Best Buy Zoner Card? (1 Viewer)

[DeborahK]

Anyone else get one of these in the mail in the last week or so? I do not seem to be one of those who gets those BestBuy preferred customer coupons in the mail, but I did get this "Official Zoner" card this last week.

The way it work is the card gets scanned whenever you make Best Buy purchases and you earn points that turn into discount coupons after you have spent a certain amount of money. The first time you use the card, you earn 5000 bonus pts in addition to those associated with your purchase. . Don't know how well this would work but I am trying it out.

Deborah

 

[Brian E]

I think i heard that this is only for people in CA and AZ.

IIRC that is their test market. If successful it's supposed to go national. Pretty much the same thing as the Suncoast/Sam Goody/Media Play/On Cue Replay card (which makes sense since they're owned by BB). The Replay card is a pretty good deal at times. Sometimes (TNG Sets, Etc.) they have the same price as BB, but you get the added bonus of points. I'd use one good at BB much more often though.

 

[MikeAlletto]

Man I hope it goes national. I sure do spend enough money at Best Buy that I need a frequent buyer card

 

[Chris Huereca]

Yes, I purchased one the day they came out. For every $125.00 you spend on DVD's, CD's, software, or games, you get a $5.00 store coupon for "just about anything at Best Buy." It is a test market for CA and AZ, and an excellent deal for me since at the time I figured it would pay for itself in two-three months on average. I hope to see some of the "special promotions" soon. I figured LOTR would be one, but obviously not so I guess we'll see what comes up later. I wish I had gotten my free coupon a little earlier though... I didn't want to mess up anything, so I just tossed the coupon since according to my calculations this week it has already paid for itself.

 

[DeborahK]

Guys,

Thanks for all the replies. That is interesting that California is just a test market at this point, but it expains why I had not seen a million posts about this in the Coupons and Bargins section of the Forum. A spend-and-save card is an intersting concept for electronics and media. Hope it catches on and spreads to other places.

Deborah

 

[Mike Frezon]

I bet if I moved to CA or AZ, BestBuy would change their markets for these cards to NY!

 

[Randy B A]

I bought one of these the day they came out. I still have not seen any coupons come in the mail yet. :frowning:

 

[TonyD]

I bought one of these the day they came out. I still have not seen any coupons come in the mail yet

so you have to buy this thing?
how much is it?
doesn't seem like $5 for every $125 is a very good savings,especially if you have to buy it.

 

[Brian E]

doesn't seem like $5 for every $125 is a very good savings,especially if you have to buy it.

Depends on your spending. It would pay for itself pretty quickly if you buy any boxsets. If they do it like the Replay card you'll also get bonus points for certain titles.

 

[DeborahK]

Just for the record, I did not purchase my Zoner card -- it just came in the mail. Can't speak for others, tho'.

Deborah

 

[TonyD]

Depends on your spending. It would pay for itself pretty quickly if you buy any boxsets. If they do it like the Replay card you'll also get bonus points for certain titles.

brian i still dont see a price for this card.
even if it is only $10 then i would have to spend $375 to get out of the red on this zoner card.

at that amount it would not pay for itself quickly by my spending.

 

[MikeAlletto]

Oh I wouldn't pay for it. Basically its a frequent flier card, why would anyone pay for something like that?

 

[DeborahK]

Has anyone here had to pay for the card? I really don't think it's structured that way. It is sent to people free in the mail as an incentive to shop at Best Buy. What would be the point of trying to get people buy the thing? The benefit is relatively small but a nice little perk to shopping there, if you are shopping for the tkind of things they carry.

Deborah

 

[Chris Clarno]

Some customers will get their cards free in the mail. How the free cards are distributed, I'm not sure. You may need to be in our data base or have a BestBuy card. For those that don't get a free card, you can purchase one for $9.99. You get 5000 bonus points to start off. You get 100 points for every dollar you spend on media items (this would include DVDs, CDs, Computer software, video games and systems etc). Other purchases (TVs, DVD players, etc)don't qualify for the 100 points per dollar (this is intended primarilly for those who buy a lot of media), however by simply showing your card when you make other (non-media) purchases you will get 500 points. The points can be redeemed for gift certificates (and perhaps other items eventually). The card is not for everyone, but if you buy a lot of DVDs and CDs, it's a nice little bonus. Even at $10, if you buy lots of software you will find that's it's paid for very quickly. If you have any other questions just ask, and I'll find the 411 for you.

 

[Mike Frezon]

Some customers will get their cards free in the mail. How the free cards are distributed, I'm not sure.

My....head....hurts!

 

[Brian E]

brian i still dont see a price for this card.
even if it is only $10 then i would have to spend $375 to get out of the red on this zoner card.

at that amount it would not pay for itself quickly by my spending.

Well no one really knows what will happen after the test period. They could decide it's not worth it and kill the whole thing. It could also change a few times before it went nationwide.

The Suncoast version of this deal costs $7.99 for a year. When you sign up you automatically get a $5 GC so you only have $2.99 left to make up. It's not just straight points either. Sometimes you can get as much as 3 times the points for your purchase. Most new releases also give bonus points.

Lets just say that I got my Replay card a year ago and the only thing I buy at Suncoast is stuff that's the same price as Best Buy in its first week of release. In other words I don't buy much there. I have gotten all of my Next Generation boxsets their so far since they were the same as the BB price. With regular and bonus points those three sets have gotten me $25 in GC's. That's 2 extra GC's just from bonus points, plus enough left over points for another 1/2 a GC. All total I've gotten about $50 worth of GC's in one year and like I said I don't buy there that much.

All I'm saying is if people buy a lot of DVD's and CD's that this BB program could be very beneficial just like I've found the Suncoast/Sam Goody one to be.

I don't even know if I'd go for the BB one if/when it becomes available here. I'd have to evaluate it at that time.

 

[Brian E]

Some customers will get their cards free in the mail. How the free cards are distributed, I'm not sure. You may need to be in our data base or have a BestBuy card. For those that don't get a free card, you can purchase one for $9.99.

For the test thing this would make some sense. If they give away cards to people who they know shop there frequently they could better evaluate how much it would be used/cost in the long run.

 

[DeborahK]

Chris,

Thanks for the clarification.

Mike,

Like you, I don't seem to get those BestBuy coupons in the mail -- tho' I maybe got one coupon once. I shop at BestBuy regularly, have bought everything from a television to blank video tape, vcrs, dvds, cds and toaster ovens. I have returned items and bought service contracts. But coupons do not arrive in my mailbox.

BestBuy is my B&M of choice for media, because it is convenient to me, their selection is fair, and their prices are usually reasonable. I am not one of those who spends $500 or $600 a month on DVDs -- $50/month would be a big month for me, but this month I have already spend that much because I had some gifts to buy. Given the fact that I do not seem to be in their coupon loop I am not sure why I got a free Zoner card, so it truly is mysterious.

Deborah