- "I don't have to wade through expired listings or broken links, which is often the case with other sites" (Belinda - Burnie, TAS)
- "Easily the most convienient way of finding out about competitions!" (Grant - Newtown, NSW)
- "I have a fetish for competitions so this site is like a one-stop-shop for me" (Deb - Darwin, NT)
- "The only tiny thing I dislike is the fact I've still not won anything" (Kristy - Hinchinbrook, NSW)
- "New site is much easier to work through and appealing to view." (Cynthia - Yarrum, VIC)
- "I love how clearly everything is set out, I love that it's free and that there is a wide range of comps and prizes" (Kym - Bundaberg, QLD)
- "Shoppers Bonus is good, your new site is better and to win this prize is the best!" (Mathew - Kilsyth South, VIC)
- "The range is terrific and synopsis of each competition accurate and informative" (Odette - Yallourn North, VIC)
- "Didn't realize how many competitions are available and how easy they are to enter" (Lisa - Northam, WA)
- "Yay! Thankyou so much! I really didn't think i'd ever win anything. Great website!" (Bernice - White Gum Valley, WA)
- "So happy to have won this prize" (Merryl - Bilambil Heights, NSW)
- "I would like to congratulate you on your new site.Its so much better than the other one plus alot more comps to enter. Good on you shoppers bonus" (Ros - Mole Creek, TAS)
- "Thank you so much, we have received the pizza oven ....... we love it, we love it, we love it!!!!!" (Peta - Denistone West, NSW)
- "Thankyou for the awesome prize!!" (Rach - Wynyard, TAS)
- "Thank you so much for this wonderful prize" (Dianna - Dubbo, NSW)
- "Oh wow! That's fantastic. Thank you for the opportunity to enter" (Jude - Kalamunda, WA)
- "The opportunity to find competitions listed in a clear, concise and most importantly, free forum." (Chris - Ocean Grove, VIC)
- "wooohoooo, I am soooooooo stoked, thanks once again for selecting me as the winner of this very coveted prize" (Caroline - Albany, WA)
- "I can't believe you find the amount of competitions that you do. It is truly amazing" (Naomi - Rydalmere, NSW)
- "I am a competition-a-holic so I love having lots of competitions on one site...it's fantastic!" (Kate, Gray, NT)
- "It’s so time consuming to find competitions on a search engine. That’s why I love this site, the searching is done for you" (Teresa - Wodonga, VIC)
- "I love the way they have ALWAYS got something new for you to see and do" (Deb, Mt Bossley, NSW)
- ""Wow thankyou Shopper Bonus, this site is the best so keep up the great work !" (Katie - Lismore, NSW)
- "Thanks again for the competition email alert. Makes things so easy!" (Vicki - North Brighton, SA)
- "The array of competitions on offer is astoundingly good and varied!" (Maneesha - Carlton, VIC)
- "The great competition listings....and that's not the best part....all this with FREE membership!!!!" (Agnes - Kelvin Grove, QLD)
- "All competitions in one place and the reminders of when competitions begin and close" (Lyndall - Panania, NSW)
- "i love this site i have already won 12mths subscription to super foods" (Ursula - Fairfield Heights, NT)
- "I am just dying to get hold of Craig's book" (Briony - Atwell, WA)
- "being able to find ONE place and many competitions to enter is WONDERFUL!" (Cathy - Bondi Junction, NSW)
- "Take it from me, real people do win. Thanks Shoppers Bonus." (Melanie - Perth, WA)
- "Thankyou so much it was such a suprise to hear that i had won...this is the first time i have won anything before" (Cecilia - Cheltenham, VIC)
- "The best website I know, and my homepage of course!" (Elizabeth - Mordialloc, VIC)
- "Fantastic news, I'm going to be smiling all day if not for weeks to come....." (Rick - Fairfield Heights, NSW)
- "Shoppers Bonus save its' members the time needed to find competitions" (Chery, Largs Bay, SA)
- "Thank you so much for selecting me as the prize winner, keep up the fantastic work you do on the web site, I love it" (Jan - Dudley Park, SA)
- "One place to find comps without having to look all over the place" (Marie - Kulpi, QLD)
