Endorse

Well this is going to be very disappointing for many of you, especially those of you waiting for an envelope.  Endorse has made the decision to suspend the current program until the relaunch of Endorse 2.0.  They were simply not able to keep up with meeting the needs of their current customers while simultaneously building and launching the new program.

They are honoring ALL purchased made through today 1/15/12 and will accept envelopes mailed in through 1/30/12.    I am so glad that I sat down this weekend and got my receipts in order, I’d highly suggest you do the same if you have receipts to send in.  It’s been an incredibly successful program thus far, the simple fact is that they didn’t have a clue just how popular the service would be.  I know we’ve received hundreds of dollars just for endorsing and POPing our purchases.  It’s worth the wait.

Here is the email that was sent out today…

[click to continue…]

{ 43 comments }

The changes are rolling out and it’s looking good!  The first thing I noticed is that you no longer have to Endorse specific varieties of a particular brand, you can now Endorse the brand alone.  Secondly I noticed many more grocery stores are participating including Grocery Outlet, and they’re offering a whopping 10% cash back at Grocery Outlet – WOW!

Now remember Endorse is currently closed to new members while they get a hold of the crazy amount of success they saw during their soft launch.  They’ll be opening soon though.  For the rest of us who are current members, it’s business as usual.  So keep Endorsing and POPing!

{ 13 comments }

I’m sure most of you got the same email I got this afternoon, and while it’s a little sad for those of you who haven’t signed up yet, for the rest of us Endorse remains the same.  It also looks like they’ll be back in action and better than even in no time!  If you haven’t signed up, why not?!  Gah, I just love FREE money  I especially like how they’ve made it easier to endorse brands without having to endorse each and every variety.  Here are the details from the email in case you did’t’ get it…

Specifically, we are focused on making it much easier for you to discover and to endorse your favorite products, to get special rewards for staying loyal to your endorsements, to share offers with your friends, to access your endorsements while you are shopping in stores, and to get your rewards as fast as humanly possible with e-pop.

In order for us to focus on building the new product while continuing to provide a high-quality service to our current customers, we are going to go into a closed Beta period.  As a result, Endorse will not be available for new sign ups until we relaunch the site in early 2012.

What Does This Mean To You?

• If you are already using Endorse, you can continue to endorse, pop, get new mailers, and earn rewards as you have been.  If you have followers for your endorsements, those will continue as well.
• The one change for current users is that you will no longer be able to share Endorse and your specific endorsements with your friends to earn followers.  We’ve realized the current “5 and FREE” follower model is too difficult for you to earn rewards and so we are fixing it.
• If you have not yet joined Endorse and you come to our home page, you can enter your email address and we will notify you when we relaunch.

Thanks for all of your support the past 3 months since our launch.  The new service is going to be awesome and we are certain it will be a part of your shopping routine for years to come.

Our team wishes you and your families a happy and healthy New Year!

If you’re signed up for Endorse, we’d love to hear your thoughts so far…

{ 35 comments }

We’re getting our first check!  We were late in the game and let our receipts sit around for quite some time, from the time they received our envelope until our check was in the mail it was exactly one month.  That seems like a long time, but it’s quicker than most try me free rebate offers and it’s FREE money for things we were already planning to purchase.  I can’t complain about that!

The weekend is here and I know for many of  you that means it’s time to run errands, grocery shop, fill the gas tank, and so on.  Wouldn’t it be nice if you could earn up to 10% cash back on ALL of those things?  No club card or credit card needed – just Endorse!  I’ve talked extensively about Endorse, but if you’ve missed every single post until now you can read them all here.  Scroll all the way down to start at the beginning.  Shop and POP!

I know many of you have sent in your receipts already and many of you have also started receiving your checks in the mail.  How awesome is that?!  We’d love to hear your experiences this far!

We use the envelope budget system so we know exactly what we spend in each category already, but I never really paid attention to which stores I frequent most often.  In my case this month it was Safeway, Whole Foods, and Starbucks.

