December Promo Roundup

Posted on 08. Dec, 2011 by PointsAdvisor.

If snowflakes falling gently to the ground, mall Santas jingling their bells to a merry beat and retail outlets cranking the holiday tunes are not enough to put you into the gift giving (and receiving) spirit, perhaps these great promotions hosted by our partners will!

Buy, Gift & Transfer for more:

bmi Diamond Club: Receive a 50% bonus when you buy or gift miles! Hurry: offer ends December 11, 2011.

Choice Hotels Choice Privileges: Buy or gift points now until December 15, 2011 and receive a 10% bonus!

Icelandair Saga Club: Buy, Gift or Share Saga Points now till December 25, 2011 and receive a 20% bonus.

Virgin America Elevate: Buy or Gift up to 20,000 Elevate points before December 20, 2011 and receive a 100% bonus on your points purchase!

Starwood Preferred Guest: Buy or Gift Starpoints now till December 30, 2011 and receive 20% off the regular price.

Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan: Buy Alaska Mileage Plan miles now until December 31, 2011 and get 4,000 bonus miles for every 10,000 miles purchased – up to 16,000 bonus miles.

US Airways Dividend Miles: Reach your travel goals faster! Get 100% bonus US Airways Dividend miles when you buy miles now till December  31, 2011.

JetBlue TrueBlue: Buy or Gift TrueBlue points now til December 31, 2011 and receive a 35% bonus!

American Airlines AAdvantage: Receive up to 20,000 bonus  AAdvantage miles when you Buy or Gift miles until December 31, 2011.

Get more with Points.com:

Aeroplan: Get up to a 25% bonus when you trade or exchange for more Aeroplan miles now till December 12, 2011.

Virgin America Elevate: Exchange or trade for more Elevate points now till December 22, 2011 and get a 50% bonus.

Earn points/miles while you shop online:

You can earn points/miles in the program of your choice when you shop online at the following retailers. You make a purchase and then choose to earn in any of these programs:

Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan
American Airlines® AAdvantage®
BestBuy Reward Zone
Frontier EarlyReturn Miles
Hawaiian Airlines® HawaiianMiles

Earn with these retailers:

T- Shirt Now: T-Shirt Now features an assortment of witty Ts with slogans and phrases from your favourite TV shows, movies and celebrities.

Kanto AV Systems: Katno AV Systems has a wide range of AV products, including TV mounts, cables and speakers.

Nola Metals: Nola Metals is an online store that focuses on items that have a uniquely New Orleans flare.

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To Redeem or Not to Redeem – That is the Question (Tip #1)

Posted on 27. May, 2011 by PointsAdvisor.

Pondering Redemption:

Among loyalty reward junkies, there is an age old question: when’s the right time to redeem your hard-earned points and miles? Here at Points.com we’re often asked to provide advice on the best time to redeem, and although there may be no scientific answer, we do have a few tips that we’re happy to share. In fact, we have so many tips we’re going to share one every Friday for the next few weeks!

Tip #1: Choose a redemption goal

One of the first steps you should take as an active loyalty program member is to choose a redemption goal. Having a clear goal in mind will allow you to plan your redemption to ensure you get the most bang for your loyalty buck.

When choosing an award, take into consideration what you’d like to get out of it. Would you like to indulge by embarking on an unplanned trip or getting something wouldn’t normally pay for, like a gift card for a shopping spree? Or would you rather save money by redeeming for something that you would have purchased anyway, like a much-needed household appliance or a flight to visit your family?

To get started, head over to your reward program’s website and take a good look at your options. We’ve listed a few popular options below:

• Award flights & upgrades: In a recent survey of our users, we found that almost 40% of all loyalty program members would most like to redeem their points/miles for an award flight. Seat upgrades have also become a popular reward choice for frequent flyers looking to treat themselves.

• Free hotel stays & room upgrades: Free nights at your favorite hotel can take a big chunk out of your vacation budget.

