same here for one of the best buys. most of them just let me rip off the coupon, then throw away the card, which simplifies things, so i go to a different one than usual and start ripping them off on the counter as shes ringing stuff up and cashier flips out "WHAT ARE YOU DOING??" i explain to her im trying to make it easier and quicker for her by just giving her the coupons ( i was buying 2 games). She then goes and gets a manager. manager says I need to put $10 on each of the cards to use the coupon. i say fine and add the $10 and then try to use them, then she tells me i cannot use them till the next day as the "system needs to update first with the amounts overnight" which i know is BS because i use these all the time. i just left with my giftcards and coupons and used them at the BB that was on the way home.

I just buy one or two of these in there everytime I go to buy a CD or DVD, then I have them when I want a game.

As for the $19.95 thing, I wouldn't get to upset over that. They likely set that price just to keep people from using the coupon as they probably don't make much profit on mem cards. It would be nice if you could get the cashier to mark it up 4 cents, but it's certainly lame to get pissed over them not doing it IMO. We should just be happy that they do this at all, not looking a gift horse in the mouth.

I make sure I have a card or 2 on hand to advoid problems. When I use my last one I just buy another 2 with whatever I'm getting and put $5 on each. That way, whenever something comes out I want to buy, I've got $10 off it already.

Exactly. I wanted to pick up Sly Cooper or Rachet and Clank yesterday, but I'm already over budget for this month. So I just spent $5 on a gift card.

Now when I pick it up next month or whenever I'll only have to pay $9.99 plus tax out of my pocket.

I don't know why people feel necessary try to circumvent the system. Yes, these GCs are meant to be given to people as gifts, which none of us do. But at least go along with the flow so that you can get the benefits. Just buy the gift cards and throw a few dollars on it, you'll be using it anyway. Behaviors like ripping the coupons right out of the case and throwing the gift card away is bordering on vendalism. I seriously doubt if BB would go as far as to press charges, but just stand back and look at such an act objectively, you'd see that it is in actuality destroying BB's merchandise that could've been sold for future sales. It's just not that cool.

How would people like it if he/she is the BB manager, and everyday 20 customers come in and each rips off 5 coupons so that you lose 100 gamer gift cards per day with no sales generated? Again, everybody can do whatever they feel is appropriate to get these coupons, but just ripping them off really isn't.

in the end, would it really make any difference if i ripped up the coupon in front of the cashier, didnt use the gift card, then they threw it away, or first she scans it, puts $ on it, then i hand it right back to her to scan.and then they throw it away again? hell, someone else could still use that giftcard since i didnt activate it yet with the 1st option.

hell i wouldnt even be buying most of my games from best buy if this gift card didnt exist snce it usually takes them 2-3 days longer to get the game in than everywhere else.

Either way you are still spending money with them, which is the point of the promotion. There is something to be said for not 'rocking the boat' though :)

I agree with you... however, the funny thing is that when we put a couple of bucks on it and immediately use it, it is probably costing them a transaction fee from American Express or whoever processes these transactions for them... so by doing it "legitimately" we are probably costing them a few cents. Of course they more than make that up on the item that they are selling, even with the $5 off.

I bought the 251 mem. card before, and the CSR was really cool about it. He gave me the discount even though i was short 4 cents.

Re: BB $5 off coupon fails...
 

I totally understand you. Yeah yeah you can use the excuse that where is the limit 2c 4c a dollar. But it is really not a strong arguement. For one it is in fact FOUR cents. The Mem cards USED to be 19.99 as is the great majority of BB's stock; ending in 99. I know that they do it on purpose so that the card will be negated. But it is an insult to specifically and stealthily circumvent their own promotion on a technical snafu of FOUR cents. I would feel much different if they wrote on their coupons that "mem cards are not valid with this offer" or something along those lines. It really is in the way that they present it. I'm very surprised when people side for the company when employing such tactics. Do people really belive things are/should be so black and white?

I am really not following the last example. I'm really not following your logic.