- "Thanks so much for your email regarding my win - You have made my day!!! - Now I can't wait for the footstool to arrive :)" (Sheree - Harvey, WA)
- "Seems a little more serious and down-to-earth than other sites I have visited" (Val - Seaview Downs, SA)
- "I just won a tote bag!!! I think this site is great!!!!" (Jo - Rawarth, NSW)
- "It's a fun way to keep up to date with all the current comps and other info available on the web" (Lyn - Kedron, QLD)
- "Keep up the great work! I love your site! Its very addictive =)" (Kimberley - St Clair, NSW)
- "Shoppers Bonus is fantastic, it has all the competitions the others don't." (Deborah - Woolgoolga, NSW)
- "just the fun of it all takes you out of the daily grind" (Anne - Victoria Point, QLD)
- "....you've made my weekend! The words 'Jenni' and 'winner' are not ones I often hear in the same sentence" (Jenni - Tahmoor, NSW)
- "I love that we have actually won a prize on your site" (Danielle, Langwarrin, VIC)
- "Thank you! That's great, I'm thrilled!" (Kez - Clayfield, QLD)
- "I love the range of offers and the pure volume of them, well done." (Kylie - Breakwater, VIC)
- "Love your website - I've already won a competition (with JobX) and I've only been a member for a couple of months. Thanks for making my days fun." (Kellie - Berowra, NSW)
- "You have made entering competition very easy" (Danielle - Beacon, WA)
- "Great site, best one I have found for competitions and always up to date. Congratulations!" (Marie - Browns Plains, QLD)
- "For a beginner like me, Shoppers Bonus is easy to understand and follow" (Amanda - Young, NSW)
- "Hi! Great news! Thank you so much. Looking forward to my prize" (Jenni - Cronulla, NSW)
- "Wish I had more time to come on the site more often" (Louise - Prospect, SA)
- "there is nothing more exciting than getting an email thats says CONGRATULATIONS! and shoppers bonus is the place to make it happen!" (Tanya - Blackwater, QLD)
- "I love entering competitions and I love the easy to follow format of your website" (Jacquie - Deniliquin, NSW)
- "Someone else has done all the hard work chasing up the competitions" (Mary - Toowoomba, QLD)
- "ShoppersBonus.com.au is the best competition site ... and I do a lot of competitions!!!!" (Deirdre - Seacombe, SA)
- "I LOVE shoppers bonus... loads of competitions to enter, totally free, and people do actually win ;-)" (Lisa - Quirindi, NSW)
- "All the work you guys put into this site is awesome and keeps me entertained daily, thankyou" (Jenean - Carrum Downs, VIC)
Blog
Damn emails!
Let's get a touchy subject out of the way, because I think it needs to be raised. As our members will know, most online competitions that you supply your email addresses to will in some way contact you by email (which is why most competitions are run).
Shoppers Bonus sends emails, 3 a week in fact, one of which is a newsletter, and the other two are usually new or reminder competitions. We reckon for a free service, it's not a bad trade-off (considering you can get 6 or more ads in the one TV break).
Many members will have a "side-bar" email address, or one that they create and then rarely go to. We'd of course prefer that Shoppers Bonus emails aren't on this list, but at the end of the day that's your call.
Where this becomes a problem is when these side-bar email addresses are never visited. Why the problem? Because many competitions will only notify winners by any other means than email. You may have won a prize and you won't know. And if part of the terms and conditions specify that you must respond to that email, the prize will be forfeited, you won't win and you won't even know.
My suggestion is this. If you do use a side-bar email address, visit it at least once a week and clear it out. If you are receiving countless emails from a service you don't want, then unsubscribe, however be careful that this doesn't automatically delete your entry (if you unsubscribe from Shoppers Bonus for example, you can't win an exclusive competition prize). Look carefully for any emails that may be unusual.
I'd be very surprised if at least one of our members doesn't find something interesting in their email addresses after reading this.
