Top 5 Reasons You Should Care About Points & Miles

Posted on 25. Jan, 2012 by PointsAdvisor.

In our loyalty program-saturated world here at Points.com, it’s easy to forget that not everyone is an avid point/mile collector. I recently met someone that told me they couldn’t be bothered with loyalty programs (the horror!), and that they didn’t carry a single loyalty card in their wallet.

For anyone who has ever questioned the hype around loyalty programs, here are our top 5 reasons you should care about loyalty programs.

1. Frequent flying not required:

Gone are the days when the only people that reap the benefits of reward programs are frequent flyers. Airline loyalty programs remain rewarding, but even if you don’t fly, there are a ton of other ways to collect points/miles. Check your local grocery stores, coffee shops, retail stores, car rentals, pharmacy – anywhere you spend money – to find out what their loyalty program offerings are. Loyalty isn’t just for brick-and-mortar stores anymore either. Many online retailers offer points/miles for purchases. Check out our latest promos page to see a few online retailers who are offering points/miles for purchases.

2. You’re spending money, why not earn points/miles while you do it:

As mentioned above, loyalty programs can now be found at most major retailers. They give retailers a way to reward their most loyalty customers, and most programs get more rewarding the more you spend. If you find yourself frequenting the same stores, as many of us do, joining a loyalty program can pay off in dividends. Some retailers offer discounts after reaching a certain balance, or even cash off your purchase. Others allow you to redeem for  merchandise you wouldn’t have been able to fit in your budget.

3. There are more ways to earn points & miles than ever before:

Many loyalty programs now offer new and innovative ways to collect their currency. Some programs host online malls that allow you to earn points/miles for shopping through their site, while others allow you to create gift registries, so your friends and family can give you points/miles for special occasions. Loyalty programs are working hard to find new ways to go where their members are, making sure that it’s easy for you to make use of their program.

4. You can use points & miles for a lot more than just flights:

I’m always happy when I hear from a friend or Points.com user who has used their points/miles for their dream vacation, but some of the most memorable (and useful) rewards can come from redeeming for merchandise. One of my teammates redeemed for a Dyson vacuum cleaner, another, a gift card for Amazon.com. I’ve known others to use their miles for new digital cameras or a discount off of an Ancestry.com subscription (something you can get on Points.com). Although you should always compare the value of each redemption option before hitting “go”, sometimes it’s worth it to pass up on the vacation for something else you really need.

5. There are ways to earn faster than ever before:

Many loyalty programs now offer options to allow you to buy more points/miles, or transfer them to family members and friends. These increasing options give you more ways to get points/miles when you’re close to redeeming. Another option is to follow our Points.com Earn Opportunities feed, that lists the latest promotions for your programs.

Yes, being an avid collector requires a little bit of extra work, but it can really pay off over the long run if you are patient and determined.

Happy earning!

PS. If you’re new to the loyalty game and Points.com, check out our popular post: 5 Tips for New Points.com Users.

What’s your favorite part about being a loyalty program member?

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Happy New Year from Points.com!

Posted on 04. Jan, 2012 by PointsAdvisor.

We hope that your holidays were filled with cheer, family, friends and points and miles!

Happy New Year from the Points.com team. We look forward to another year of bringing you the latest loyalty program news and advice.

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What’s the Best Thing You Ever Redeemed For?

Posted on 16. Nov, 2011 by PointsAdvisor.

With the holiday season fast approaching, we wanted to share some of the best things we’ve ever redeemed for as inspiration for readers. We asked some of our colleagues to tell us the best thing they ever redeemed for, and here’s what they said.