UPDATE: I’ve seen many requests for a place to share your Endorse links, we’ve been trying to figure out an easy way for this work but until we can please feel free to share your links in the comments section of the weekly “Don’t forget to POP if you SHOP!” posts.  This same post will be up every Friday.  I just ask that you choose ONLY  5 Endorse links and that you keep them all in one comment. The reason for this is that there are still a lot of questions coming in about Endorse and I don’t want TFF readers to have to wade through a bunch of links to get the pertinent info they need.

{ 297 comments }

The other day I shared with you about a family who POPed their Toyota Sienna purchase, they had heard about Endorse through TFF. Today Lisa shared their POP story, they are the proud owners of a NEW Honda Fit!  I have to say I was shocked that even ONE of the car purchases that was submitted to Endorse happened to be a TFF readers, now there’s TWO!  I think there were a total of 3 cars purchased while the 10% cash back offer existed and I just love the fact that our own TFF family of readers was able to benefit so greatly! Even though Endorse is no longer offering 10% cash back on brands like Toyota, many of us are still on board andPOPing with Endorse for the long run.

Lisa, Rob, and Robbie if you’re reading – congrats on your new car!  

Here is Lisa and Rob’s story…

I first heard about Endorse a little over a month ago through an awesome blog “The Frugal Find”. I immediately started endorsing stores that I frequently shop at and also individual items that I normally purchase or items I thought I might purchase. I started saving all of my receipts and suddenly I was hooked!

It is so much fun knowing that you are getting 10% back on all of the products you love! Sending them in to Endorse with the prepaid mailers couldn’t be any easier. Just come home from shopping and put your receipt in the envelope and when it’s full, drop it in the mailbox. I started thinking about Endorse when it came to all of my purchases and I started telling all of my friends about Endorse.

When our car died, we started looking for a new one and I immediately turned to Endorse. We were planning on buying the same car that we previously had, but that car wasn’t on Endorse. I decided that I would compare the Honda Fit, which was on Endorse, with the car that I was planning on buying. After the comparison, there was no question that we wanted the Honda Fit.

I never would have even considered that car as an option if it weren’t for Endorse.

Now that we have the Honda Fit we are sure we made the right decision. It is an awesome car. And we will be getting 10% of the purchase price back from Endorse!

Thank you Endorse for your amazing service.  We will continue to shop and POP!

Lisa, Rob and Robbie

Thanks The Frugal Pinoy and Endorse for sharing this story with me!

{ 10 comments }

I had my mouth wide open the entire time I read this!  It gives me chills to think about the fact that this family saved SO MUCH money because of generous company, Endorse and little ole’ post I wrote here over a month ago.  Mr. Frugal and I knew that at least 2 car purchases were POPed but we had no idea one of those families were TFF readers!  Even though Endorse is no longer offering 10% cash back on brands like Toyota, many of us are still on board andPOPing with Endorse for the long run.

Michelle and Dan, if you’re reading – congrats on your new car!  

Here is Michelle and Dan’s story…

We first heard about Endorse on the blog “The Frugal Find” about a month ago.  We were impressed by how many products and stores were on the list that we could endorse and get money back for our purchases – and “popping” our receipts in the envelopes couldn’t be easier.  We were very excited to see that a Toyota Sienna was on the list since we wanted to buy a new minivan, so we endorsed it right away.

My husband made a spreadsheet (his very favorite thing to do) to figure out the the cost of paying for, owning and maintaining a new minivan as compared to what our current minivan was costing us. It was pretty close, but the extra 10% back from Endorse on our purchase was the clincher and we bought our new van!

We have peace of mind since we don’t have to worry about it breaking down.  The kids are excited – our youngest child has been running around saying, “New car! New car!”  This past Saturday we went on a family bike ride – the bikes all fit in the van! (The back seats fold into the floor individually – very convenient.)  We plan to have this van for ten or fifteen years!

Endorse helps us to afford the brands my kids love like Goldfish Crackers, Kraft Mac’n’Cheese, Cheerios and RITZ Crackers, and I love that I’ll get 10% on Levi’s jeans. I get a “thrill of the hunt” kick out of getting good deals and 10% back on lots of different grocery items that we buy often- and it is much easier for me than cutting coupons.  Plus, my kids love McDonald’s so now we have an excuse to go a little more often (but not too often!)

Every dollar counts when you are raising three kids and there are so many different products we can endorse, the savings add up.

