Sears and Kmart's Shop Your Way Rewards Review

Shop Your Way Rewards (Sears and Kmart Rewards Program) Review

The latest major retailer to start their own non-credit card-based rewards program is Sears/Kmart, who launched Shop Your Way Rewards yesterday. It's free to join, and you can sign up online at ShopYourWayRewards.com.

Here are the benefits:

- Returns without a receipt on purchases at Kmart and Sears.
- 1% of your purchases at Kmart, Sears, and mygofer.com will be refunded in the form of store credit to your loyalty card ("available within weeks of earning" -- not very clear).
- Chance to get a Kmart K'Ching Surprise (random gifts awarded on your register receipt after swiping your card in-store at Kmart while making a purchase).
- Special offers tailored to you based on your purchases and your answers to the More About Me questionnaire on the site. (I was offered triple rewards on footwear at Sears and Kmart, 5% back on furniture and outerwear at Kmart, and some other various double rewards offers.)
- Combinable with Craftsman Club and KidVantage benefits, and with coupons and other special offers.

While you will be issued a physical card, you don't have to carry it around with you to get credit for shopping -- you can provide your phone number to the cashier at checkout, and you can store your card number in your shopping profile at Sears.com and Kmart.com.

The program is open to residents of the US and Puerto Rico who are 18 or older. Multiple accounts per household are allowed if members have unique email addresses.

You can't earn for purchases of gift cards, Sears Parts Direct, the portrait studio, and a few other items like tobacco, firearms, and postage. See the terms for full details.

The full details on Kmart K'Ching Surprises are here. Prizes range from $0.99 travel size deodorant to $2.99 body lotion to $200 Sony Blu-ray Players, all the way up to a grand prize of a GE Home Appliance Makeover valued at $5,000.

My take:
1% isn't a heckuva lot, but with the special bonuses (double rewards, 5% rewards on certain items) it can add up. It's free, and it's relatively hassle-free, too, with the option to provide your phone number rather than having to add another card to the keychain. I think the Kmart K'Ching thing is a little gimmicky and those $0.99 "prizes" are incredibly lame. But all in all, I think it's a nice first try by Sears/Kmart and I hope it does well. Definitely worth signing up for, in my opinion.