Tesco are watching you! (Thankfully!) (Tesco Clubcard)

Member Name: shaneo632

Product:	Tesco Clubcard
Date:	25/06/09 (38 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Great reductions, very flexible...

Disadvantages: None, unless you're a paranoid conspiracy freak

At University, I lived very close to a Tesco and so always shopped there. I lived literally 30 seconds from a One Stop, but the extra trip to Tesco was worth it considering how much cheaper they are. I figured, when quizzed by a Tesco employee about whether I had a Clubcard, that I had nothing to lose in getting one - it's free, and the added bonuses and points can add up to quite a substantial amount rather quickly. What's more, periodically you'll recieve Tesco vouchers which offer money-off selected items.

More recently, with the boom of the online Clubcard system (tied in with their excellent online delivery service), they offer further offers to valued customers, such as allowing them to swap money-off vouchers for money-off at Tesco restaurants, and even activities such as cheaper tickets to Thorpe Park! Generally this is beneficial to the consumer, because exchanging the vouchers to another medium generally increases your saving in my experience.

The Clubcard system is quite cleer, in that certain items are flagged and promoted as offering more Clubcard points, and also, if you're environmentally conscious enough to re-use bags, you'll also gain a bonus that, though little, certainly adds up if you re-use them every time. Also, you can top-up your points further by joining their free services and clubs, such as the their Credit Card outlet, which offers bonuses for the money spent on the card while in Tesco.

The Clubcard is extremely easy to use, and I personally have mine attached to a key-ring. When at the self-service machines, it's as easy as scanning the card through the swipe machine and then it will automatically add the points on for you.

There are sure to be those paranoid about the sheer amount of information being handed over to Tesco in this transaction. Still, to the conscientious buyer, I see this not particularly as a problem. It lets Tesco know what kind of products you're buying regularly, but honestly, do you really care if they know how many onions you devour a week? All it does is help their marketing, and I think it's a rather clever system to that effect.

Summary: A superb service that offers many great deals