(Updated, 1/16/06)
On Friday, ParadePerks members still awaiting approval of Gold status (required for cashout) found that all rewards now required Platinum status. PP’s customer service responded quickly to user emails, attributing this to “a glitch in our inventory management system.” They apologized for the error and went on to say that due to “overwhelming response” to their Gold VIP survey, level upgrades were backlogged but our levels should be corrected “shortly.” They warned that prizes would go fast, but added, “rest assured that we are working diligently to add additional rewards at the Gold level and expect to have many up within the week.”
Over the weekend, Gold status was finally conferred upon at least SOME of ParadePerks’ members (myself included), and many of the points-only redemptions are now only available for points-plus-cash. (Yes, the iPod has been snatched up. Surprised? Me, either.)
This leaves ParadePerks with some challenges ahead. First of all, they’ve got to provide enough rewards for the remaining members to cash out for, or else they will drop the program. Second off, they need to adjust the cost in points of all future redemptions. The program can’t afford to give out 250,000 free points a day and then let people cash out 2 million points (8 days worth of earnings) for a $90 prize. Next, they will need to provide points-plus-cash prizes for those who have already taken their only allowable points-only prize, and at a substantial enough discount that it is worth their time to stay with the program and continue to accrue points. And last (that I see right now), they need to gear up for the many folks who will no doubt be approaching Platinum level soon.
Right now I’m torn between cashing out for one of the few remaining $50-ish prizes for points only, and hanging in there to see if they’ll offer anything more exciting in the higher point range in the near future. I’m sure that choice will be taken away from me during the day today as the last of the points-only prizes will be quickly claimed.
Congrats to those who were able to cash out!
{ 9 comments… read them below or add one }
since you can only cash out for one points-only prize ever, they must understand that most of us will cash out and leave… they are trying to delay that as long as possible. one person will get the ipod… a few will get a few other prizes… most will be unhappy.
I have had enough of them – I am giving up. Also, if we ever do get to cash out we will have to pay S&H which I suspect will be a rip off.
Looks like the Gold Rewards are back up! I got a nice e-mail from them after inquiring about it – it seems that had a glitch in their inventory system and all the gold rewards went offline. I noticed they also added new rewards today – kinda nice – a new 30gb video iPod as well.
Yes; but what happened to the items they’ve removed? They definitely were NOT claimed by anyone, since as far as I can tell no one has been upgraded to “Gold” level yet (let alone, “Platinum”.) So do they just leave the items on for a short while and then remove them — even if no one has reached the level to claim them? I must admit, I’m confused!
Oh! One additional comment. It doesn’t seem to me that people who make the maximum points each day are being “dishonest” while those who don’t are somehow more virtuous. After all, if ParadePerks knows about the so-called glitch and not only acknowledges it, but says their advertiser WANTS it that way (because it will sell more of their product), then how could it possibly be dishonest or wrong to use it in order to reach the maximum? It would be easy enough to stop: Just make the maximum vary each day, according to how many new questions have been posted to the site. I consider myself a moral and honest person, and resent the idea that I am somehow cheating if I choose to make the extra effort (and take the additional time!) to complete their survey multiple times. It’s not like we’re using a robot to automate the act — we’re still pushin’ those buttons and making the choices, one at a time!
Hey! No offense intended re: the retakable quiz. ParadePerks said in an email to a member, who forwarded it to me, that it was monitoring it for signs of “abuse.” This led me to believe that it was something that they did not intend people to retake, otherwise, how could it be abused? Some of us have been members of another rewards program (Memolink) that actually DELETED THE ACCOUNTS of the members who took advantage of a reclickable link that was an error on the program’s part. This is why there is a particular sensitivity to that sort of thing on other programs now.
I agree with you completely; if the quiz wasn’t intended to be taken an infinite number of times, some sort of limits should have been put in by the program.
They are so messed up. I only took the first 3 parts of the 6 parts needed to be gold… they made me gold level, and now have finally offered parts 4-6 of the gold level quiz. Of course now that I’m gold, there isn’t anything I want to cash out for.
Now they’ve lowered the daily points limit to 175,000 (from 250,000.)
Well, I got the Single cup coffee maker.
I don’t think the $9.75 paid for S&H was too much. I don’t like the coffee though. :
The award was shipped in my name, but without my condo unit number. FedEx (UPS?, can’t remember) called to get the full address.
Now, there saga continued.
The next week, I got ANOTHER coffee machine. This box was marked “refurbished” and address to “Paradeperks” at my address, instead of my name. Another box was received at thet same time also addressed to Paradeperks. In the other box there were 2 boxes of coffee and a packing slip indicating someone in a very distant state ordered the two boxes of coffee. Although the first coffee machine had a packing slip with my name on it, the second machine came with no packing slip.
The free prizes are gone. Everyone is waiting to pounce on the platinum prizes