You are probably familiar with the phrase that is so frequently asked when you check out: “Are you apart of our frequent buyers program?” But do you really know all of the ins and outs of the Astro Loyalty Program? This article aims to provide more information into what exactly is the Astro Loyalty Program, a.k.a the frequent buyers program.
What is the frequent buyers program?
The frequent buyers program is a program that rewards the customer for frequently buying something, hence the name. The brands themselves decide whether they would like to be apart of Astro or not. If they do, they can choose to create punch cards. Some brands have punch cards for “Buy 10, Get the 11th One Free” or even “Buy 6, Get the 7th One Free.” Each brand’s punch card is different, but the most common length of punch cards that you might see is “Buy 12, Get the 13th One Free.”
Some brands also choose to have just one punch card for the whole brand or separate punch cards for each type of product such as kibble bag size or type of treat. If you are earning punches with a brand that lumps all of their products together, you can ask your cashier to create separate punch cards for specific items so you can ensure that your free item is the one that you truly want. For example, Hills Science Diet separates their punch cards by cat or dog, but not by the size of the bag. This means that if you buy a 5lb bag of Science Diet dog food to try with your pup, and they like it so you decide to start buying the 30lb bags, that 5lb bag will most likely be your free item as it is cheaper than the 30lb bags. You can also request to have separate punch cards based on price. This is especially helpful if you buy 2 types of food of the same size, but one is cheaper than the other.
Most brands create punch cards with the rule that the free item is the cheapest item on the punch card. However, there are some brands that don’t choose to do that, so price doesn’t factor into what you get as your free item. A good example of this is Fromm. If you buy a 12lb bag and then buy another 12lb bag that is more expensive, you can still choose to get the more expensive bag for free.
Fromm’s frequent buyers program also has no time limit to when you can earn your free item. There are other brands that do though, like Boxiecat Litter which has a time limit of 24 months to complete a punch card.
What else is there to Astro Loyalty?
But, Astro doesn’t just have the frequent buyers program. They also have exclusive deals that are only available for customers who have an account. Every month, Mounds has different sales going on and typically we have around 1-4 Astro sales per month. We explicitly say which sale is an Astro sale on our sale signs in stores and on our website and even when we post about them on our social media. A good rule of thumb is to visit our website and click “In Store Specials” under the “Sale” tab so you can see our full list of sales, including Astro sales, that are happening at that time. When in doubt, if you see the phrase “Valid with frequent buyers program”, that means that it’s only available for those who have an Astro account.
How do I sign up?
It’s easy! There are 2 ways you can sign up for Astro with us:
1:
When you check out at any of our stores, if you are purchasing any items that are included in our frequent buyer’s program, the cashier will ask you if you have a phone number with us or if you are apart of the frequent buyer’s program. You can say “No, but I’d like to sign up” and the cashier will be able to sign you up right there at the register. If you don’t have any items that are on Astro, the cashier won’t ask if you have an account with us, but you can still ask to sign up! The process of signing up for an Astro Loyalty account typically takes 1 minute. The cashier will ask for your first and last name, phone number, email, and your address.
2:
On our website, under the “Sale” tab, click “Frequent Buyer Program.” This will take you to a page where you can either choose to see all of our frequent buyers programs, located on the right of your screen, or you can click “Sign Up Now” on the left side. After clicking “Sign Up Now”, you can enter your information and a Mounds employee will enter your information into Astro.
What do we do with your information?
It can be worrying giving out your email address and your home address to a company. We value our customers and their right to privacy, which is why we never give out your personal information. The only reasons we ask for your email address are emailing you Mounds coupons that you can use in our stores along with other information like special events. Some sales we have that require an Astro account, might also require an email address in order for you to get the deal. This is determined by each brand, not us. Lastly, we would need your email if you adopt a pet and would like to get a free adoption kit. To redeem a free adoption kit, Astro requires us to have an email on file for you. This ensures that every customer gets 1 free kit every 365 days. You also may be emailed some additional coupons from your free adoption kit.
As for your home address, we only have this for mailing purposes. It is rare, but sometimes we like to mail you some special coupons just for shopping with us!
However, you can always choose to unsubscribe from emails after signing up. We won’t take it personal.
Is there a way I can keep track of my punches?
We highly recommend downloading the Astro Loyalty app onto your phone. It allows you to see all of your punch cards and how many punches you have on each one. Under each punch card, you’ll be able to see if there is a time limit, how many punches you need to earn a free item, and what determines your free item. For example, it tells you if your free item will be the lesser or equal value item on your punch card, or what size bag of kibble.
Simply search for “Astro Loyalty Consumer App” and download the app service in either the App Store for Apple devices or the Google Play Store for Android.
Your username is the e-mail used when signing up in-store for your account or if you made a submission through the form on our website. If you received the Welcome E-mail, it asked you to set up a password. If you did not receive that, use the “Reset Password” button after entering your e-mail to set up your password.
While another store may use Astro Loyalty, your deals and frequent buyer redemptions through Mounds are only valid at Mounds. We cannot combine punch cards with Astro Frequent Buyer Cards started at different stores. Your Astro Loyalty account with Mounds is valid at every Mounds location.
We cannot accept receipts or UPCs and convert them to the Frequent Buyer Cards in your account.
Hopefully this post helps you get a better understanding of what Astro is all about! As always, if you have any questions, feel free to ask any Mounds employee in stores or fill out the Contact Us form on our website.
Rose
Full time cat lover (and Mounds employee).