cashback

How to find the biggest cashback bonus for anything you buy

I've written many times before of my love for cashback services, which pay you back a percentage of your purchase just for going through their shopping portals.

For example, FatWallet recently started offering 3 percent back on Amazon Instant Video and MP3 purchases. And Ebates is currently paying 4 percent to 5 percent back on purchases from Dell, HP, and Lenovo.

Of course, there are lots of cashback sites out there, and some offer bigger bonuses than others. How can you make sure you're getting the maximum rebate for each store you visit?

Simple: click the Cashback Comparison bookmarklet. … Read more

FatWallet offers cash back on Amazon MP3s, videos

For a while now I've extolled the virtues of cash-back sites like Ebates, which make it easy to get money back on nearly everything you buy online.

Nearly everything. Most of these services kick in only when you buy physical goods. But FatWallet is now offering cash back on Amazon Instant Video and MP3 Downloads.

That's a first. I don't recall ever seeing this kind of offer on digital purchases. Ebates comes closest by offering cash back when you sign up for a Netflix subscription, but that's not really the same thing.

With FatWallet, you get … Read more

Find cashback deals more easily with the Ebates Toolbar

As a general rule, I am not a fan of toolbars. When I sit down at a friend's PC and see half a dozen toolbars littering their browser, I read them the riot act. (That may explain why I don't get invited over much.)

That said, there are two I'll allow on my system: Web of Trust and the new Ebates Cash Back Toolbar.

The latter makes it quicker and easier to identify and score cash-back deals from online stores. As someone who uses Ebates pretty religiously, it's a no-brainer addition to my browser.

For those … Read more

Microsoft kills Bing Cashback

Microsoft said Friday it is getting rid of Bing Cashback, a program that allowed advertisers to bid for search advertisements by offering a percentage of sales back to users.

When introduced in May 2008, Microsoft had held out the program as a significant way it could change the economics of search.

"In lots of ways, this was a great feature - we had over a thousand merchant partners delivering great offers to customers and seeing great ROI on their campaigns, and we were taking some of the advertising revenue and giving it back to customers," Microsoft said in … Read more

Free: Any BlackBerry on any carrier

Are you in the market for a new phone? From today through Sunday, Wirefly has a pretty sweet deal: Every BlackBerry on every carrier is free.

Do you want a Storm2 with Verizon? You got it. How about a Curve 8520 with AT&T or Sprint? No problem.

Wirefly stocks about 20 BlackBerry smartphone models from the four major carriers, so you should be able to get what you want from the carrier you want.

The deal is available on all new and upgrade-eligible accounts. Suffice it to say, any phone that you buy requires the usual two-year service … Read more

Get $100 from Bing when you buy from Wirefly

Do you need a new phone? How about a 3G-powered Netbook? This might be the perfect time to buy. Wirefly.com has hooked up with Bing Cashback to offer a $100 rebate on all phones, Netbooks, and even aircards.

A few examples of how that would translate to real-world savings:

Make $50 from buying a Motorola Droid. Current and new Verizon customers can get this popular model for $49.99 with a two-year service plan. The $100 Bing bonus means you actually pocket 50 bucks on the deal. Make $100 on an AT&T phone. Wirefly stocks a couple … Read more

Microsoft's Bing decides on bribery

The new Bing Dynasty desperately wants you to love it.

And it understands you so well in these times of penury and desperation that it knows you have certain vulnerabilities that might be worth exploring: the vulnerabilities that lurk in the area around your pocket.

Therefore Microsoft has launched its first-ever TV ad for Cashback, a nifty system that gives you a little money when you buy something vital--such as sneakers or a camera--through a Bing search.

It does seem like splendidly commercial bribery. However, I do wish that the ad might have been a little less prosaic and a … Read more

Microsoft axes Live Search Product Upload

Microsoft has made the decision to ax Live Search Product Upload, a tool retailers could use to get their products into Microsoft's search database.

"Thank you for your interest in the product upload beta. Regrettably, we are discontinuing this program," Microsoft said in a message posted on the product's Web site. "Merchants located in the United States should consider participating in Live Search Cashback--an advertising program which combines the power of Live Search with a comparison shopping engine to bring consumers some of the best deals on the web."

Microsoft confirmed it is … Read more

Microsoft merges product search, Cashback

Microsoft said on Wednesday that it has combined its product search engine with its Live Search Cashback, a product that gives users a rebate on certain purchases made directly after using Live Search.

"The new site unifies Live Search Products (the shopping vertical within Live Search) and Cashback to make it easier for you to research, compare products, and save money," Microsoft said in a blog posting.

The move also reflects the fact that on the back end, Microsoft has shifted the underlying engine for Cashback over from technology from its Jellyfish acquisition and onto the primary Live … Read more