Thanks Endorse!

Michelle, Dan and kids

Thanks The Frugal Pinoy and Endorse for sharing this story with me!

{ 25 comments }

I’m with you, yesterday’s news was dissapointing.  However I’m glad we all were able to get the savings we did while it lasted, many of you recieved checks worth upwards of $100!  That’s $100 that you weren’t otherwise going to get last month.  With that said I believe this program still has quite a few benefits to it.   I welcome you to share your referral links in the comments section, I encourage you to click on each others links that’s the best way to earn the most cash back.

So while I will not likely shop at a specific store just for the 2% cash back, I WILL continue to endorse brands and earn 10% cash back on those items.  That’s free money for items I would already be purchasing.  Like I mentioned yesterday, it’s simple if you just make your shopping list then endorse the products before you head out.  I also see a great value (at least for now) in endorsing restaurants, 10% cash back is huge when it comes to eating out.

I should also note that I have no incentive for posting this, I’m not paid or otherwise compensated for sharing anything about Endorse.  Just like you, all I have to benefit is the % of cash back we earn.

[click to continue…]

{ 69 comments }

Ok everyone, I have some good news and some not so good news.  I’m sad to announce that it Endorse has lowered the cash back on your total purchase at an Endorsed store from 10% to 2%.  You can however still earn 10% cash back on specific products, what that means is you’re better off endorsing an actual product from here on out.  What I do is as I’m preparing my shopping list, I quickly go through and Endorse each item I plan to buy.  Makes it simple.  So I’m a bit bummed, but it’s still free money I suppose.

With that said, if you’re POPing with Endorse, you’ll be excited about this next bit of news!  Endorse has added several new stores to the program as well as a special Holiday promo.  The new Holiday promo is called 20 for 20, here are the details…

 Get 20% cash back on 20 Thanksgiving favorites. From dinner to dessert to leftover storage and clean up – we’ve got all the products you need to make your Thanksgiving holiday a success.

Rules are simple, you need to endorse, buy and POP at least 5 different products from below to earn 20% cash back. You may purchase a maximum of 5 of the same product, but you must POP at least 5 different products to qualify for 20% cash back. Please POP all qualifying Thanksgiving receipts in the same envelope. Your purchase must be made between November 10th and November 24th, and mailed to us by December 7th. Get 5 friends to endorse and POP any of the products you’ve also endorsed – and you’ll get yours for free. So spread the word, and share the love!

On top of this great promo Endorse has also added the following new stores…

Meijer
Publix
Winco
Albertsons
Fred Meyer
Fresh & Easy
and many others…

Share YOUR Endorsements!

Please feel free to share your links in the comments section below. I just ask that you choose ONLY 10 Endorse links and that you keep them all in one comment.  The reason for this is that there are still a lot of questions coming in about Endorse and I don’t want TFF readers to have to wade through a bunch of links to get the pertinent info they need.

I also just got an email with a list of brands/products that I had previously Endorsed that have now been removed from the program, I’m sure you’ll all be getting a similar email.  A portion of the email read…

Since we launched in August, we have worked hard to build Endorse into a service with a sustainable model that will be able to offer generous rewards for years to come. Over the past few months, we have learned that offering rewards for one-time, high-cost purchases will not be sustainable in the long run. We need to focus our business where we have the best opportunity to pass the savings on to you, and helps you and your family save money on the products you buy every day.

My list included…

Southwest Airlines
The North Face
Advance Auto Parts
BP America
Chevron
CITGO
Hertz
Mobil 1 Motor Oil
Oreilly Auto Parts
Shell
Kirkland Premium Baby Wipes
JCPenney
Macy’s
Six Flags
Excedrin
Kirkland Allergy Medicine
Nature Made Supplements
Best Buy
Cost Plus World Market
Crate and Barrel
IKEA
Lowe’s Home Improvement
Pottery Barn
The Home Depot

{ 195 comments }

We are all just learning as we go (the folks at Endorse included) and working out the kinks as they come up.  Endorse is a brand new company and I don’t think they realized how many savvy shoppers there actually are out there, which is awesome!  With that said, Stephen Carpenter the CEO of Endorse sent me an email last night and asked that I share the new Endorse FAQ page with you.