Craig Seitam
15/8/08
Win competitions! (it happens)
We get a lot of enquiries, lost passwords, change of username etc., but there's no better messages than ones like this:
Our member, Sharyn writes ....... "I have only been a member of your site for a few weeks and have entered a handful of competitions. Imagine my surprise yesterday to recieve a call from the organisers of
the NEWS.com.au win a trip to LA competition to tell me that I am the winner of the grand prize. If I can win then it's possible for anyone. Thank you Shoppers Bonus"
Congratulations Sharyn, and to anyone else that WINs a prize that they find on Shoppers Bonus.
Talk soon,
Craig Seitam
8/8/08
Tread carefully!
Every so often I post a mild warning to our members about taking part in SMS based phone competitions. Shoppers Bonus (unlike other competition sites I might add) does not feature these directly. However a number of rewards sites that we do feature may have secondary competitions in which SMS is used to gain extra reward points or cash.
Think of competitions in the same way as you would a finance company offering interest free terms. You can still take the benefits without falling into the trap. You can easily enter a competition from a rewards site, but think carefully about other offers that give you the chance to boost your entries.
By all means, if you want to take part in an offer, then go for it. However, as I always state, keep an eye on the terms and conditions. If you can't find them or read them .... don't enter the comp.
Talk soon,
Craig Seitam
7/8/08
Feedback on your feedback
I really want to thank those of you that have provided feedback either through our contact page, or in the optional comments area of our exclusive competitions. This information is very valuable to us, and if you take a look at the changes that have been made this year alone most of these have come as a result of member contributions.
Comments we receive are mixed, and as much as we like to hear the positives, it's the constructive criticism that is the most valuable. It's funny, when our comps first started to ask for optional feedback I got the feeling that our members were slightly hesitant .. first feeling that they should write something but this should be great .... otherwise they wouldn't win a prize. Most of our competitions are draws, so comments positive or negative don't make a difference to the outcome, and I don't mind telling you that one of the winners of our previous Winemaker's Choice comp had some very definite opinions of what Shoppers Bonus was not doing well.
That aside, what happens to your suggestions? Some will be taken on board where possible, and those we can't will be gradually added to the FAQ page.
But the message here is .... keep your comments coming!
Take care,
Craig Seitam
4/8/08
Buy the way
As our members would be more than aware, Shoppers Bonus concentrates on web competitions that are generally FREE to enter. We will occassionally list a "PTE" (purchase to enter) comp however these are in the minority.
Our last poll was to find out the percentage of members who still actively take part in PTE's and the results were very strong, with 78% of you still attracting your interest. This wasn't a surprise to me as this is the main area that I create competitions within, but to many of you that become used to the quick and simple entry process online my advice is to keep your eye out at any time you're shopping.
PTE's generally offer higher overall prize pools, and shouldn't be ignored. My advice to promoters these days is to continue with these competitions, but always keep online entry as a consideration. Where it was once thought that an entrant can place hundreds of entries unsupported and unchallenged, there's a number of tricks to keep these fair. And the fairer a competition is, the more it will be genuinely supported.
So, always look for the hanging entry pad when you're out and about. You could be pleasantly surprised.
Craig Seitam
28/7/08
Remember to remember!
Website owners get a lot of statistics as you'd imagine. More than we'd ever need, although sometimes there's an interesting stand-out that is worth taking note of.
Shoppers Bonus sends on average 3 emails per week comprising of one newsletter and two "spotlights" which may contain newly added comps, or those that we want to remind our members of. These days make up our biggest visit days of any week.
One thing that has struck me recently is that 40% of our members don't use the "remember my details" function available on log-in. This means every time you visit, you need to go through the log-in process.
The reason people don't use this function is normally either they don't know it's available, or there's a concern over security. For a lot of websites I could understand this, particularly if there was access to email by other people using the computer.
With Shoppers Bonus however there's no real security threat. We don't display anything of a personal nature, in fact the worst thing anybody could do would be enter a competition on your behalf .... and if you won you'd still get the prize!
So, if you haven't previously used the function give it a try. It may only save you a few seconds, but we want to make the enjoyment of Shoppers Bonus as easy as we can for our members.
