How did I spend the $25 e-GiftCard that Target surprisingly gave me? Well, since I did not have any planned purchases to make at Target – I wanted to use it on a gift for my kids. Here’s my purchasing process that I used in order to maximize that free $25 and even get a little cash back! I thought it would be useful to share this with you so that you can learn how to maximize any gift cards you receive.
1. Sign-in to Ebates because today I earn 7% cash back from Target.com (normally 4%)
2. Click on Target.com from Ebates so that my purchase can be tracked and I earn cash back
3. Browse the toys with free shipping here. I have to pick an item with free shipping so that I can avoid spending any money out-of-pocket for this purchase. I wanted to browse the toys with free shipping and see what I could find for my two boys (3 1/2 and 2 years old). I was also on the lookout for anything that was on sale for an even better deal.
I found the perfect gift for my boys!
LeapFrog Word Launch – $22.49 and free shipping (temporary price cut, normally $29.99). I thought this would be the perfect learning gift to accompany the LeapFrog Word Whammer that I’m giving my 3 year old. We love LeapFrog toys and this would be a great game to get. It will be our first game that hooks up to the TV, so it will be an experiment to find out how it works and if we like that type of game.
4. Place my order. My total came to $24.35 (includes sales tax) and I used my $25 e-GiftCard. Good thing I picked an item with free shipping (would have cost $6.91). So, I’ve got 65 cents left on my e-GiftCard that I could use on my next purchase. And I’ll be getting 7% of my $22.49 purchase back (that’s $1.57). The cash back doesn’t seem like much, but it all adds up.
In summary, I maximized my $25 gift card at Target.com by doing the following:
* Shopping thru Ebates
* Only looking at items with free shipping
* Looking for sale items that also get free shipping
* Selecting an item that cost less than $25 so my gift card also covers the sales tax
I think I did pretty good getting this $29.99 toy for FREE and $1.57 cash back. I hope you enjoyed this example of how I’m making maximizing my own deals for my online shopping and I hope you picked up a tip or two to use for your next online purchase.
I file all offers that require a purchase under rebates.
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One Frugal Lady – Yes, I actually already took advantage of the current “spend $10 get $10 back” to purchase my free Victoria’s Secret sweater. Isn’t Ebates great! I’m having fun creating some extra special deals for myself like this one with Target.-HeatherFreebies 4 Mom
Sweet! Did you know that when you spend $10 this month with ebates, you get $10 back as well?! Pretty cool, so you actually are getting back $11.57 for your free toy! Great job!
Thanks for the link to Ebates. I only wish I’d read your blog BEFORE I did my online shopping earlier today! I did sign up now through your referral, and will definitely be making future purchases through here!I appreciate all the work you put into the site.
GREAT story! I get so much pleasure out of doing the same kind of deal-seeking. And you are certainly an inspiration! Thanks!
Great transaction!