Hypermarket loyalty cards – Are they worth the hassle? From FREE MALAYSIA TODAY

Hypermarket loyalty cards – Are they worth the hassle?

May 20, 2014

http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/money/2014/05/20/hypermarket-loyalty-cards-are-they-worth-the-hassle/

Do we really need another card in our already cramped purses and wallets? If you’re aiming to save money in the long run and are loyal to a particular hypermarket, then yes!

FEATURE

By Balkish Rosly

As consumers, all of us must have at least one supermarket or hypermarket loyalty card tucked away and forgotten in our purses. Some cards are given for free, while some require a small fee. As always, the cashiers are forced to utter the same stale and monotonous sale pitch to each of their customers to promote these cards. Although you may have heard it a thousand times before, loyalty cards can actually help you save some money in the long run. But first, what is a loyalty card?

Hypermarket Loyalty Cards – What’s in it for you?

In Malaysia, supermarket and grocery stores are akin to wild mushrooms in the forest. Just take a little drive and you will undoubtedly stumble upon every homemaker’s wish on a Sunday – No, not George Clooney – but rather a giant concrete building filled with promises of fresh food and sundry!

In this country, the choices are plenty: There’s AEON Big (previously Carrefour), AEON (previously Jusco), MYDIN, Tesco, Giant, and many more. However, only the first four of these gargantuan hypermarkets offer loyalty cards to consumers.

A loyalty card gives the users points and other rewards each time they make a purchase. On the business side, a loyalty card is an incentive plan for consumers to stay at their chain as well as allow a retail business to gather more information about its customers.

On the flip side, do we really need another card in our already cramped purses and wallets? If you’re aiming to save money in the long run and are loyal to a particular hypermarket, then yes! There are quite a few perks of owning a hypermarket loyalty card, such as:

1. Reward points – These points are pretty easy to accumulate and can be exchange with cash vouchers or rebates.
2. Special member price for selected items – All hypermarket loyalty cards offer discounted price on selected goods for card members.
3. Additional discount of other merchants – Some loyalty cards also comes with other perks such as additional discounts at other food outlets and other merchants.

The Drawbacks

Every Yin has its Yang, and loyalty cards are no different. The major drawback of owning one of these plastic goods is the fee, but don’t sweat because it is pretty affordable for the masses at around RM12 per year per card. Then there’s your personal information; often times a loyalty card is used as an incentive plan which allows a retail business to gather information about its customers.

Generally, a loyalty card has a barcode or magnetic stripe that is scanned at the point of sale (POS). The card identifies the consumer and sends information about what he or she has bought to a database. As an exchange to giving away your purchase information for free, these stores reward you with points and discounts! Though let’s not give in to paranoia, the information will be used mainly to assist stocks and surveys.

4 hypermarket loyalty cards in Malaysia

AEON BiG

Card Name: AEON BiG member card
Card Fee: Free
Reward Points: RM1 = 1 AEON BiG Points / 50 AEON BiG Eco Points earned each time you use AEON BiG recycle bags only on every Saturday
Benefits:
1,000 AEON BiG Points = RM5 cash rebate
Monthly special member price promotion (example: Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 Lite for RM649, NP is RM699)
Validity Period: 1 year

Those who visit AEON BiG for their day-to-day supplies should consider taking up the AEON BiG member card. It is after all free, and the points you collected will help you save money in the long run! This is how the card works: Every 1,000 AEON BiG points collected Is equivalent to RM5.00 cash rebate value that’s redeemable in your next purchase. So for example;

Total current purchase of goods from AEON BiG store: RM100.00
AEON BiG points accumulated from previous purchases: 1000 points
(1000 AEON BiG points = RM5.00).

Total Payment: RM100 – RM5.00 = RM95.00

Aside from the lovely rebate, members also get to enjoy purchasing selected items at a lower price.

AEON

Card Name: AEON MEMBER card
Card Fee: RM12
Reward Points: RM1 = 1 AEON Point Points for Redemption: 1,000 AEON BiG Points = RM5 cash rebate
Benefits:
Specially priced items at AEON Store and Pasar Raya MaxValue
Special invite to AEON MEMBER Day
Birthday rewards
100 AEON Member points upon card renewal
Refer AEON MEMBER card to family members for instant 100 points
Discounts from a wide selection of merchants
Points can be exchange with AEON gift vouchers, food vouchers, Starbucks card, and many more
Free Pearl Magazine
Special Parking Rate – free 2 hours parking when you shop at selected AEON shopping centre

Points Validity Period: 1 year

AEON MEMBER card is priced at RM12, but it looks like this piece of plastic gives you quite a bang for your buck. The rewards are plenty, and you could use this card to get promotions from other merchants as well. On the flipside, the card doesn’t offer cash rebate like their partner AEON BiG. Instead, you could redeem your points with gifts like AEON cash vouchers, food vouchers, a Starbucks card, and other sorts of cash vouchers. Currently, AEON is offering two types of card fee – RM12 for a year membership and RM24 for 3 years’ worth of membership.

Tesco

Card Name: Tesco Clubcard
Card Fee: Free
Reward Points: RM2 = 1 Clubcard Point
Benefits:
Points will be converted into cash voucher (1 Clubcard Point = RM0.01)
Extra discounts with Product Coupons
Biz Clubcard available for small businesses
Dining or prepaid top-up at Tesco will earn you Clubcard Points as well
Points Validity Period: None

Tesco lovers, grab your free Tesco Clubcard for free and receive cash vouchers! Unfortunately, this loyalty card does not offer extensive offers quite like AEON, but you do receive points which will then be converted into cash vouchers. There is more than one way for patrons to collect their points:

You collect 1 Clubcard Point for every RM2 you spend in Tesco 1 Clubcard Point for every RM2 you spend in Medan Selera

2 Clubcard Point for every RM2 when you swipe your Clubcard and pay with your Tesco-RHB credit/debit card in any Tesco Stores.

2 Green Clubcard Points each time you re-use the Tesco Green Bags

1 Green Clubcard Point each time you re-use any bags

Another pleasant note about this specific loyalty card is that the points don’t expire, and only a minimum of 150 points are needed to convert the points into cash vouchers (but 150 Clubcard Point is equivalent to RM1.50, which is not that great!). Aside from converting points into cash vouchers, members are entitled to extra discounts at Tesco.
MYDIN

Card Name: Meriah Card
Card Fee: RM12 per year
Reward Points: RM1 = 1 Meriah Point
Benefits:
2,000 Meriah Points = RM10 MYDIN gift voucher
Points can also be exchanged for selected in-store redemption items
Meriah Mania Coupons that provides special discount on selected items
Meriah Silver Card available for wholesaler businesses at RM20.00 per card per year
Points Validity Period: one year

MYDIN is Malaysia’s very own hypermarket, and Malaysians and non-Malaysians alike flock there to grab affordable fresh food, clothes and just about everything under the sun. For regular MYDIN customers, there’s the Meriah loyalty card which gives you one point for every RM1 spent. After accumulating these points, card members can then exchange them with gift vouchers that will ease their pockets on the next grocery trip. At RM12 per year, this card is not nearly as impressive as AEON’s loyalty card that offers discounts at other merchants. But then again, MYDIN does offer additional discounts for members on top of their already discounted prices on selected items.

This was brought to you by Balkish Rosly from RinggitPlus.com. RinggitPlus compares credit cards, personal loans and home loans to help Malaysians get more for their money.