Craig Seitam
21/7/08
The right number?
Our last poll asked how many competitions on average are entered weekly by our members. Shoppers Bonus adds 10 new comps per week, and this averages out at between 40 and 50 comps on the site at any given time. Finding the right number is important as you'd imagine!
Ten seems to be the magic number, as although some of our members visit every day (as we update daily) to win competitions, most will check in 2-3 times a week and enter 1-2 comps at a time. In fact, from our poll only 28% of members report to enter "almost all" of the competitions listed. 48% of you enter between 2 and 5 competitions. Only 4% enter only 1 comp a week.
From this result, I'm satisfied that the number of competitions that we list is just about right. Yes, there's (pay for use) competition sites that offer way more than this, however wading through the hundreds of tiny prize pool raffles or that are entry form and not online is frustrating.
As I've mentioned several times before, we want to keep competitions as a hobby, not an extreme sport!
7/7/08
Competitions - The Book
As you'll notice above right, production of "Competitions - The Book" is in its final stages, and will be available to purchase in the next 8 weeks or so.
It's interesting that once or twice a year a book is launched on the subject, and today on morning television a new competitions book was being spruiked. Curiosity got the better of me, and I bought a copy on the weekend.
I'm not going to give my opposition a serve, so I will tell you that it's well written and covers the basics from the perspective of people wanting to dedicate their entire lives to entering competitions. There's even a weekly plan that tells you how to spend each morning and afternoon of each and every weekday.
Competitions - The Book takes a different approach, and being an industry insider (not someone that enters competitions) there's a big difference between what you think happens and what I know happens.
I don't see competitions as an extreme sport, I see them as a fun hobby. In the same way that Shoppers Bonus is selective in the amount of comps listed, Competitions - The Book gives you tips on how to maximise your odds not by entering hundreds of times a week, but by knowing which ones will give you the best chance of winning.
And WOL comps? All I can say is forget everything you've been told so far. I'll let you in on winning from the judges' point of view.
I'm really looking forward to the launch of Competitions - The Book, and will update you as we get closer to the date!
30/6/08
Kiwi comps?
In the past couple of weeks I've had a number of requests from New Zealanders wanting to know if they can enter competitions featured on Shoppers Bonus. The simple answer to this is no, as the majority of comps listed are for Australian products
But I do have good news. In July Shoppers Bonus will also be adding an NZ-only page of competitions & offers. This will be a slow start, and subject to interest however there's no reason why this shouldn't be successful. But when this opens, please tell your friends as we need to get lots of visits to make it worthwhile!
Unfortunately this most likely won't extend to most of our exclusive competitions unless our sponsors ship into your country, but we'll wait and see on that one. Check the terms and conditions to see if you're included.
Either way, you've asked and we're happy to deliver!
Strangely enough I've also had two emails from Canada .... sorry guys .......
27/6/08
Case closed!
Our last poll answered a curious question for me in exactly what view Shoppers Bonus members prefered. By this I don't mean that you would prefer to have a view from Sydney Harbour ..... (although)
Anyway, as you'd know Shoppers Bonus has three views to choose from. Our default is "date added", plus you can also choose from "date closing" or "size of prize pool".
The results were split 43/41 in favour of our current default of date added. This show's me that there's two absolute types of comp entrants, those that enter as soon as a competition comes to their notice, and those that wait until the last day.
I may have mentioned before that the last day of the month is always the busiest traffic day on this site, simply because a lot of promoter choose to end their comps at the month close.
But given this, I'm happy to leave things as they are. Entrants seeking close dates can do so with the click of a mouse, and early entrants don't have to fish through the entire catalogue to find new comps!
25/6/08
Your mobile number
This year has seen a disturbing increase in the amount of SMS-based competitions that require simply your mobile phone number and confirmation to enter. Shoppers Bonus doesn't list these competition types, but they are out there and it's best to keep our members informed.
