Blog >> The Basics: An Introduction To Buying Groups
By Kevin Zanes / September 19, 2021
How do you continue earning points and miles after maxing out your every day spend and sign up bonuses? While chasing sign up bonuses and optimizing your everyday spend will net you a few hundred thousand points and miles per year, there is a ceiling. The ceiling exists where your cost equals your income. Past that point, the credit card interest negates any value from points and miles. Enter, buying groups.
What Is A Buying Group
A buying group is an organization, which allows “buyers,” i.e. you, to purchase a wide range of retail items, or “deals,” on behalf of the organization; at prices below average retail. At the point of purchase, you ship the item(s) directly to the buying group’s warehouse. Upon receipt of the item(s), the buying group reimburses you in full for the purchase! For a rare, or limited quantity, item, you often earn a commission. By using your credit card, you earn points and miles for the purchase, but spend no money, as the buying group reimbursement pays the credit card balance.
What Are Example Buying Groups
Numerous buying groups exist across a wide spectrum of retail goods, but only a handful are worthy of your consideration due to overall quality, service, and trustworthiness. Here are some of the most popular buying groups in service today.
Buy For Me Retail
Buy For Me Retail (BFMR) launched in 2018 and provides a wide variety of deals in the consumer products segment (mainly electronics). New deals appear at least once per week, but the overall number of deals remain lower than other buying groups. BFMR offers you multiple shipping addresses in New Hampshire. The best feature of BFMR is the extremely fast payment [Automated Clearing House (ACH)] upon delivery and confirmation. The sleek interface and overall positive customer experience makes BFMR one of the most popular buying groups.
Max Out Deals
Max Out Deals (MOD) launched a public site in 2022, but operated a successful Buying Group via Discord for many years. The site provides a wide variety of deals in the consumer electronics segment. New deals appear frequently, with multiple deals appearing per week. MOD offers two shipping options including addresses in Delaware and California. Current payment options are limited to e-checks, but plans for ACH exist. However, the true differentiator is the plethora of above retail deals (often the largest payouts for an item).
The Deal Buyer
The Deal Buyer (DB) launched in 2019 and provides you a wide variety of deals in the consumer electronics segment. New deals appear frequently; often multiple deals per week. The Deal Buyer offers multiple shipping addresses in Oregon. Payment options include ACH and mobile check shortly after receiving items. The easy to navigate and plentiful deals and quick payment make The Deal Buyer a popular buying group.
MYS Buying Group
MYS Buying Group (MYS) launched in 2018 and provides a wide variety of deals in the consumer electronics segment. New deals appear frequently; often multiple time per week. MYS offers multiple shipping addresses in Delaware and the opportunity to make a physical drop off in New Jersey, New York, and California. The payment processing is extremely slow, and often takes between one to two weeks after delivery and confirmation. Despite the slow payment, MYS maintains popularity on the basis of plentiful deals and good customer service.
PFS Buyers Club
PFS Buyers Club (PFS) launched in 2015, although deals existed as far back as 2005, and focuses on “limited quantity” deals; such as coins issued by the United States Mint. New deals are infrequent in nature, occurring once a month to once every few months. Due to the “limited quantity” nature of the deals, they sell out within minutes of going live. Unlike other buying groups, the item(s) ships directly to your home address. PFS Buyers Club then provides you a fully paid shipping label. A drop off option is available for residents of New York City and Los Angeles. The payment processing takes up to seven days, after receipt of the item, through either PayPal or check. The differentiator for PFS Buying Club is the high commissions; sometimes in the hundreds of dollars per order.
Why Are Buying Groups Important
There are numerous advantages to buying group participation. Buying groups are a relatively “risk free” and “minimal effort” method to accelerate your points and miles growth at zero cost; and even a profit at times! In the absence of a looming “large” purchase, a buying group is the perfect alternative to hit the minimum spend requirement on a sign up bonus.
What Are The Challenges With Buying Groups
Despite the numerous advantages buying groups provide, there are limitations. The major limitation is the ability to process completely an order. The retail entity (i.e. Walmart, Target, Best Buy, etc.), at times, cancels your order due to “suspicious activity;” often due to the different “ship to” and “payment” addresses. Sadly, there is no general rule on cancellations, as each user has a unique mix of success and failure with each buying group / retail entity combination. In addition, although extremely rare, the potential for lost packages exists. Since you are the purchaser, you bear the risk and administrative burden of the lost package.
Final Thoughts
A buying group is an excellent way to hit a sign up bonus spend requirement or earn additional points and miles on top of every day spend. Start with a single buying group, I recommend Buy For Me Retail, to get a feel for the process. When you are comfortable with the process and cycle time, expand to another group. The more groups in which you participate, the more complex the logistics of tracking purchases and payments. Thankfully, the majority of buying groups now offer ACH transfers, which reduces the time between purchase and payment. For those buying groups with significant time between purchase and payment, ensure you manage the float (i.e. do not carry a credit card balance). Any credit card interest instantly negates the value of earning points and miles! With that said, enjoy those extra points and miles!