In early June, a number of the Albertsons Companies supermarket chains (Acme, Albertsons, Carrs, Jewel-Osco, Pavilions, Randalls, Safeway, Shaw’s, Star Market, Tom Thumb, and Vons) began running a “Flavor Adventure” sweepstakes game with over $6-million in prizes. The more you spend in the store, the more entries you get.
But, no commercial enterprise can require you to spend money in order for a chance at a prize — that is the classic definition of an illegal lottery. They have to offer a simple, free method whereby anyone can enter without making a purchase. That is called an “alternate method of entry” (AMOE). So at the bottom of the company’s email shown above in (too) tiny type is information about that free means of entry with the magic words “no purchase necessary.”
*MOUSE PRINT:
That footnote says to find out the free AMOE you have to visit this link (called “rules”) or for all the details, this link called “Official Rules.” They both take you to the same place. [Note: URLs depersonalized]
Buried in those rules is the free method of entry:
*MOUSE PRINT:
Rather than tell you in simple terms where to send in an entry, like your name and address on a 3 x 5 card, or provide a specific URL, it just says to go to the promotion website, click on the menu, and then the rules button, etc. Didn’t I already click on the rules and now it telling me to do it again. And which menu on the website am I supposed to click?
But let’s play along. Going to the promotion’s website, [page varies for non-loyalty club members] brings us here. There is no menu, but there is a “play now” button and farther down the page yet another link to the official rules.
If you click “play now” the next page gives you a pop-up that among other things says you have to be a loyalty club member to participate (itself a questionable requirement), and yet another instruction to “See Official Rules for free method of entry.” OMG. Do you feel like you are being sent in circles?
And when you click “start playing,” then you get yet another screen with instructions to see the rules about playing for free:
And if you click that button, you get yet another button to start the game.
Clicking that button brings up what appears to be the actual start of the game… but nowhere to be seen is how you enter the sweepstakes without having to demonstrate that you bought groceries at the store.
I invite intrepid readers to spend time reading the rules, and trying various options on the website to find where exactly the free method of entering the sweepstakes has been hidden and to report in the comments what steps you had to go through to get there. There is an answer and believe it or not, you have not seen the most obnoxious part yet!
In our view, the free means of entry that Albertsons Companies has created is illusory because of the complicated series of hoops they created for nonpurchasers to follow that most people will likely abandon. In essence, the alternative means of entry has failed of its essential purpose. And if that is the case, a consumer-sympathetic judge might deem the Albertsons promotion to be an illegal lottery.
Why would any company make it so difficult for their customers (and noncustomers) to participate in this game? Then it dawned on me. What if it was in their financial interest to make it harder? A scan of the official rules provided a possible answer.
*MOUSE PRINT:
Of the over $6.6-million in prizes being offered, only $1.25-million-worth are prizes over $25 for shoppers. That means as much as $5-million of the smaller prizes if they go unclaimed never have to be given away. Obviously, we don’t know the company’s motivation in designing the sweepstakes as they did.
We posed some very pointed questions in multiple inquiries to the Albertsons Companies’ PR folks, including whether they consumer-tested the no-purchase-necessary-method of entry to see if average humans could follow their instructions. They did not respond.
This promotion cries out for action by the FTC and the consumer bar.
This is clearly (ridiculously) deceptive, and once a person educated in FTC law calls them on it (like you have here Edgar), things will start happening. I bet things get cleared up in very short order – likely by the end of the week.
Edgar, no fair your torturing your readers this way! Just kidding, but try as I did, I used as many methods as I could to enter the “Flavor Adventure” sweepstakes for free. Or even trying for the non-free version. I did read every single element of the terms and conditions (and I can’t believe I’m still awake). Heck, I shop at one of the participating Arizona Safeways and I still couldn’t enter the contest–yes, using even the non-free method as well. I’d even signed into my Safeway account. At one point during the process, a pop-up appeared, “How would you like to continue?” I was given a choice of “Currently Shopping,” with a store in Boston listed, or “Previously Shopped” which did show the local Safeway where I normally shop. Only problem is that the “Continue” button didn’t work, and the screen was locked up. I had to “X” out of the screen to get rid of it.
I don’t even see how Albertsons customers can enter who are willing to spend the $10 minimum. I even tried Googling, “Google ? albertsons “flavor adventure,”” and it simply took me to the same areas I’d already surveyed. For example, the really odd thing is that when I was able to make a legitimate response within the contest, it took me to my local Safeway’s website, where there was no mention or reference of the contest, free or non-free. Sorry, Edgar, it was at that point that I gave up in frustration.
This is going to probably be the most interesting Mouse Print ever, in terms of reading others’ responses. Who among Edgar’s readers is going to be the first to successfully enter the sweeps for free? I think Edgar should award that person $25,000.