The prizes are generally of good quality, and entry is fast and simple which is why they can be seen as attractive. Only problem is that there's a catch in that the entrant is immediately part of a ringtone or wallpaper club that can cost up to $10 a week. It's reasonably simple to cancel the service, but before you know it you're 1-2 weeks into payments to a service that you've never wanted.
A couple of points arise out of this. The first is to slow down when entering comps. If you're asked for your mobile number, and there's no purchase required be very suspicious. If the service is simply SMS marketing based (they send you offers via your mobile) that's okay, at least you can make the choice, but check the terms and conditions first.
Shoppers Bonus has no issues with competitions for products or services that will want to market to you, but when it costs you for the privilege we do have a problem. So, in short, if you're asked for your mobile number read the terms and conditions very carefully. That extra few seconds can save you money!
18/6/08
That's Life
I was tipped off this morning that a reader of "That's Life" Magazine had mentioned Shoppers Bonus. Sounded great to me, I figured it may have been a small note in a reader's letter somewhere ..... not exactly.
On page 16 of this week's issue in a section entitled "Websites we love", there's a picture of Leica from QLD who writes "My favourite website is www.shoppersbonus.com.au, which features some great competitions for dedicated compers like me. Best of all, it's free. I can spend hours on there at a time!"
This was the only website mentioned in this section, so you can only imagine how thrilled I was for Shoppers Bonus to be publicly nominated as a favourite website.
Thanks Lecia, your comments are truly appreciated!
11/6/08
Tell-A-Friend
You know those optional questions at the end of our exclusive online entry forms, that ask you for your opinion on Shoppers Bonus or the competition itself?
Well, believe it or not we read every single one of them, and many changes you see are the result of your suggestions.
One latest change is the area of tell-a-friend referrals in our exclusive comps. This is a highly used communication tool for websites. People who join on a friend's recommendation have a much better chance of taking notice and sticking around.
Up until now, like most competitions, we have offered additional entries for every successful referral. Note that when I say successful I mean people that have joined as a result of tell-a-friend (we still have the odd person that will write ten dodgy emails on every entry ... and they all bounce back to us!).
Where the concern is that those who don't have the same level of people in their network feel left out, as they only have the possibility of one entry. Fair point, however we don't want to lose tell-a-friend either.
You'll notice that in our latest Bergner cookware competition, instead of the standard tell-a-friend we've installed a bonus draw of a bottle of Burberry London perfume. The purpose of this is now to keep separate the major draw from tell-a-friend, meaning that all members have an equal chance for the bigger prizes.
But please keep using the option. More members equal more sponsors which means more exclusive competitions and better prizes!
Keep adding your comments wherever you can. We do listen!
5/6/08
Cracked the million!
ShoppersBonus.com.au achieved a milestone of sorts in the last week, something that won't mean a great deal to the world but is a great indication of how the website is being perceived by the public.
Shoppers Bonus is now in the top one million world websites as reported by Alexa.com traffic rankings, a statistical service that's available to the public. In fact as at last week we are 841,000 compared to 2,800,000 for the same time last year.
This may seem quite insignificant, however considering the millions of websites in operation around the world getting in the top million isn't easy. And the indications are that we're continuing to grow, which is something I'm extremely proud of.
Naturally, I like to keep tabs on our competitors, and interesting to note that our chief competitor (a paid site that I won't name) has slipped considerably over the past months. Believe it or not I don't say this with any degree of bragging as I believe there's a legitimate place for sites that show each and every competition available.
I will say however that the decision to become more selective with the competitions featured has produced results. Our members have a lot of choice, and it's up to Shoppers Bonus to keep producing the goods.
Thanks for contributing to our great result!
28/5/08
Guess what, you shop!
The results of our last poll didn't surprise me, but may be positive news to critics that have suggested in the past that members of this site are only interested in the competitions, and not the brands that promote them.
When it comes to competition sites, Shoppers Bonus has always set itself apart by choosing quality over quantity, but more importantly most of our members have come through the exclusive competitions that we run with online shopping sites.
Our poll revealed that 68% of respondents had made a purchase in the past month, which is a great testimonial.
