Easy to join, money for nothing (Boots Advantage Card)

Member Name: BeautyGeek

Product:	Boots Advantage Card
Date:	24/03/09 (70 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Generous scheme, easy to build up points quickly

Disadvantages: None

I've never really been one for collection points. I've certainly got all the cards (Clubcard, Nectar etc) but I never manage to remember to get the cards out and produce them at the correct time. However, I am very different with my Boots card, mainly because you reap rewards so quickly for doing something that you would be doing anyway.

You get 4 points for every £1 you spend in store. This works out at 4p for every £1. This probably doesn't sound like a lot, but in comparison to many other similar schemes this is actually very generous. I do a lot of shopping at Boots, just check out my other reviews to see how much I spend on cosmetics, so this scheme is of huge benefit to me.

The thing I love about Boots is that, even though it's mainly a cosmetics store and pharmacy, they do stock quite a bit else, like food and phone credit. I do my best to buy all my phone credit here as I get points for it.

You can use your card to buy anything in store (assuming you have enough on your card to cover it) and building up points is very quick and easy for someone like me who shops regularly for vanity items. Being a cardholder also entitles you to a free copy of their magazine which I really enjoy reading. Yes it's a tad pushy with the sales tactics (look what you can buy with your Boots points once you've collected enough!!) but it's also a good read full of useful hints, tips and ideas.

There aren't really any negatives to having a card like this as it doesn't cost you anything and involves minimal effort (you swipe it at the till when you pay for your items) but I would say that it probably influences me a little in regards to where I shop i.e. if I'm about to buy something, I'll check if Boots have it first because I want the points. The other minor downside is that you can't pay with points in part. Meaning that you can only pay for something with your points card if you have enough to cover the whole price. You can't pay part cash, part points.

In larger Boots stores there are also kiosks where you can find money off vouchers and information on relevant in-store promotions. You do this by inserting your card, much like an ATM, and you can update details and check what's on offer.

So in summary I'd say that this is a really good card with an encouraging scheme that's definitely worth having in your wallet.

Summary: Great card with lots of benefits