How Is SR Doing?

As I am sure you are noticing, we are having a lot of big changes with our merchants right now. Some we have had to remove because they have set our commissions to zero (like Target). Others are not paying us for up to 4 months of the date of the sales (Kohls, Gap, Old Navy). Some are lowering our commissions to just 1% or 2%.

What are we doing during this time to keep SR running? Lots!

First, we are continuing to add new merchants so that we have more places for you to shop, not less. I know we are removing some big brands, but we are adding big brands (and small) as well.

Second, we are looking for more free offers, surveys, etc. where you can earn rewards and we can earn revenue as well. Even little things like the "featured" offers at the top of the Daily Deal email will help us diversify our revenue.

Third, we are running contests to drive new memberships. The more members we have, the easier it is for us to "keep the lights on" and we know people are looking to save money and earn money online right now.

What can YOU do to help us? Simple....just stay loyal. :) Even if you aren't shopping online right now, you can tell a friend or try a survey. We have been in business too long (And have seen too many changes!) to let this be what takes us down. SR has weathered so many changes in the reward industry over the year and this will just be one more thing for us to figure out.

Thanks for the transparency, as always.

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Originally Posted by SunshineGirl

As I am sure you are noticing, we are having a lot of big changes with our merchants right now. Some we have had to remove because they have set our commissions to zero (like Target). Others are not paying us for up to 4 months of the date of the sales (Kohls, Gap, Old Navy). Some are lowering our commissions to just 1% or 2%.

What are we doing during this time to keep SR running? Lots!

First, we are continuing to add new merchants so that we have more places for you to shop, not less. I know we are removing some big brands, but we are adding big brands (and small) as well.

Second, we are looking for more free offers, surveys, etc. where you can earn rewards and we can earn revenue as well. Even little things like the "featured" offers at the top of the Daily Deal email will help us diversify our revenue.

Third, we are running contests to drive new memberships. The more members we have, the easier it is for us to "keep the lights on" and we know people are looking to save money and earn money online right now.

What can YOU do to help us? Simple....just stay loyal. :) Even if you aren't shopping online right now, you can tell a friend or try a survey. We have been in business too long (And have seen too many changes!) to let this be what takes us down. SR has weathered so many changes in the reward industry over the year and this will just be one more thing for us to figure out.

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I am going to vent for a minute, I always shopped at SR, been doing it for years. Since November, I have not been getting credit, Walmart, Sams Club, E vitamins , was 2 years in a row no credit, and I spent 150.00 or more each time,which is 4 or 5 %. To be perfectly honest I got email from Capital one and they offered me a new shopping site. I wont say the name, since I know, Trish you do not want us to do that. I think I lost over 25.00 or more from missed credits just from shopping. I know times are tough. all around. I got very discouraged and I go not get it, used to be consistent no more, at least not for me. I will keep doing the surveys, but not wasting my shopping and not getting and credit for it.The trouble tickets used to work, but that die not work either for me. I had no other choice but to just not do it any longer, to frustrating.

Jtowner

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Originally Posted by jtowner

I am going to vent for a minute, I always shopped at SR, been doing it for years. Since November, I have not been getting credit, Walmart, Sams Club, E vitamins , was 2 years in a row no credit, and I spent 150.00 or more each time,which is 4 or 5 %. To be perfectly honest I got email from Capital one and they offered me a new shopping site. I wont say the name, since I know, Trish you do not want us to do that. I think I lost over 25.00 or more from missed credits just from shopping. I know times are tough. all around. I got very discouraged and I go not get it, used to be consistent no more, at least not for me. I will keep doing the surveys, but not wasting my shopping and not getting and credit for it.The trouble tickets used to work, but that die not work either for me. I had no other choice but to just not do it any longer, to frustrating.

Jtowner

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If you are not getting credit for shopping through us, the chances are good that you will not get credit through another site as well because every one of us uses the exact same tracking networks. For example, if you shop through our Sam's Club link, it goes through Rakuten Network. If you shop through a competitor cash back site, it will also go through Rakuten Network. If there is something that is blocking the transactions at the Rakuten Network level, they will be blocked no matter which site you use. We personally follow up on EVERY missing shopping transaction that is reported (which is not the case for the big cash back sites...they just dump a spreadsheet and it is done by a computer). Sometimes the merchants will give us specific information back (like if the person used a coupon code that wasn't on our site or something like that) but a lot of times they just ignore or reject the requests from us.

I will say that on the whole we only get maybe 10 reports of shopping non-credits a month and of those, Ashleigh is able to get about half the credits. That means that of all of the members we have shopping every day, we only have about 5 unresolved transactions a month.