The Best Thing I Ever Redeemed for Was…

Not Your Average Destination Wedding: “I redeemed Aeroplan miles to go to my wife and I’s wedding in Japan. I *guess* it worked out <shrug>! ” – Luke

A Clean Floor & Indulgences: “I redeemed my AIRMILES for a Dyson vacuum cleaner! I also redeemed AIRMILES for Roots gift certificates and purchased (on three different occasions!) three Roots leather flat bags.  All things I lusted over but wouldn’t have bought for myself otherwise.” – Kat

Honeymoon, Take 2: “We hated the cruise we took for our honeymoon so I booked us a second honeymoon….this time to Paris, flight for two on Air France paid in Delta SkyMiles! And because I booked through Delta.com, I saved about $150 in taxes too!” – Kerry

Practical Savings: “I’ve used my PC Financial points for free groceries and my Petro Points for free car washes.” – Tara

Making Family Connections: “I redeemed 400 Frontier EarlyReturns miles for a discount offer at Ancestry.com and received a Family Tree Maker 2012 CD. Our family tree has been on “paper” for the past 300 years and I can now enter/upload it online and share with my sisters.” – Roz

Vacation in San Fran: “I once redeemed my Aeroplan miles for a round trip fare to San Francisco.  I ate lots of chowder and visited Alcatraz…it was awesome.” – Dan

Daughter of the Year Award: “My parents celebrated their 35th wedding anniversary last year and I was able surprise them with a trip to Washington, DC using my US Airways Dividend miles. The best thing was that because I booked off-peak travel, I got 2 round trip tickets for 50,000 miles and then used my Starwood Preferred Guest membership to put them up in the Sheraton for 2 nights using only 20,000 Starpoints. Finally I was able to make the surprise that much sweeter by giving them my Air Canada lounge passes (that I selected as a bonus for reaching Aeroplan elite status), so that they could relax in style before their flight. Total cost for an unforgettable getaway for 2 and #1 child status: $250 in taxes.” – Diana

Bachelor Party on a Budget: “I went to Vegas for a friend’s bachelor party using 40,000 Delta SkyMiles.  I had 38,500 in my account before I booked so I used Delta transfer and took advantage of a 100% transfer bonus promo to transfer 1k from a friend’s account and get up to 40k to book the trip.” – Andrew

Impromptu Redemption: “I redeemed 15000 Aeroplan points for a hotel room in Collingwood and booked in on my iPhone standing outside the hotel. I walked in 3 minutes later and checked in for free.” – Dena

Family Fun: “The top two in my mind are the time I redeemed 100,000 Aeroplan miles to fly my family (wife plus two kids) to Orlando to visit Disney for the first time, and when I redeemed Aeroplan miles for two tickets to Cirque du Soleil (Totem) this past summer…” – Marc

Western Adventure: “My best and most adventuresome redemption was using the American Airlines AAdvantage miles that I  accumulated over the years towards a trip to Victoria, BC on Vancouver Island, via Chicago and Seattle. The “bestest of the westest” moment was en route back home;  the day was completely clear and cloudless and we flew over the Rockies all the way, then the Grand Cranyon  – it was spectacular!  Then due north to Chicago we flew over one of the largest lakes I’ve ever seen in my life, and still don’t know the name!” – Jo

Stay tuned for our Holiday Gift Guide, coming next week. We’ll be dishing out more advice on redeeming, and lots of ideas for the holidays! In the meantime, let us know what the best thing you ever redeemed for is below.

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Top 5 Reasons to Celebrate the Arrival of Fall (in the Land of Loyalty)

Posted on 19. Aug, 2011 by PointsAdvisor.

Here’s our super-intern Jessie to talk about the advantages fall brings for points and mile fanatics. Enjoy!

Top 5 Reasons to Celebrate the Arrival of Fall (in the Land of Loyalty)

Don’t despair as the curtain slowly drops on this summer season! There are lots of lovely things to look forward to this fall (including great ways to earn, redeem and share your loyalty points, miles and rewards!).