• Merchandise: Points and miles can sometimes be redeemed for merchandise such as cameras, vacuum cleaners or even toothbrushes!

• Experience awards: Some programs, such as Starwood Preferred Guest, let you bid on experiences like meeting rock stars or driving race cars. Others (like American Airlines’ AAdvantage program) will allow you to redeem for entire vacation packages.

• Donations to your favorite charities: Many loyalty programs are now offering ways to donate your points/miles to charities. We wrote a post a few months ago about how you can donate your miles to provide relief after the Japan earthquake. Check in on your loyalty program’s site to see if this is an option for you.

• Funds into your PayPal Account: You can now move Aeroplan, American Airlines AAdvantage and US Airways Dividend miles into your PayPal account on Points.com. You can learn more about this feature here.

• Gift cards: Another option that’s available on Points.com is redeeming your points and miles for gift cards from retailers such as Amazon.com, Best Buy and Macy’s.

• Services and subscriptions: Some programs will allow you to redeem your points/miles for services or subscriptions to magazines or newspapers (full disclosure – Points.com hosts some of these services). This can be a great option, especially when you redeem for something you would have purchased anyway, saving yourself money in the process.

Once you’ve chosen your award goal, it’s time to create a plan of action. Stop by next week for our next redeem tip: Creating a Plan and Crunching Some Numbers!

Have we missed any redemption options? What have you redeemed your points/miles for? Let us know by posting a comment below!

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Grow Your Balance: Points.com Promo Round Up May 2011

Posted on 04. May, 2011 by PointsAdvisor.

Here’s a list of the latest points and miles earning promotions on our radar. Full disclosure: The promotions listed below are with Points.com partners, or on our site.

• US Airways Dividend Miles: Get a 75% bonus when you share your Dividend miles with friends or family. Now till May 14th, 2011.

• Alitalia MilleMiglia: Get a 25% discount when you buy or gift miles. Now till May 15th, 2011.

• Choice Privileges Rewards: Buy up to 20,000 Choice Privileges points and get a 10% bonus. Now till May 15th, 2011.

• American Airlines AAdvantage: Save 20% when you purchase 20,000 miles or more now through May 31st, 2011.

• JetBlue TrueBlue: Buy points and get a 50% bonus (plus they’ve waived the transaction fee!). Now till May 31st, 2011.

• Frontier EarlyReturns: Buy or Gift EarlyReturns miles to get a 50% bonus. Now till June 15th, 2011.

• SAS EuroBonus: Buy points for yourself or as a gift and earn 50% more points. Now till June 15th 2011.

• Starwood Preferred Guest: Buy Starpoints between May 3 and June 30, 2011 and receive 20% off the regular price.

Have a great promo you’d like to share? Leave it in the comments below.

Happy earning!

The Points.com Team

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Points.com & PayPal Introduce a New Way to Use Your Miles

Posted on 09. Feb, 2011 by PointsAdvisor.

Points.com and PayPal team up

It’s been a big week here at Points.com.  As of this week, Points.com users can now redeem Aeroplan® miles, American Airlines AAdvantage Miles® and US Airways® Dividend Miles® into their PayPal accounts through our new partnership with PayPal.

At Points.com we’re always looking for new and innovative ways to help people use their points, miles and rewards. Our partnership with PayPal gives loyalty program members even more flexibility with their reward programs. Redeeming into PayPal is currently available for the Aeroplan, AAdvantage and Dividend Miles programs, but we will be rolling this feature for even more loyalty programs over the next few months.

Want to know more? Read what PayPal has to say about our new partnership on the PayPal blog, or check out our official press release here.

Read on for details on exactly how you can redeem your miles into your PayPal account.

Here’s the scoop on how to redeem into your PayPal account:

To redeem your Aeroplan, AAdvantage or Dividend Miles into your PayPal account, follow these steps:

1. Log in to your Points.com account and click on the “give & redeem” page.
2. Choose PayPal from the list of redemption partners.
3. From there, choose the program you would like to redeem from (Aeroplan, American Airlines AAdvantage or US Airways Dividend Miles are currently available). Then choose the amount you would like to redeem for, and then click “calculate”.
4. Click “confirm redeem” and follow the check out process to complete your redemption into your PayPal account.

