Latest AmazonShoppers Newsletter

This is a repost of the latest newsletter I sent out to my AmazonShopping subscribers. If you're interested in receiving these by email, please sign up here.

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It lives! ;) Good morning, friends and neighbors, and welcome to the first AmazonShoppers Newsletter of 2009!

Part I: Admin Note

My apologies for the nearly year-long hiatus; I became distracted by other projects (which still distract me!), but I'd like to get this thing revved up again for any and all who are interested.

Forget signing up for this, or no longer have an interest? Just follow the instructions at the bottom of this email to unsubscribe. No hard feelings!

Part II: News

I subscribe to a daily mailing called HARO (Help a Reporter Out) where reporters send in their requests for people to interview on particular subjects. Today's HARO included a request for people with recent experience with Amazon customer service, and I thought some of y'all may be able to help the reporter out! Here's the request as it was posted in today's HARO email -- please email the reporter with your experiences and be sure to include a contact phone number if you don't mind, in case he has follow-up questions:

Summary: Experiences W/ Amazon Customer Service
Category: Business & Finance
Name: Anonymous
Email: Helpareporter@gmail.com (Put HARO-AMAZON EXPERIENCES in sub)
Title: Associate Editor
Media Outlet/Publication: Major Business Pub
Anonymous? Yes
Specific Geographic Region? No
Deadline: 6:00 PM EASTERN - February 8
Query:
"Would love to hear about people's recent personal experiences with
Amazon customer service, the good and the bad. Within the last 18
months. Could be anything: stories about shipping, getting in touch
with them over email or on the phone, or experiences with retailers
that work with Amazon."

Part III: Deals!

1. Today's Deal of the Day at Amazon is H&R Block TaxCut 2008 Premium + State + for $29.99 (regularly $49.99): http://tinyurl.com/apr3nc

When you buy the software, you get a free phone or email consultation with actual H&R Block employees, too. And, Amazon throws in a special half-off magazine subscriptions offer, too (some start at just $4 after the promo)!

2. Save an ADDITIONAL 30% at checkout on select jewelry for Valentine's Day from the Amazon.com Collection, while supplies last!: http://tinyurl.com/cvkptf

This is a huge selection of jewelry, and it ranges from costume jewelry under $20, to sterling silver, to diamonds and gold. The items are eligible for Free Supersaver Shipping or free Prime shipping, too. Remember as you browse through the stuff, that the prices shown will be discounted an extra 30% at checkout!

3. Buy a DVD in February, get a subscription to Rolling Stone (12 issues), Us Weekly (8 issues), and Men's Journal (12 issues) for $1 each! That's per subscription, not per issue! The fine print says this is for new subscribers only, and limit one title per customer. After your DVD ships, they'll send you an email on how to get the subscription, then you'll have until 3/5 to buy it at the discount.

There are a ton of DVD sales going on right now: http://tinyurl.com/db453x

Part IV: Earning Free Amazon GCs

I've been doing very well for the past year with a site called SwagBucks. The way it works is, you go to their site and do searches and you'll be randomly awarded "Swag Bucks" in various denominations, which can be cashed in for prizes including free Amazon GCs! They also occasionally give out free Swag Bucks on their blog, their Facebook, or in their newsletter. You can earn Swag Bucks by shopping through their site, too (though I haven't tried this method yet). And if you refer someone and they win Swag Bucks, you win, too!

I usually win once a day, after doing my 3rd or 4th search of the day. Most of the time when I win, I just get one Swag Buck, but I've gotten a 2-buck win a couple of times, a few 3-buck ones, and a 5-buck win once. On Fridays they give out more of the high value bucks.

45 Swag Bucks = a $5 Amazon GC, and they usually send it the day after you cash out. So, even without referring friends, you can cash out for $5 in a month to a month and a half. You earn much faster with friends, though!

If you want to try it out, and you'd be so kind as to join with my referral link, I'd sure appreciate it!: http://tinyurl.com/bk2skj

IV: That's all, folks!

Thanks for subscribing to the AmazonShoppers newsletter! I hope to do a better job of keeping you updated on the latest and greatest deals on Amazon. If you find any tips you'd like to share, though, please shoot me an email by replying to this message -- thanks!

I'll be back on Friday with the highlights of the Friday Sale. 'Til then...have a great week!

Becky Ford

My Sites:
Freebies, coupons, and money-saving tips: http://www.TipBlog.com
Shopping rewards programs news and reviews: http://www.CompareRewards.com
Great shopping deals plus cashback offers: http://www.QRDeals.com