But even better are some of the testimonials that come through our optional comments in our online entry forms. From yesterday Judith from SA writes "By participating in these competitions I find I am being introduced to a whole new world of products which I would not have before. Thankyou."
And THAT is why we're here!
20/5/08
Pashmina revisited
We've had some great feedback on our current Pashmina competition, one entrant even stating "this is the most gorgeous pashmina I have ever seen", so we take it you like the prize.
However, we've also had some feedback suggesting some of the questions are too difficult and time consuming.
Fair enough, we want everyone to be happy so ......
We will now allow you to place more than one entry, BUT, you can still earn a maximum of four entries for this competition.
Some of the websites featured have changed and the questions are much easier.
To earn the maximum four entries, you need to get four individual questions correct. Double-ups won't count.
So, if you threw your hands in the air yesterday, come back and try again!
13/5/08
Time for closure
I was interested to see this week a small flow of mail-in entry forms coming through from a competition (created by me) that closed over a year ago. There's a couple of issues here for both the promoter and the entrant.
Online competitions are easy to remove at closing time, generally a flick of a button. Even if the link to the page is left up, the online entry form can be dislodged so technically there shouldn't be too much of an issue.
But with paper entry forms it's a different story. Getting them into stores is a relatively major logistical exercise, but there's never as much urgency in removing them. Last year Shoppers Bonus found that 3/4 of you had at some stage bought a product only to find that a competition had closed. So, it's fair to say that you may have made that purchase only to be disappointed.
When this happens, the entrant is miffed for obvious reasons, and the promoter ends up with a loss of goodwill. Ironic that the competition was put in place to generate good feelings (and a few sales along the way .... )
A few weeks maybe can be understood, but how entry pads can remain in a store for over a year without being noticed by either the promoter's reps or the store staff is beyond me.
To entrants I guess the answer is obvious. A quick check of an end date could save you some time and postage stamps.
8/5/08
Simple addition
I've added a new function to Shoppers Bonus today, which I'm hoping you'll see more of.
One problem with competitions in which store (not web) purchase is required is the time difference between learning about the comp, buying the product and then coming back to Shoppers Bonus and entering. People forget, that's only natural.
Added is a simple "printable leaflet" that you can print out, and then have as a reminder for shop day. Stick it on your fridge, in your handbag or even your purse, but at least this will serve as a prompt for you.
Very simple concept, but I think it may just work ......
1/5/08
Your comp profile
Shoppers Bonus doesn't set any fixed amount of times for our polls, but at the time I think that a question has exhausted itself I put it to bed.
I must admit that I'm comforted by the results of our latest, which sought to find out exactly how involved our members are with competitions. I've never liked the term "compers" because to me this signifies that what is designed to be a method of promotion has gone beyond a hobby.
So, where do Shoppers Bonus members see themselves?
For a start, only 11% of you class yourselves as "extreme". That is that competitions are your only hobby.
16% of you class yourselves as "dabblers", meaning that you're pretty much on-again-off-again. That's okay, just when you decide to dabble come back here first!
27% of you think of yourselves as "pretty involved", but comps don't rule you.
And the largest, 46% are regular competition entrants ..... you participate when you get the chance.
This means that Shoppers Bonus is targeted just about where I want it to be. Enjoy the variety, have fun with it, and then if you WIN, it's an absolute bonus.
22/4/08
Zooper Dooper!
Anyone viewing Channel 9's ACA last night would have been confronted with Zoo Weekly's (men's mag) sensationalistic WIN a Divorce competition that's running right now.
Whenever these bizarre comps come up I often wonder which is more important, the customer or the publicity. Over the years we've seen competitions offering everything from plastic surgery to prostitution as prizes, and the media love it.
The reality of these types of competitions is this. Firstly, this is a men's magazines, and on the whole very few men enter any type of competition. Less than 15% of Shoppers Bonus members are males.
Secondly, I would be more than surprised if many of Zoo Weekly's readers that would normally enter competitions would want their name and personal details splashed all over the magazine and other media.
So, it's safe to say that the whole competition is a media stunt.