I understand the breathalyzer analogy but by the same token don't you think that the judge/officer would take into consideration whether or not that person blew a .09 versus a 1.5 or if it was a first time offense or a fifth. I guarantee that they would. The world is not nearly so cut and dry as people want it to be. As I stated before I really don't understand people's mentalities that things should be so absolute when they really aren't.

Then you'd be REALLY bad at running a business. Best Buy did NOT issue this coupon for haggling. There are clear "cut and dry" stipulations for its use (companies pay BIG money to make sure this small print is exact). That some people got away with it is neat, but technically they should not have been able to use it. THAT is like saying "Well so-and-so, from DVDTalk was doing 90mph the other day and didn't get a ticket so why should I?" Why not ignore the "video games & accessories" part and try to use it on a DVD that is $19.99 or higher? Choose one where the special features include a "game", right?

BTW folks, you don't need to add so much to those GCs. Once I was buying 10 of them and asked the cashier to put a buck on each. She said, "Why not just put a penny on each if you just want it for the coupon?" -eek- So I did. :lol:

Yeah I probably would be bad at running a business. Glad I wasn't a business major.

I'm sure that many people are happy and alive that hospitals don't always take such as absolute policy towards its patients.

I guess people don't care about paying for their DVD's as long as they don't have to pay for their healthcare. (statement not to be taken seriously)

Umm, let's see.
Coupon is for $19.99 and up.
Your item is $19.95.
What failed again?

For God's sake, buy something else you cheapo. Best Buy is the only store that offers these $5 deals, so support them. Buy a cheap CD or something.

Again, the card didn't fail, you did.
There has to be hundreds of items that are $1-2 (soda?) and you argue with a manager over 5 cents?

Again, it's not per ORDER, it's per ITEM :) So buying a $1-$2 item doesn't help.

Are you even paying attention? At least three other posts and a plethora of other threads have mentioned that THIS ONLY APPLIES TO ONE Video game or acces.!

You can't add another item to bring the total above 19.99 the OP tried to do that. I'm sure he would have been more than happy to have purchased something else.

The card didn't fail, the OP didn't fail, you failed....reading comprehension (alright that was a little much).

Re: Re: BB $5 off coupon fails...
 

Talk about paranoia!

MOST businesses do not things like these to circumvent coupons, it's just a way to mark discontinued inventory. For example, at Wal-Mart, items ending in $0.88 mean one thing, those ending in $0.95 mean another, and those ending in $0.99 mean yet another thing (for example, regular price, sale, special sale, discontinued, clearance).

So BBuy might just be clearancing or discontinuing them.

A few days ago I went up with a GBA game and told them "I'm just going to use the giftcard right away and just want it for the coupon. Do you want me to do the giftcard thing or can you just take $5 off?"

He took the $5 off.

I don't know if it helped that my nephew got his $1000 computer there in the same transaction :D

Re: Re: BB $5 off coupon fails...
 

In the business world, yes. The coupon says for any item over $19.99, simple concept. To expect them to break this rule is lame IMO. We shoudl just be happy they offer these coupons at all. No one else gives you $5 off almost every game and accessory they sell.

Re: Re: Re: BB $5 off coupon fails...
 

Actually, he's probably right. Retailers make next to nothing on first party hardware, so they probably intentionally knocked the mem cards down the 4 cents. If they gave the $5 off they'd probably be making very little profit on them.

Re: Re: Re: BB $5 off coupon fails...
 

But haven't you seen the black helis that they have there. You have haven't you.....HAVEN'T YOU! circling around once the store closes....inventory they say. INVENTORY! do they need special men in black suits to do INVENTORY! circling....circling....circling...circling....

Ok, now. Step away from the computer, sir. Everything will be all right. Bruno here will help you into this nice comfy white sweater.

:lol:

One way to solve the original poster's problem....

Just buy the memory card at Circuit City. They are 19.99 there, and they will take the BB coupon.

Trevor, not all Circuity City's do :)

They should.