To ask what is THE POINT of the M&S SPARKS card?

[Northernlurker]

Because I can see no point at all. I got 20% off food when it started but since then all the offers have been unmitigated nonsense.
I get the emails telling me to activate my offers and I log on to find it's offering me 20% off jeans (in what is supposed to be summer), 20% off blouses (I don't wear them on account of norks, have never bought a M&S bluse), 20% off adored bras whatever they are - see above for norks for why I don't buy M&S because they stop at a flipping G cup and 20% off glasses. I don't want any glasses and if I did I wouldn't buy M&S.

I have 30,000 points. WHAT ARE THEY FOR? I do occasionally get £5 off food vouchers which are very handy, especially if you use them on the self service tills because it doesn't insist you give them up and thus you can use them more than once if you're canny. But is that it?

And they've ditched the greetings card loyalty card. Bastards.

And at least with your John Lewis one they've got that clever receipt thing going on. I've got the receipt for the Hoover I bought 8 years ago, long before I had the card!

I mean on my johnlewis my card account!

I think you're all being a bit harsh - I was delighted to receive my 10% off salad dressings offer. 😐

Sparks is absolute crap. My paranoid self thinks they deliberately give you offers for things you have never bought.

I'm still waiting to get 10% off toilet brushes, then I'll be really happy.

It's like watching a much loved family dog in its last days. No one wants to take t to the vet but it's symptoms are getting worse.......

I'm writing to their new CEO

1. How come, in the 21st Century, with electronic stock control and your so called Smart Ordering, do you NEVER ever have size 12s/14s in the store?! I'm fed up of being told " but you can try online Madam". No I'm sorry, I want to walk into the store, pick up a pair of trousers and buy them, otherwise you've lost my sale.

1. Why should I the customer be inconvenienced by having to remember to logon to your website to select some pathetic Sparks offers I don't even want? And then have to get to a store by the weekend even though we don't live anywhere near an M&S... Don't you realised your customer has better things to do than faff around for a 30p discount?

If they don't sort themselves out, they will be going the way of BHS....

Apparently there was a fab beauty offer a few months ago but only selected people got it. Seeing as I only really buy from the beauty counter with the occasional sandwich I was proper hacked off not to get it.
Rubbish I tell ya!

I've been sent a survey asking what I think of the sparks card. I shall tell them exactly what I think!

I've complained - yes it's crap!

I hardly ever go into M&S these days, but I saw a sign in one last week and wondered whether I needed a Sparks card, so thanks for answering that question.

John Lewis doesn't seem to send me coffee and cake vouchers any more though, guess I'm not spending enough money with them.

I completely agree. The most pointless reward scheme ever. Who do they think they're kidding?

Actually Pets At Home is pretty rubbish two. I have two cats and they send me vouchers for dog food

Too not two obviously

There is no point to it. It's just a convoluted spamming system that you can't unsubscribe from.

I hate M&S for interrupting my life with this shit. I used to shop there without stress. Now they make me lie when asked if I have a Sparks card; I do, but I don't want you to know that I'm buying walnut whips again unless I'm going to get some tangible reward for being a greedy guts.

Well I came onto this thread hoping I would find the answer to the OP's question and now MN has disappointed me!!

I feel sorry for the staff who must say "have you got a sparks card?" 10 gazillion times a day. One of my DH's former patients works in our local food store and she said something about how the more you use it the better the offers get because it learns your preferences? Unfortunately I couldn't be arsed listening properly - the disappointment of discovering they didn't work like Advantage points was too great.

Otoh I also have a Marksies branded credit card uncontrollable addiction to Percy Pigs and they send us really good vouchers every month or so. £5 off or free items - which is nice

" I do occasionally get £5 off food vouchers"

If you're talking about the ones that appear on receipt paper, I don't think they're anything to do with sparks cars, thibk the till just spits tjem out sometimes.

I would put up with the blatant uselessness of the Sparks card if I thought for one second that M&S were using their new knowledge of shopper buying habits to start stocking stuff that people want.

[tumbleweed]
[not just any tumbleweed, it's M&S Autograph by Tana Ramsay tumbleweed]

Amu are you seriously telling me you would struggle to use 20% off toasted teacakes when you buy blackcurrant jam? Or a half price tin of mushy peas when you but frozen fish?? Or 30% off any boys trousers, beige, aged 3-4??
That's the problem, the offers are so obscure uey so specific!

John Lewis - you can get free tea and coffee every time. And at our local one if you go to the "cafe" bit (a few nice tables by the bakery) , they do some coffee/tea and cake deal.

My mum told me the person who set up the scheme has been sacked. No idea if it's true!

John Lewis - you can get free tea and coffee every time. And at our local one if you go to the "cafe" bit (a few nice tables by the bakery) , they do some coffee/tea and cake deal.

When I was asked if I had a Sparks card the other day I told the sales assistant that it was too much hassle and was of no benefit to me. I said the marketing department hadn't thought it through and they should have something more simple along the lines of the Boots Advantage card. The sales assistant agreed with me and said that everyone was saying that.

Just logged on worried I missed the sandwich offer as we had some last night. I got 20% off cushions and throws

No Stealth these are proper vouchers that come by post and are definitely connected to the credit card and not Sparks.

I only mentioned it because it shows that M&S can get it right with marketing. But the Soarks card is a definite low point!