Even ACA admitted that by talking about the competition they were playing into the magazine's hands. Looking at the website I couldn't help but notice that it's run by ninemsn ..... who funnily enough also broadcast A Current Affair ..... Wow, what a scoop for ACA to get the story first!
Safe to say I don't think too many Shoppers Bonus members are going to be rushing this one, which is why you won't find it on our guide listing.
15/4/08
Why tell?
You'd have noticed for some time that tell-a-friend entry incentives appear on a large number of online competitions. Shoppers Bonus does this as well.
I've thrown in a survey question on our current Winemakers Choice competition (doing well by the way) asking if our members use the feature or not. The results are mostly split, but what's really interesting to see is some of the additional comments made.
To sum up the responses, it's generally argued that by telling friends an entrant is growing the pool of entrants and therefore lessening their chances.
Another concern is that the tell-a-friend feature can be seen as intrusive.
First things first, the reason that Shoppers Bonus runs exclusive comps is to offer something that few (if any) competition sites offer. But the big benefit is they attract members, and the more members, the more exclusive competitions.
We only allow one entry per competition with only a few exceptions, so if only one friend joins you double your entries. Mathematically you haven't doubled your chances of winning because there's one more entrant in the pool, but pretty close.
In terms of being intrusive, we send a very polite email inviting the friend to join, and if they're already a member the email automatically deletes.
If you're not using tell-a-friend it's your choice, but remember that winning chance competitions is all about improving your odds, and in this case there's no better way!
10/4/08
Ratings time ....
Hate to say it but I'm hooked on the Channel 9 show Moment Of Truth. Tacky, cheesy, I know all this stuff, but watching it I feel myself starting to squirm at the pressure placed on the contestants.
The truth is very powerful, that's why I was a little reluctant to ask our members how they would rate the new look Shoppers Bonus in the visitor poll that ended a couple of days ago.
What if you all hated it? After all that work done to make the changes, I don't even want to think about where we would have gone from there.
You may have guessed by my tone that we did well in the results, way better than I would expected.
Here's the results;
* 52% of you told us that you loved the changes
* 29% said the changes were pretty good
* 14% didn't like the changes at all, and
* 5% were unsure
Now, I would have loved 100% of our members to have voted us in the top category, but there's no way that you can please all of the people all of the time. And some of the feedback from people that originally voted us down because of a misunderstanding of the log-in system was glowing.
The big take out from this is an 81% approval rating (combining the top two responses) and I'm over the moon at this.
19% either don't like the changes or don't know if they like the changes ...... that's to be expected, but I still encourage anyone with a genuine complaint to write to me. You'll get a response either way even if nothing can be done.
And on the lighter side, no I'm not selling out to American coffee chains by wearing the T-shirt pictured on the homepage. Take a closer look and you'll see that it's a joke (hopefully I won't get sued for it having pointed that out)
Thanks for the support, everyone!
3/4/08
Log-jam
Since converting to the new look Shoppers Bonus we've received some feedback from existing members about not being able to log in.
Members have told us that they have logged in with their usernames and passwords, and nothing happens.
I first thought this was an issue with member's PCs remembering the old Shoppers Bonus and needing to clear temporary internet sites, however it's a lot simpler in most cases.
The old Shoppers Bonus contained both a feature page (homepage) and a member-only list of competitions. If a member logged in they were taken straight to the list.
Now the competition list no longer exists (in theory). What we have now is a lot better. Rather than the homepage features offering a simple click-through, there's more information, quick to get hold of, and images of the actual webpage of the competition.
If you log in you won't be taken anywhere but the homepage. Look in the top right hand corner and you should see your username clearly. To make things easier, you can have your details remembered, meaning that you won't need to log-in each time you visit.
But a word of caution. If you have a password remembering system other than the one that we offer, they won't get along. To get around this, don't click the remember details option.
Another concern is that the old Shoppers Bonus would let you know if you had visited a competition on the site before. Again, we do have this feature in the form of a little purple eye in the top left hand corner of each guide panel. BUT, you need to either click on the "enter here" button or click on the homepage button for the eye to appear. The back button won't do it.
I hope this clears up any confusion. But always keep us informed of any problems.