A few administrative things to note:

Depending on the partner, it could take 3-7 days  for your funds to appear in your PayPal account, so be sure to plan ahead if you’re thinking of using your miles for a purchase. Also, please note that after you redeem into your PayPal account you will have 30 days to ensure the email address you entered is registered with PayPal so you can receive your money.

Share your thoughts!

We’d love to hear what you think about this new feature on Points.com.

Feel free to leave a comment below, or send us an email here.

The Points.com Team

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Earn While you Shop this Holiday Season

Posted on 01. Dec, 2010 by PointsAdvisor.

Earn While you Shop.

With the holidays fast approaching and shopping in full swing, we’d like to share one of our favorite tips for earning points and miles during the holiday season.

Two words: earn malls.

The number of people shopping online has grown exponentially over the past few years.  And why not? Sitting at your computer in your pjs with a warm cup of hot chocolate sure beats battling the crowds at the mall. If you’re planning to do some (or all) of your holiday shopping online this year, be sure to take advantage of your favorite loyalty program’s online earn mall. Online earn malls allow you to earn points or miles for shopping through  a virtual mall. In most cases you earn 1 point or mile per dollar spent, but many programs have holiday shopping deals on right now, so you may earn even more!

Here are a few programs that reward you for shopping online through their sites, but there are many more – be sure to check your loyalty program’s website before you start clicking:

1. AIR MILES (Canada)
2. American Airlines AAdvantage eShopping
3. Aeroplan eStore
4. Best Buy Reward Zone Online Malll
5. Choice Privileges Shopping Mall
6. Continental Airlines’ ShopOnePass
7. JetBlue ShopTrue
8. Priority Club Rewards Mall
9. US Airways Dividend miles Shopping Mall
10. Virgin Atlantic Online Shopping

Bonus tip: Double dip by paying for your goodies with a reward earning credit card. Just be sure to clear up that balance so you avoid a nasty surprise in the New Year.

Have a holiday shopping tip of your own? Share it below for other readers!

Happy shopping!

The Points.com Team.

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We’re Thankful For…

Posted on 23. Nov, 2010 by PointsAdvisor.

This American Turkey Day, we’ve been reflecting on what we’re thankful for. Since we always have loyalty on the brain, we thought we’d share a list of loyalty program perks that we’re thankful for.

Here’s our loyalty-flavored list just in time for American Thanksgiving 2010.

We’re thankful for:

The option to gift points/miles to friends and family members.

If you know someone a few points or miles short of a flight home, you can help them out by buying points or miles for them, or in some cases, transferring the points or miles you’ve already earned to them. Check your program websites or our Points.com loyalty program pages for details.

Earning points and miles for shopping online.

You skip the mall and earn rewards when you shop through online earn malls. American Airlines, Aeroplan and Continental OnePass all  have earn malls, but so do many other programs. Check your favorite program’s site before you buy! (For those that aren’t loyalty obsessed, an earn mall is an online store affiliated with a reward program that gives extra points for purchasing everyday items on the site).

Great freebies.

Many programs will offer perks to their reward program members, like free Wi-Fi in your hotel room for simply being a member of Kimpton InTouch or having your spouse stay for free with the Hilton HHonors program.

Sweet promotions—(warning shameless plug to follow).

Promotions like the one happening right now on Points.com can really help you rack up the points and miles. With the holiday promotion on Points.com, you can earn up to 20% in bonus points or miles for trading or exchanging with participating partners on Points.com. Act fast – this promotion is only live until December 15th. Keep your eye out for other promotions though – promotions can mean the difference between a vacation that clears out your wallet and a vacation that’s totally free.

Points.com wishes you and yours a very Happy Thanksgiving! What are you thankful for this Turkey Day?

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