meggie Posted December 2, 2011 Share Posted December 2, 2011 Why do they push this so hard? I swear, every time we went there it was like being badgered by a telephone salesman. And I'm not sure the math makes sense to me. If you don't spend enough, they'll send you back the difference. Why do this at all? Why bother signing people up if you're going to give it back? Should I be signing up for it? At this point, I've been refusing out of principle: If they're going to be that pushy about it, I'm going to think it's some kind of scam and stay away just out of spite. (That and the math still doesn't make sense to me). The terms: If you spend $55 on a year's membership, you don't get any money back at the end of the year. If you spend $110 on a year's membership, they give you 2% of your total spent back at the end of the year. If you buy the $110 membership and didn't spend enough to get $110 back, they give you the difference between the 2% you are owed and the cost of the basic membership. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HiddenJewel Posted December 2, 2011 Share Posted December 2, 2011 (edited) As long as the 2% covers the additional cost of the Executive membership you are ahead. We just renewed and only ended up paying $25 for next year after our 2011 rebate. And we don't buy a lot, just consistently each month. Edited December 2, 2011 by HiddenJewel Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TranquilMind Posted December 2, 2011 Share Posted December 2, 2011 Why do they push this so hard? I swear, every time we went there it was like being badgered by a telephone salesman. And I'm not sure the math makes sense to me. If you don't spend enough, they'll send you back the difference. Why do this at all? Why bother signing people up if you're going to give it back? Should I be signing up for it? At this point, I've been refusing out of principle: If they're going to be that pushy about it, I'm going to think it's some kind of scam and stay away just out of spite. (That and the math still doesn't make sense to me). The terms: If you spend $55 on a year's membership, you don't get any money back at the end of the year. If you spend $110 on a year's membership, they give you 2% of your total spent back at the end of the year. If you buy the $110 membership and didn't spend enough to get $110 back, they give you the difference between the 2% you are owed and the cost of the basic membership. Well, it works for us. We buy a large quantity of our groceries and a lot of other larger ticket items at Costco every year. I get a check back (to be used at Costco) every year in the hundreds of dollars. One year it was almost $300. We have to buy groceries anyway. Might as well be buying stuff at a great company that will always take anything back that also sends me money! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heather in AL Posted December 2, 2011 Share Posted December 2, 2011 Actually, I think the only part they will refund you is the difference between the regular membership and the executive one. I'm not positive, though.... We finally caved to their "sales pitch" and I'm glad we did. We shop there every week and buy all sorts of stuff, so we spend a ton of money there. That is where we buy the bulk of our groceries. We got a nice dollar amount back just last week. I think they push it so hard because people will feel like they want to go to Costco for everything, thereby increasing their sales. I'm sure the 2% they give away doesn't put much of a dent in their over all profits, but they are sure to make more money on those increased sales. It really does sound like a 'win win' as long as you *only* buy what you normally would buy there and don't do extra shopping "because we get 2% back". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DawnM Posted December 2, 2011 Share Posted December 2, 2011 It works for us. Over 80% of our groceries come from Costco. I just went yesterday! The 2% will usually cover most of our membership. We get even more back if we have purchased tires that year! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meggie Posted December 2, 2011 Author Share Posted December 2, 2011 (edited) Well, maybe that's my problem. We aren't spending enough. We were at our one year mark and they wanted us to spend $55 to upgrade so that they could send us $40 back. Why? It's not making sense. Ok, if I did my math right, you need to spend more than $5,500 there in one year to get more than your $110 back. That's about $458.33 a month. That's more than I spend there, we only do about $200 a month. When they scan my card, they can see how much I need to spend, yet they still push it. I just don't know why. Edited December 2, 2011 by meggie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HiddenJewel Posted December 2, 2011 Share Posted December 2, 2011 Well, maybe that's my problem. We aren't spending enough. We were at our one year mark and they wanted us to spend $55 to upgrade so that they could send us $40 back. Why? It's not making sense. Ok, if I did my math right, you need to spend more than $5,500 there in one year to get more than your $110 back. That's about $458.33 a month. That's more than I spend there, we only do about $200 a month. When they scan my card, they can see how much I need to spend, yet they still push it. I just don't know why. You don't have to spend enough to get $110 back. The Executive upgrade is only $50 or $55 and that is all you would need to get back on the 2% to break even. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
