarterly not monthly.

Tummyg,

I understand where you're coming from on the gift certificates being merchandise sold by Sparks and not gift certificate for Sparks. And you say you have seen credit from Ebates for the 25% rebate amount on your purchases from Sparks?

I'm curious because alone, the $10 per $25 discount is a nice 40% on it's own, but the rebate turns it into a fantastic 55%. I'll trust you and get the certificates for now, I can always return them!!

By the way, I've purchased several hundred dollars worth of certificates now as this is some sort of incredible discount.

tummyg -- I STILL can't get the ebates/sparks screen to accept the $10 discount !! If I use steve100's link to the promo, the dicsount appears at checkout, but when I go to the ebates/sparks screen and log on, I do get the message that I'm already logged on, but the discount does not appear at checkout.