Reading Spaces


The Scribbles In My Head

Friday, September 24, 2010

Watsons Membership Card Drifts Over!

Over the past year or so, I've found several new places that I enjoy spending more and more time at (nothing illegal!). One of these places are pharmacies like Guardian, Watsons and Caring. I can't walk past any one of them, whether in a mall or down the street, without losing my mind and automatically drifting blindly into them for a good 15 minutes or so like a blind moth towards a drugstore-fueled flame.

I'm aware that all these pharmacies stock up almost the exact same products and I see these same products every single time I go in. But I still. Must. Go. Look. I love browsing the shelves and picking up the same facial washes and reading the same product labels to myself over and over again. I make mental lists of all the things I would love to buy and I make even more lists of the things I'm pretty sure I'll get round to buying one fine day. I may have a psychological problem that needs to be addressed, but that's a story for another day.

Recently, Watsons launched their new Watsons Membership Card in Malaysia, which I initially thought was a damn good thing to finally have here (Singapore has had it for awhile already), but after much deliberation and poring over the finer details of the card, my verdict comes up as.. Indifferent.

It's RM12 to sign-up with a lifetime membership and the Watsons Membership Card can be used at any Watsons outlet in Malaysia. The lack of a membership expiry date makes my heart go all a-flutter at times. I could be using this baby until membership cards are no longer in vogue.


The main purpose of this new fangled membership card is to allow loyal *coughs* Watsons customers to collect points with their purchases, enjoy special promotional items at special member prices and invitations to exclusive events and stuff. Sounds pretty nifty eh.

Let's see how useful this card actually is. You know we're stepping in some serious business when a Pros and Cons list makes an appearance!

Pros:
  • Points collection system - Every RM1 spent at Watsons is worth 1 point. We get double points when we purchase Watsons' in-house brand, and 5 times worth of points for purchases made during your birthday month (one-time purchase only).
  • Special members-only discounts/promos - There are monthly discounts and/or bonus points on selected items in Watsons every month that only members can enjoy. Great if it's an added discount on something you're already planning to buy. I plan to buy everything, so I don't count.
  • Points as cash - If you accumulate enough points, you can actually use it as cash to offset your Watsons bill and pay for stuff.
  • Instant points for online card activation - Activate your Watsons card online and you get 200 bonus points instantly. You can also activate the card via a Member Hotline or fill out a form at Watsons, but those don't get you 200 points.
  • Voucher booklet - Once you've signed up, you get handed a thick booklet of vouchers that can be used to either knock someone out, or get discounts on some products/brands.

Cons:
  • Good luck getting points to spend - As I mentioned, RM1 = 1 point. But what's the value of those points you've so painstakingly collected? Miniscule. 0.5% to be exact! Because every 200 points = RM1. That's right. To accumulate enough points to buy a stick of gum at Watsons, you'll have to earn around 600 points. Which is equivalent to spending RM600. How about redeeming something worth that RM12 you spent to sign up? Spend RM2400.
  • Points have an expiry date - The card doesn't, but the points do. Points are only valid for 2 years, so start spending!
  • Voucher booklet - All the vouchers are essentially the same thing: RM1 to RM10 off selected brands/products. Mostly just a mere 10% discount.
Personally, I'm not the biggest fan of the Watsons Membership Card programme for Malaysia because their 0.5% points rebate system is an insult to my intelligence and spending power (not even 1%? C'mon!), but I don't see the harm in enjoying some of the members-only discounts every month. And I know I'll be buying some pretty regular things from pharmacies anyway (us ladies are tedious like that), so I might as well get some points for my trouble in the process. I think I can spare the RM12 sign-up fee.

Well, that and the fact that I immediately signed my soul over to the card before I came up with my brilliant Cons list so I'm stuck with this card for life. I have trigger-signature-fingers.

Full details at their website here.

Posted at 11:45 AM
0 comments


Flaunt




  • The Little Trinket Co.


Speak


Oldies