Here are our Top Five Picks in the celebration of fall:

1. Fashion:  Are you as sick of the prominence of belly-tops and capri-pants as I am? Well it won’t be long before navels and ankles are banished once again! Under a fresh batch of sweaters, trench coats, and (best) new boots. There are plenty of ways to supplement the cost of those new items with your points and miles: you can redeem your  Aeroplan or AIRMILES miles for great items through their online stores or choose the Gift Card option, offered by many loyalty programs, including HBC Rewards, American Express Membership Rewards, Diners Club Rewards and more (check out more programs at Points.com).

2. Off-season Holidays: Whether you’re looking to squeeze in some last minute summer revelry over the Labour Day weekend or you’re a savvy holiday planner who prefers a cooler temperature and shorter line-ups, now is the time to start thinking about your off-season holiday plans. Forbes.com did a great highlight on some of the best places to travel to in the off season, find it HERE. Frequent flyer program members should also check out last minute vacation offers and specials with their favorite airlines, such as Virgin Atlantic, jetBlue, Porter Airlines and more.

3. New Releases: I don’t know about you, but I can’t wait for a few rainy days so I can enjoy my T.V./movie time sans guilt… and it won’t be like you aren’t doing anything productive if you take your Scene card along with you when you go to movies. Also, Netflix offers great bonus incentives for American Airlines AAdvantage, Delta Skymiles, and United MileagePlus members.

4. Fresh Start: While Spring usually gets all the glory of “rebirth” and “renewal”, the freshness of fall should not be overlooked. Whether it’s a new grade, semester or quarter, this is a time to start over. Of course starting anew means a new pack of pencils (or flash drives). Alleviate some of the costs by using your OfficeDepot Worklife Rewards and Best Buy Reward Zone points!

5. Pumpkin Spiced Everything: Hey, don’t knock it till you try it…I don’t know what it is about a spicy pumpkin makes your everyday treats that much more delicious, but it does. One of the masters of the pumpkin spice is Starbucks, with their Pumpkin Spiced Latte! Also, residents of the U.S. and Calgary can use this (soon to be new addiction) as an opportunity to collect Starbucks Rewards points! And for the many other caffeine-loving Canadians, take advantage of the Starbucks Card Rewards card, which allows you to track your account online and connects you to news on special offers and member benefits!

How do you plan to celebrate fall with your points and miles?

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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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Double—and Triple the Earning Fun with Expedia Rewards!

Posted on 01. Apr, 2011 by PointsAdvisor.

Expedia Rewards:

On Monday, online travel agency Expedia.com® unveiled its new loyalty program, Expedia Rewards™ giving bargain-seeking travelers the opportunity to earn double or even triple their rewards when booking a trip. As you can imagine, this got us more than a little excited!

Our takeaway for this new program? It’s a great way to earn extra travel points in addition to the miles racked up in your frequent flyer program plus the credit card points you earn when booking the travel. You could get the most bang for your loyalty buck when taking advantage of Expedia Rewards from airfare purchases and travel packages.

Will you be signing up for the new Expedia Rewards program? We would love to hear your thoughts!

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Most Popular Posts of 2010: Frugal John’s Top 5 Tips for Making the Most of your Points & Miles

Posted on 15. Mar, 2011 by PointsAdvisor.

Frugal John:

Around Points.com, one of our colleagues, John, is known as the go-to person for questions about how to get the most out of your loyalty programs. His penchant for savings has even earned him the nickname “Frugal John”. Last year, John wrote a series of guest posts listing his top 5 tips for making the most of your miles and points.

John’s top 5 list generated some of the most popular posts we had in 2010. We’ve compiled all of John’s tips here in one place in case you missed them last year.

5 Tips for Making the Most of Your Points & Miles:

Tip #1:  Have a redemption goal in mind.

Tip #2: What goes up must come down.

Tip #3: Aim for your goal but be open to change.

Tip #4: Know the expiry rules for your programs.

Tip #5: Don’t be afraid to spend “hard” cash to maximize your point/mile balance.

What strategies do you use to get the most out of your points and miles? Do you have any additional tips to add to Frugal John’s list?

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