In the case of evitamins, every one we have had declined has come back as "Conflict: Customer applied non-affiliate coupon". So they are a merchant that takes very seriously the rule that if a cash back site does not have the coupon on their site, you won't get credit if you use it. Some merchants don't care but others don't like people "double dipping" and using coupons that they get from an email but then also trying to get cash back. We always tell our members we don't care if they try to use the coupons with merchants but don't be surprised if they don't get us the cash back.

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Originally Posted by SunshineGirl

If you are not getting credit for shopping through us, the chances are good that you will not get credit through another site as well because every one of us uses the exact same tracking networks. For example, if you shop through our Sam's Club link, it goes through Rakuten Network. If you shop through a competitor cash back site, it will also go through Rakuten Network. If there is something that is blocking the transactions at the Rakuten Network level, they will be blocked no matter which site you use. We personally follow up on EVERY missing shopping transaction that is reported (which is not the case for the big cash back sites...they just dump a spreadsheet and it is done by a computer). Sometimes the merchants will give us specific information back (like if the person used a coupon code that wasn't on our site or something like that) but a lot of times they just ignore or reject the requests from us.

I will say that on the whole we only get maybe 10 reports of shopping non-credits a month and of those, Ashleigh is able to get about half the credits. That means that of all of the members we have shopping every day, we only have about 5 unresolved transactions a month.

In the case of evitamins, every one we have had declined has come back as "Conflict: Customer applied non-affiliate coupon". So they are a merchant that takes very seriously the rule that if a cash back site does not have the coupon on their site, you won't get credit if you use it. Some merchants don't care but others don't like people "double dipping" and using coupons that they get from an email but then also trying to get cash back. We always tell our members we don't care if they try to use the coupons with merchants but don't be surprised if they don't get us the cash back.

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The only coupon I used at E Vitamins was the one that was offered when I get there, free shipping with 100 purchase, only one used ever. I do not think I have to put the code in the orders, just gave me free shipping. I did get credit for them its with Capital one, my credit card, maybe that is why, not sue, but it is working. I been shopping for years on SR, liked I said the problem started last November, with other beside E vitamins not crediting. I do not use coupons, the only thing I want is free shipping, and it free with Sams I am free shipping with my membership, Walmart 35.00 and ebay only use free shipping items. That is my honest feedback, I use Mozilla for shopping, this November I tried Chrome for E vitamins, to see if I would get credit. What I will do is when I have to get my creams and the only place that sells them is E Vitamins, I will do the same thing I always do and see if it credits there.I can then say for sure.

Walmart, E Bay
Credit: Credit $.26

Credit: Credit:
$0.47 $0.70
credited credited

JTOWNER

Quote:

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Originally Posted by jtowner

The only coupon I used at E Vitamins was the one that was offered when I get there, free shipping with 100 purchase, only one used ever. I do not think I have to put the code in the orders, just gave me free shipping. I did get credit for them its with Capital one, my credit card, maybe that is why, not sue, but it is working. I been shopping for years on SR, liked I said the problem started last November, with other beside E vitamins not crediting. I do not use coupons, the only thing I want is free shipping, and it free with Sams I am free shipping with my membership, Walmart 35.00 and ebay only use free shipping items. That is my honest feedback, I use Mozilla for shopping, this November I tried Chrome for E vitamins, to see if I would get credit. What I will do is when I have to get my creams and the only place that sells them is E Vitamins, I will do the same thing I always do and see if it credits there.I can then say for sure.

Walmart, E Bay
Credit: Credit $.26

Credit: Credit:
$0.47 $0.70
credited credited

JTOWNER

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It's REALLY unfair but sometimes a merchant will actually put a coupon on their website and then if the consumer uses it, they don't give us credit. Which is completely ripping off the affiliates because of course the consumer is going to use a coupon that is right on their website. I would. Not all of the merchants are "Affiliate friendly." They want our traffic but they will use any excuse they can not to pay for it ("returning" customers, coupon use, etc).

Credit card company programs are often different because they don't use affiliate programs. They have completely different relationships that are more related to the credit card company being able to verify that a credit card was used at a certain store rather than going through the same system that cash back sites use.

I think I understand it, but that is not right or fair. I spent a lot of money during those times, all Gifts and what I wanted myself. I though I would get cash back and save that extra money. I got angry, and very frustrated with it, kept getting capital one notices, I could save money, and I finally decided to try it. It does work, I was convinced it was me, I am doing nothing different, while shopping. Only going after free shipping, not shopping online without it being free. It was not easy to want to try something new, just got angry enough to do that.

Jtowner