Rebates are Fun

I love shopping on eBay and using PayPal for money, but some of their promotions can be a little confusing, like the eBay Bucks rebates, for  example.

Today I got 54 cents off my purchase of s-biner clips by redeeming eBay bucks credited from earlier purchases.  They also credited 17 cents toward a future redemption, which sort of compounded the reward.   Not a king's ransom, but certainly half the cost of a hot fudge sundae from McDonald's.  I like their hot fudge sundaes.  Don't you?

This was my first experience with eBay bucks and I almost blinked and missed it.  Turns out when your bucks (or fraction thereof) are ready for redemption they send an internal message.  There is a link to click and then the next time you use PayPal to pay for something you bought on eBay, the credit is automatically deducted from your payment. 

What is the catch?  Well, assuming you are already an eBay member and have an account with PayPal, too, then you just have to do a one-time sign up for the bucks and that makes you eligible for the discount, although they say in fine print that there are some restrictions.   After that, it is necessary to check eBay messages once in a while because the eBay Bucks have a time limit.  Yes, they expire after a while if you don't use them.  In my case that probably will not pose a problem, now that I know how it works. 

In case you haven't discovered s-biner clips yet, here is what one looks like:

Perfect for securing a lanyard to a camera, cellphone, wallet or whatever.