prairiewindmomma Posted December 2, 2011 Share Posted December 2, 2011 $200/month is about the breakeven point....that's why they're pushing...they want you to come spend just a bit more each month. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vonfirmath Posted December 2, 2011 Share Posted December 2, 2011 The terms: If you spend $55 on a year's membership, you don't get any money back at the end of the year. If you spend $110 on a year's membership, they give you 2% of your total spent back at the end of the year. If you buy the $110 membership and didn't spend enough to get $110 back, they give you the difference between the 2% you are owed and the cost of the basic membership. Except. Once you get the executive membership it says there is no guarantee you'll get back the membership fee, etc. I saw that, and immediately cancelled. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mothersweets Posted December 2, 2011 Share Posted December 2, 2011 I have the executive membership and it works for us. We buy a lot of stuff from Costco so usually get back a few hundred dollars. Yeah, I'd be irritated, too, if they kept bugging me about it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cindergretta Posted December 2, 2011 Share Posted December 2, 2011 We go to Costco ALL the time. I have never, ever, been asked to upgrade. :confused: It would be funny if they did ask us because dh's company pays for our membership. :tongue_smilie: Back when we paid for our own membership, we did have the executive and we alway got back more than we spent, so it was worth it. Then again, 6 dc! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChandlerMom Posted December 2, 2011 Share Posted December 2, 2011 I'm sorry they seem pushy -- probably has to do with that store's manager. We had a reg membership for years and they were never pushy. If you spend over $2500/year, Exec membership is a good thing. We buy just about everything there, so the rebate always pays for itself and then some. :D Costco's main source of profit is the membership dues. They keep the markup so low on the items (biz model was no more than 10% profit per item, except jewelry I think). So I'm not sure if they are really trying to get you to shop more there (has little impact on their profits) and they offer to reimburse the difference? Either they really think they are doing you a favor, or the manager wants some recognition for most upgrades in the area or something. In our area, we've visited at least 10 stores, and there's just one I don't like to go to because their manager just runs things a little differently, and it shows in the employees. THe rest are run well. In comparison, I can't think of a Walmart at which I feel GOOD about shopping. :lol: Maybe next time tell the employee (politely), "You know I'm tired of people trying to sell me an exec membership. If I was interested, I'd ask." Or even write an email to Costco and (nicely) explain how frustrating you find the attempts to upsell you on membership. If enough people complain.... Costco is usually extremely responsive. A friend of mine was getting the run around on a computer she ordered from them that wasn't configured right (ended up being a supplier's error), so in frustration she e-mailed a VP -- and had a personal response the same day and a new (correctly configured) computer overnighted to her home. Just sayin'....squeak, squeak! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WeeBeaks Posted December 2, 2011 Share Posted December 2, 2011 I feel very much like you. I hated those people coming around to upsell, grabbing for my card to scan it to tell me to upgrade. Pushy, pushy, pushy, and still very fresh in my mind. However, we did upgrade, and yes it saves us money. I almost didn't just to spite given how pushy they were though. My only negative customer service experience ever with Costco was those upgrade people. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gardenmom5 Posted December 3, 2011 Share Posted December 3, 2011 we love costco, and are there at least once a week. (dh likes to say it's our favorite store because we spend more there than anyother single store.) we have the exec membership. we get several hundred dollars back every year. dh will use the check for his regular purchase, and gets the rest back in change. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angie in VA Posted December 3, 2011 Share Posted December 3, 2011 (edited) If you are tired of being asked to upgrade, ask for a sticker for your membership card that denotes that you decline the upgrade. Edited December 3, 2011 by Angie in VA typo! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Unicorn. Posted December 3, 2011 Share Posted December 3, 2011 Don't do it!!!!! They lied to us about that difference. We got a "check", coupon thing for about $26. We didn't spend enough to get the difference I guess, even though I bought a laptop this summer, and 2 new tires. Anyhoo, haven't seen anything else from them, and nothing about the difference to make up the $50. We are going back to the reg membership. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sandy in Indy Posted December 3, 2011 Share Posted December 3, 2011 Don't do it!!!!! They lied to us about that difference. We got a "check", coupon thing for about $26. We didn't spend enough to get the difference I guess, even though I bought a laptop this summer, and 2 new tires. Anyhoo, haven't seen anything else from them, and nothing about the difference to make up the $50. We are going back to the reg membership. Go in and talk to the folks at the Membership Desk. They should refund the $$. