Experiment results exceed expectations

As you may know from previous posts, I’ve been running a number of experiments to see how many deals can be stacked together when ordering from 1800Flowers.  The reason for my interest in doing this is that generous 1800Flowers promotions often make it possible to essentially buy miles at a very low rate even if you don’t want the flowers.

In the recent post “Increasing rewards beyond 50X” I listed current promotion codes along with a number of ways to stack deals with 1800Flowers.  I also mentioned a few ongoing experiments…

Shop Your Way Rewards

I didn’t think this would work, but it looks like I was wrong!  Sears’ Shop Your Way Rewards (SYWR) program offers SYWR points for shopping with 1800Flowers and paying with a linked credit card (MasterCard or Visa, only).  Currently, they are offering a staggering 40% back in rewards:

I linked a credit card (here), then clicked through a cash back portal (Shop At Home was offering 20% cash back at the time), then bought a $30 item and paid with the combination of a $20 Celebration Rewards coupon (previously called Fresh Rewards) and my SYWR linked credit card.  I also applied promo code RR22 to (hopefully) get 1000 Southwest Rapid Rewards points.

I don’t know yet if the Southwest points will post, but the rest of the deals have come through.  The portal cash back was based on the entire $30 order:

And, the SYWR points tracked too!  Not surprisingly, the SYWR points were based on the amount charged to the credit card:

No portal clawbacks… yet

In the distant past when I tried using a 1800Flowers promo code and shopping through a portal, I received points from the portal initially, but those points were later reversed out.  With several experiments in play starting in mid-November, this time the portal rewards appear to be sticking.

What this means

If neither the SYWR points nor the portal rewards get clawed back, then the following should be possible:

1. Link a credit card to SYWR (ShopYourWayRewards)
2. Click through a portal to 1800Flowers (often 20% cash back rewards are available)
3. Pick out items that qualify for the latest and best mile-earning promo codes (such as RR60 for 30 Southwest points per dollar, or AKA3 for 30 Alaska miles per dollar)
4. Make sure that you are a member of the 1800Flowers Celebration Rewards program which will give you 10% or more back in credit towards future 1800Flowers purchases whenever you collect 200 points.
5. Make sure you are enrolled in the 1800Flowers Passport program for free shipping.
6. Make sure to enter your favorite promo code upon checkout and pay with your SYWR linked credit card.

Here’s an example of the rewards you could get with an example $200 order:

• Promo code for 30 miles per dollar = 6000 miles
• Portal 20% cash back = $40
• 40% back in SYWR points = $80 in SYWR points
• Celebration Rewards = $20 Celebration Rewards Savings Pass

Let’s say you value miles at 1.5 cents each, SYWR points at .75 cents per point, and Celebration Rewards at 50 cents per dollar.  In that case, your rebate on a $200 order would be:

• 6000 miles = $90
• Portal 20% cash back = $40
• $80 in SYWR points = $60
• $20 Celebration Rewards Savings Pass = $10

Total Rebate Value: $200

Cool huh?  And, you could do even better for yourself and others by using these stacking techniques to donate food to charity (see “How to feed the hungry and fly for free”).

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