And c’mon Edgar. No fair mentioning the most obnoxious part of the contest, when I couldn’t get far enough to see it. Talk about a cliff-hanger!
Dan…. thanks for your extraordinary efforts and the time you can never get back in your life to play along with my request.
I jumped through all the hoops and eventually landed on the game page. Got a confirmation email, and again jumped through the hoops to play a second time. Third time there was a notification that the store I chose to participate through was no longer available and I had to start over. At that point, I decided this whole thing was a waste of my time. They aren’t gaining customers by doing this. They lost me! (No stores in my area but I do shop Safeway and Acme when visiting my father.)
Omg you poor american consumers! These cheating methods will never work over the ocean, where companies like albertsons would be toasted and roasted and very very heavily fined for cheating the public in such scams. Wake up and fo something!
I “played” this game Sunday. It is tedious, no fun and a waste of my time. I can’t believe the Marketing Department thought the game was good promotion. However, I think I will continue “playing” (while waiting for appointments, etc) since you pointed out the possibility Albertsons is hoping customers give up and leave unclaimed $$.
Received I don’t know how many e-mails with link, just figure out how to get to end of pages.
Some of the Youtube videos not telling how long there.
Did finally complete 1 game, before I could figure out how to sign out.
To Edna, America not using common sense right!
I’ve been playing the game for a few weeks now. I did take me a few tries befoe I figured out that the menu to click on was the menu at the upper left of the screen showing your game piece on the spatula. From there, it’s Rules > Alternate entry. There are some other chances for another play by clicking on Bonus (upper right).
So, I was already playing the game because I like getting the $1 and $2 rewards on several things I already purchase, but had no idea I could get free entries until your article. I read the rules, clicking around in circles as you said, and finally went poking around in the Safeway app. After spending some time clicking around, I finally got a free entry in the app by going into the game itself, clicking menu, clicking the rules button, scrolling down to the bottom and finding the magical alternate entry link! I then spent what felt like the next 10 minutes watching a youtube video about strawberries, verifying I am a human by identifying pictures of bridges, and submitting the verification of my task. SUCCESS! FREE ENTRY!
Funny side note – I had “won” nothing but coupons until I used my free game play, but on that specific play I won $10 off of my next store purchase! Thanks Edgar!
Mike, I’m curious. I know it was somewhere among a lark, curiosity, an Edgar challenge, and a maybe, just maybe a reward, but did you check how much time you spent doing that? For a final 10 bucks? 🙂 Yes, pulling your chain just a bit, but AM actually wondering.
I’d put $20 on the barrelhead that the corporate folks had many of their own, or a focus group or two, take the challenge and that they timed how long it took for the average person to walk away.
I was a member of a focus group 15 or so years ago and found it interesting how it was conducted — almost as interesting as what changed or did not change in the store chain (a national members “club”) afterward.
Ha! I did spend a solid half hour finding the free entry, but never would have spent that much time had Edgar not posed the challenge!
Mike… I appreciate your taking on the challenge and spending the time in this non-treasure hunt.
In the time it took me figure out how to play for free, I could have had my teeth cleaned, or watched the entire evening news! And I’m computer literate! This is total nonsense.
Edgar, you’ve exposed a lot of duplicitous practices by big companies over the years, but this one is far and beyond the rest!
I’ve had no problems getting the 10 free entries daily by watching videos. I’ve won $20 off, $10 off, a bunch of $15 off various items (paper products meat, etc)
That’s not how the AMOE works for me. I click “menu,” “rules,” “alternate entry” and then play the video and repeat the process.
The alternate method of entry (amoe) really was not that difficult. It is much less time consuming than going into the store. Using the existing system I get up to 10 entries each and every day for free. Since I rarely go shopping more than twice a month using the amoe works for me and gives me many more chances to win than I would get by shopping alone.
Goodness knows it is cheaper than shopping daily to get an entry. I’d rather watch a video and take 5 to 10 minutes or so to figure out how to get the free entries than have to spend 63 cents for a stamp, 5 cents for an envelope and taking time to hand print each and every entry up to the 10 entry limit every ding dong day. Stamps for 10 entries a day = $6.30, envelopes=$.50, 3″x5″sheets of paper=$.20. $7 per day Grand total $49 a week v 70 free entries.
Keep complaining over non-issues. Before long there will be no entries necessary because there will be few sweepstakes to enter.
I am a loyal Acme (Albertsons) customer and I tried to enter the sweepstakes on line without making an instore purchase.
I followed all the links directions menu links, repeat menu links, clicked on an ear of corn or whatever, was taken to another menu link, was directed to web site, more menu links, and finally gave up. Resolved to only shop on Tuesday for the senior discount and otherwise go across the road to Shoprite and down the road to Foodtown it made me so angry.