29/3/08
On whose terms?
After writing hundreds of sets of terms and conditions over the years, I can openly say that they are the most boring passages ever written, yet on the same hand for competition lovers they’re a must-read.
Those that have been with Shoppers Bonus for a while will notice that our new guide pages contain a full set of “t’s & c’s” (industry speak for the dull legal clauses). Why would we do this?
The reason is that a number of comps have crept in over the past year that are pushing the boundaries when it comes to charging entrants. The trick is to get you to enter your mobile phone number, and then in the next few seconds confirm that you have entered. You then get charged weekly for crazy ring tones, or services that you wouldn’t have signed up to had there not been a competition attached to them.
Shoppers Bonus (as far as I’m aware) is the only competition site that insists on a full set of t’s & c’s with every competition listed. There’s some cases in which we can’t copy the terms, but we will always at least tell you where you can find them.
A case in point, there’s a competition happening right now that I would say is 100% legitimate because I know the website, like them, and trust them. BUT, because for the first time they haven’t bothered to include their start date, end date, or basic rules we’re not going to list them. It annoys me that they would overlook such an important factor, but ……
No terms, no guide listing. Simple as that!
But even where t’s & c’s are available, if the competition is simply designed to get your money it won’t appear on Shoppers Bonus. Having said that, if you do find a competition that’s suspect at all, let us know by writing to us.
26/3/08
Have you won? (how do you know?)
I often have a poke around rival comp sites, it helps me know what they're up to and if we can improve here. One of the sites recommends that comp entrants put all of their info on a little used email address, the idea being that marketing emails (that result from entering competitions) will get diverted to this address. I have a better idea .......
Where the problem lies is in sites such as Shoppers Bonus that communicates pretty much only through email. This includes the announcement of our prize winners. If you have won a prize in a competition in which the winner is notified by email, how do you know that you've won something and haven't claimed it?
Half the issue is separating the emails that you do want from unsolicited spam. Shoppers Bonus is upfront, in that we tell you that you will receive around 4 emails from us a week, give or take. The only other email you'll receive is if there's an urgency, or if you've won a prize.
Here's my suggestion;
1. Create a hard to guess email address and use this to divert email that you should read
2. Keep an eye on this email address, especially for competition winner announcements and special offers
3. If you really don't want to receive emails from a particular site, unsubscribe from it
The last thing you want to do is open up a year old email to find out that you won a prize .........
23/3/08
Offers and links pages
Hope you're having a great Easter weekend!
Just letting you know that the problems on the links and offers pages have now been fixed.
Aside from this, I don't think there are many other bugs to fix (that I know of), but as always thanks to the members that let us know.
Craig
22/3/08
Opening blog ....
A big WELCOME to the all new look Shoppers Bonus!
This has been a long time coming, and has taken into account so many suggestions that have come our way over the last couple of years. In fact the comp at the end of 2007 provided most of the recommendations (and a selection of positive comments that you can see above)
So, what's changed? The first thing is that we have moved to become more of a guide than a simple direction. There's a lot more information for you to browse through if you wish before going through to the entry details. You can access the terms and conditions, and in most case even have a preview of what the competition page will look like.
We have removed the full list of over 100 competitions, to concentrate more on the detailed features. Why would we do this? Because history has shown our visitors rarely go past the first 30 competitions listed, and most of these have been available on the free sections.
You now have the ability to sort by either date placed (the default), prize value, or date closing.
Another change is that ShoppersBonus.com.au is now mostly members only. Still FREE as always, but you will need to log-in each time you visit. But, don't worry, because you can save your details. Logging in is as easy as a click. You can however visit areas such as our links and offers page without logging in.
Other than that, the principles are the same. We want to be first with the new competitions and will continue to strive to be the best source of info available to you.
We also hope you like the look and feel of the site. A lot of playing around with colour schemes, but the feedback has so far been very positive.
I'll be updating this new blog section whenever the need arises. There will be a number of topics discussed, so don't hesitate to send me a topic you'd like covered.
Now, it's over to you!
Craig
19/3/08