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HiddenJewel Posted December 3, 2011 Share Posted December 3, 2011 Don't do it!!!!! They lied to us about that difference. We got a "check", coupon thing for about $26. We didn't spend enough to get the difference I guess, even though I bought a laptop this summer, and 2 new tires. Anyhoo, haven't seen anything else from them, and nothing about the difference to make up the $50. We are going back to the reg membership. If you think you spent more than $1300 with them, I would add up my purchases and check what the 2% should have been and then contact them. For someone who does spend at or over the $2500 a year mark, it can definitely be worth it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sandra in FL Posted December 3, 2011 Share Posted December 3, 2011 Does the $2500 include what's spent on gas? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BarbecueMom Posted December 3, 2011 Share Posted December 3, 2011 Does the $2500 include what's spent on gas? No, unfortunately. You need a Costco AMEX card for gas rebates. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daisy Posted December 3, 2011 Share Posted December 3, 2011 We tried it one year and still didn't spend enough money to break even. We just don't purchase that much from Costco. I asked them to stop asking me about it and they did. Maybe they can mark your account or something? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KatieJ Posted December 3, 2011 Share Posted December 3, 2011 Don't do it!!!!! They lied to us about that difference. We got a "check", coupon thing for about $26. We didn't spend enough to get the difference I guess, even though I bought a laptop this summer, and 2 new tires. Anyhoo, haven't seen anything else from them, and nothing about the difference to make up the $50. We are going back to the reg membership. When we first got our Costco Membership we upgraded and didn't get a big enough rebate to cover the additional rebate. They did refund us the difference. Eventually we realized that we had not had the upgraded membership but 8 or 9 months when it renewed and therefore had not actually given it a fair chance to prove itself. No one pointed this out to us at the time, altho I kind of wish they had. We did upgrade again, and yes infact we do recieve a very nice rebate check each year. Another thing I have learned is that if you take the check in and your bill that day is less than the amount of your check, they will give you the rest in cash. I usually just put it on a Costco Cash card as that is where I want to spend it, but they always offer cash. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
posybuddy Posted December 3, 2011 Share Posted December 3, 2011 If you are tired of being asked to upgrade, ask for a sticker for your membership card that denotes that decline the upgrade. My Costco offered me the sticker, actually. After about the third time I said no to the upgrade, the cashier asked, "Do you want us to stop asking you?" I was very appreciative of their responsiveness. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Forget-Me-Not Posted December 3, 2011 Share Posted December 3, 2011 My local Costco just writes "No E." in sharpie on the card. Or at least they did on my Mom's. We finally caved when we bought a big screen TV there and they were going to extend the warranty by an extra year if we bought it with their AmEx. We spend quite a bit at Costco every year, do the bulk of our grocery shopping, Christmas shopping, etc. If we need big ticket items like tires or electronics we go there first. And we use it for gas and other purchases as well. I always get enough of a rewards check to pay for my next year's membership with some left to burn :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
happyhomemaker25 Posted December 3, 2011 Share Posted December 3, 2011 Why do they push this so hard? I swear, every time we went there it was like being badgered by a telephone salesman. And I'm not sure the math makes sense to me. If you don't spend enough, they'll send you back the difference. Why do this at all? Why bother signing people up if you're going to give it back? Should I be signing up for it? At this point, I've been refusing out of principle: If they're going to be that pushy about it, I'm going to think it's some kind of scam and stay away just out of spite. (That and the math still doesn't make sense to me). The terms: If you spend $55 on a year's membership, you don't get any money back at the end of the year. If you spend $110 on a year's membership, they give you 2% of your total spent back at the end of the year. If you buy the $110 membership and didn't spend enough to get $110 back, they give you the difference between the 2% you are owed and the cost of the basic membership. I really don't understand it but DH does. He always gets the executive membership. This year we got $75 back. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mhornby56 Posted December 3, 2011 Share Posted December 3, 2011 Don't do it!!!!! They lied to us about that difference. We got a "check", coupon thing for about $26. We didn't spend enough to get the difference I guess, even though I bought a laptop this summer, and 2 new tires. Anyhoo, haven't seen anything else from them, and nothing about the difference to make up the $50. We are going back to the reg membership. As someone else said, you have to go in and ask. They won't automatically give you the difference. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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