Need for transparency on sales promotions

IT is a normal and acceptable practice for businesses to promote their products and or services in creative ways. Sales promotions help sell products or services, as well as benefit consumers.

However, my two recent experiences with “sales promotion” had left much to be desired. Recently, an e-wallet provider announced a RM2.50 “reward” for a RM10 top-up. The company’s terms and conditions stated that this was for the first 100,000 top-ups executed.

I was attracted to it as it has a good return and costs me only RM10 in “investment”. Furthermore, banks have never offered such a rate of return. After the prescribed 3-day waiting period, nothing happened. My e-wallet balance remains at RM10 till today. I am aware that I may not be among the lucky 100,000. But the question is, who are the “winners”?

This raises another question on whether there is a need for regulations requiring such promoters to make a report to the authorities or, better still, make known to all concerned the full list of “winners”. An online posting, for example, will do.

The e-wallet company’s socalled sales promotion also sees it raising a million ringgit almost instantly. The likelihood is that the clients will leave this money as their minimum balance in their e-wallet accounts. This is an easy way to raise money.

My second experience was when I registered for an education “webinar”. The organiser said that the first 200 people to register for the event would get a newly-published book on issues that were discussed in the webinar.

I registered early and the webinar proceeded smoothly but I did not get the book. If this is so, then I must have had registered after the first 200 people. But, who are they?

There is a need for transparency for such offers. Clients should not have to harbour doubts about sales promotions. I hope the authorities and businesses will give this issue due attention.

LIONG KAM CHONG Seremban, Negri Sembilan