It was a great feeling knowing I was about to save some money. That was the thought going through my mind as I paid may bill at Subway over the weekend. Saturday Subway for lunch is a tradition in my family, and I’ll be getting a free sub every time I go to Subway for the next few weeks, until the current promotion ends.
The Promotion
Subway is running a promotion in which customer’s get a free six inch sub sandwich if a $20 gift card is purchased. The cool part of the promotion is that the customer can get the free sub in the same visit the gift card is purchased. They don’t know, or just won’t tell, when the promotion ends. But until then, each time I get Subway I’ll be buying a $20 gift card and getting a free sandwich.
Savings Breakdown
With current pricing, one free six inch brings my bill down to $12 from $16 for 4 six inch subs, saving me $4 each visit. Which means every 4 trips to Subway I essentially have saved enough money for a complete Subway Saturday tradition meal.
The Temptation
Subway’s goal with the promotion is to get customers to return to Subway more often which can happen in two different scenarios:
- To sell more free subs during the promotion, and thus more gift cards (hey, those gift cards sure do make nice Christmas gifts for those that are hard to shop for).
- After the promotion ends customers are more likely to come back when the gift cards may seem like “free money”
The Logic
One of the most important spending principles I live by is it’s not a good sale if you buy something you weren’t going to buy anyway. In this case, I am spending more than I normally would during the promotion, and seemingly breaking this rule. However, I will be spending the money at Subway eventually. All I need is a plan to ensure that the promotion doesn’t cause me to overspend.
The Plan
The goal of those really looking to save a little cash on their subway will be wise to these efforts, and realize they must not let the promotion alter their spending habits. To make sure I come out ahead with the promotion, I’ll be following these steps:
- Continue the tradition by ONLY visiting Subway on Saturday (which is what we do now)
- Purchase a $20 gift card and save about $4 on my bill
- Continue money saving techniques to keep my bill at Subway as low as possible
- Once the promotion is over, continue to keep my behavior the same, just paying with the gift cards
By realizing I’m in dangerous territory and could easily end up spending more than I normally would at Subway, and sticking to my plan, the promotion has the potential of saving me money. The longer it lasts, the more I’ll save. Once again, the savings won’t be large, but it’s part of an overall frugal lifestyle that when added together results in the best value for my purchases, and results in getting the very most out of my hard earned cash.
Have you heard of this promotion from Subway? Will you be taking advantage of it?
I eat at Subway several times a week. I always load up a gift card on payday and then spend it on my lunches until the next payday. By doing this, I am now also getting a free six inch sandwich every payday when I load up my gift card. I’ve been doing it for several years. It’s a great promotion, if you eat at Subway a lot. I’ve had several friend get me Subway gift cards at Christmas, too. I can only hope they are getting their free sandwiches as well!
I LOVE stuff like this — where you can spend a certain amount and get full value but also get something else.
We bought $40 of iTunes gift cards today and got $5 off our grocery store purchase.
We bought $50 of Nike gift cards the other day and saved $10.
Awesome!
I haven’t heard about this promotion but will definitely take a look, because I find myself grabbing subway for lunch every once in a while. A lot of people get scared away when they’re told they need to buy something in order to get the money. But if you think about it like a return on investment, that’s a pretty good deal. Obviously, only useful if you actually visit Subway pretty regularly, like you do.
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I notice a lot of stores having promotions like this during the holidays. I think a lot of people have the same thought that these gift cards make good stocking stuffers. Must be making them some money since many stores are doing it!
That is a genius idea! Especially if you stick to your normal Saturday meals and don’t over indulge. I know I would have to fight the urges of going all out on my subs. But I guess with anything in life, those with discipline get the rewards! Great tip.