I can only imagine the number of emails they get on a daily basis with questions because I get my fair share too about Endorse.  This is a great resource and hopefully it will answer most if not all of your questions.

You can read more about how to get started with Endorse here, have fun POPing!

{ 45 comments }

It’s clear we’re all SO VERY excited about Endorse.  If you have yet to hear about this exciting new program you can read all about it over here.  There are a whole bunch of questions and answers in the comments section as well. I wanted to update you with a message Steven left here on TFF earlier, it reads as follows…

Hi Everyone-

Happy Friday!  All of your interest and excitement has made the team and I very, very tired today.  But we couldn’t be more thrilled that Endorse has resonated with you.

I launched the blog today and would like you all to check out a message from me.  We have instituted a temporary change to make sure we can continue to deliver an amazing service.  Please check the blog as this will contain the most updated and accurate information on the company.

Have a great weekend everyone!  Don’t forget to POP your endorsements this weekend!

Steven – CEO & Founder of Endorse

{ 33 comments }

So Endorse has been quite the talk to the frugal Find community lately.  I said I would report back after I submitted my first receipt.  I bought a few things at Whole Foods yesterday totaling $9.23 after coupons.  I submitted my receipt via email around 1:30pm (pops@endorse.com) and within an hour or so I got an email saying my receipt had been accepted and just a few hours after that I had $0.92 in my Endorse account!

They will send me a check once my Endorse account reaches $25.00.  Just today I submitted my second receipt from my Safeway shopping trip last night – remember many of you are testing this one with me?  The receipt was SO long that I had to take pictures of it in portions and piece it together with a photo editor – kind of a pain.  I’ve submitted that one and I’m just waiting to hear back now.  There is a chance that the photo may not accepted and I’d need to mail it in, not my preferred method but for $4.00 cash back I’m willing to do that.  The envelopes are postage paid, so that’s nice.

So have you submitted any receipts and earned cash back in your Endorse account yet?  Still wondering what in the world I’m talking about?  Head on over here for the complete details - also make sure to read through the comments to get many more questions answered.

You can also head on over here for a starter list of stores (and gas stations!) that I’d recommend you Endorse, it’s a list of stores we cover regularly here on The Frugal Find.

{ 106 comments }

I spent some time looking through the stores that Endorse offers 10% cash back at and I’ve made a list here.  If you’re looking for the post about what in the world Endorse is and how it works, it’s over here. These are stores that we regularly cover here on The Frugal Find – I can’t wait to start earning 10% cash back on all of my shopping trips, wow!!

*HOT* Gas Stations:

1. Chevron
2. Citgo
3. BP America
4. Shell

Drugstores:

1. CVS
2. Rite Aid
3. Walgreens

Retail Shopping:

1. Kohl’s
2. Target
3. Walmart
4. Old Navy
5. Ross
6. Marshalls
7. TJ Maxx
8. Bath & Body Works
9. PetSmart
10. JCPenney
11. GAP
12. Sears
13. Macy’s
14. The Yankee Candle Company
15. Pottery Barn
16. Crate & Barrel
17. Cost Plus
18. Pier 1
19. Office Max
20. IKEA
21. Kmart
22. Bed, Bath & Beyond
23. The Children’s Place
24. Best Buy
25. Oakley Sunglasses
26. Victoria’s Secret
27. Staples
28. Michael’s

Restaurants:

1. Panda Express
2. Jamba Juice
3. In-N-Out Burger
4. Chili’s Bar & Grill
5. Chevy’s Fresh Mex
6. Subway
7. Peet’s Coffee
8. Cold Stone Creamery
9. Papa Murphy’s Pizza
10. Chick-Fil-A
11. Starbucks
12. Panera
13. Chipotle
14. Cinnabon
15. Sonic Drive-In
16. The Cheesecake Factory
17. TGI Friday’s
18. Carl’s Jr
19. Outback Steakhouse
20. Dairy Queen
21. KFC
22. Wendy’s
23. Burger King
24. McDonald’s
25. Applebee’s
26. Taco Bell

Grocery Stores:

1. Fresh & Easy
2. Whole Foods
3. Safeway

{ 44 comments }