Manufacturers want you to try their products so they entice you with rebates, refunds and special promotions. These are offers that will get your money back in the form of a check, give you coupons for free items, coupons for amounts off, or send other free items through the mail.
How to score
Be on the lookout in the stores. You will come across various forms that can be sent in for rebates of all kinds! They might be on Tearpads, Peelies, Hangtas or Specially Marked Packages. They can also be found on the products themselves, on the displays, or at the customer service desk. Some stores are better at putting these out than others. You might read about a rebate on the boards. Go to that store mentioned and ask for it if you don't see it around. I do this frequently. MANY times I'd know nothing about certain available rebates if I didn't stay current on the money saving boards.
Be on the lookout in the stores. You will come across various forms that can be sent in for rebates of all kinds! They might be on Tearpads, Peelies, Hangtas or Specially Marked Packages. They can also be found on the products themselves, on the displays, or at the customer service desk. Some stores are better at putting these out than others. You might read about a rebate on the boards. Go to that store mentioned and ask for it if you don't see it around. I do this frequently. MANY times I'd know nothing about certain available rebates if I didn't stay current on the money saving boards.
Sometimes you can find Online Printable Forms: These can be found on company websites.You may see television commercials or magazine ads directing you to the site.
Inserts in Sundays paper are another place to find rebates.
Magazines: Forms may also be found here.
“No Form Required” Offers: These are great although I have yet to find one myself.
Proofs of Purchase
Proofs of Purchase are also known as “qualifiers”, since they are what you need to qualify for the money back. There are a variety of things that can be required as a proof of purchase for your rebates.
The most common POP is the UPC symbol from the package. UPC stands for Universal Product Code, and is the bar code that is scanned by the cashier when you check out.
Other possible POPs are: box tops, weight circles, special POP seals, foil caps or even plastic caps. This is not an inclusive list, but gives you an idea of what they might ask for.
Rebate forms are very specific as to what is required. Be sure to send what they ask for, or your rebate will be denied.
How long does it take?
Rebates and special promos are not for those who need instant gratification. The forms usually state how long it will be before you can expect your rebate. It can be anywhere from 2-12 weeks.
You need to be organized!
Organization is the key to making sure that you get the rebates that you send for.
Additional advise from HCW:
"Before You Mail the Rebate
- Make sure it’s good in your area— you are out your time, effort and a stamp if you submit a rebate that is only good in a particular region!
- If it says one per household, sending in one for each person in your house will not get you multiple rebates.
- Is the form filled out properly? Read the fine print. Send everything that you need to send.
- Make sure that you are not using an address label to fill in the information if it must be handwritten.
- Are the POPs correct and accounted for? (You can tape UPCs to a larger piece of paper so that they don’t get lost.)
- Is the CRT within the purchase dates, an original (if required), and are the appropriate items circled, underlined or highlighted as required?
- Have you made a copy or scanned all of the required items before you seal the envelope? If your rebate is denied or never arrives, you will have proof that you completed the requirements.
- Did you seal the envelope and put on a stamp?
After the Rebate is Mailed
- Where's my rebate?- Addresses and phone numbers for rebate clearing houses and individual companies.
- Rebate Tracking-Free software to help you keep track of the “who, what, where and when” of your rebates. This
Other Helpful Tips for Rebates
- Envelopes: Make sure that you are using the correct size envelope for the rebate. Some of them actually DO specify what size to use, i.e. business sized, etc. Buy in bulk to save money, or use them as fillers to get to the amount needed for $/$ coupons.
- Address labels: You can save yourself a lot of time by getting address labels for your envelopes. The HCW freebie forum has a sticky for places that you can get free address labels.
- The Dreaded “No!”: Your rebates will be refused occasionally. Don’t worry about it. You will get better at submitting them!"
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