Second Sample Room Haul for August

Have you noticed that Sample Room has been adding a lot of new samples for members lately? This is a challenge for members like me who have only 100+ points when it comes to choosing the products to try out. I think this is how you get to test your creativity and arithmetic skills; by limiting your choices within 100+ points and choosing the ones that you think will really work for you- after all, you know very well what you need above all.

For this batch ( I already forgot how many hauls from Sample Room it has been), I have two items to test: Gluta-C Intense Whitening Facial Day Cream SPF 25 and Pevonia Enzymo-Spherides Facial Peeling Cream.

Let's try these products out, shall we?

I am cooking up something along with other bloggers for you guys, just look out for the banners on the sidebar. In the meantime, there are two ongoing giveaways for you!

Sun Putty Giveaway

August Collaboration Giveaway

“Spreading The Bouquet” Awards

Thanks to Chin for tagging me with this award! 

It’s a different version of the Liebster, but I am still not passing up any opportunity to tag new and old bloggers- or simply people I want to get to know a little bit more. 

I am tagging the following bloggers:

1.       Pauchee

2.       Damon

3.       Jemm

4.       Patricia

5.       Jannie

6.       Aviva

7 Interesting Things About Yourself

1.       I live in a farmhouse with at least ten dogs, pigs and goats running all over the place. 

2.       I now work for the government and have to deal with two different writing styles for professional outputs-pressured!

3.       Even if I am a big fan of books and other genres of literary forms, I now invest more time in reading Technical Reports , Project Proposals drafting and writing and other more technical aspects of writing.

4.       Authors I truly admire are:

a.       Virginia Wolfe-stream of consciousness

b.      Ernest Hemingway

c.       Scott Fitzgerald

d.      Gabriel Garcia Marquez-magical realism

e.      Jose Saramago

f.        Ursula Le Guin-Nebula Prize for Science Fiction

g.       Haruki Murakami

h.      Nick Bantock

i.         JRR Tolkien

j.        John Green

k.       Gregory Maguire

l.         Umberto Eco-this guy drives me nuts!

As for the newcomers in contemporary literature- I am somewhere in the middle of the fence and I still have to look for unique writing styles that really stand out. 

5.       I had an obsession with reading all of Shakespeare’s work when I was in high school.

6.       I hoard all Stephen King books that I can find on a bargain and try my best not to read them at night because my head can get the better of me sometimes, I even become scared to go the bathroom when it’s dark, something might show up from behind the shower curtains…

7.       Speaking of the bathroom, I have a weakness for clean tiles in bathrooms…=)

 
I still have two giveaways if you are interested to join.

Sun Putty Giveaway

August Collaboration Giveaway

Raisie Speaks: Why Beauty Companies Should Protect Customer Relationships

Being a blogger and social media stalker, I like visiting Facebook pages and looking at various activities from different companies and brands. Naturally, as a person, if there are contests being held, I have the tendency to join in contests and giveaways in the hopes of trying out new products that I otherwise cannot afford to purchase because like most people, I am on a budget. 

For the month of August, I participated in two contests both held by beauty companies in Facebook and won. But the difference is that Company A gave no response to the inquiries and options I suggested in claiming my prizes. I even went as far as messaging their Facebook page account, and also their company email explaining that I could not claim the prize in their head office because I am from the province. This was disappointing since a friend of mine also won and both of us were willing to shoulder the shipping expense.  Still, after a week of waiting, nothing. There was no reply to my two messages in FB, and still no reply to the email I sent to their site and company email. 

On the other hand, Company B was truly accommodating. I even had a late night chat with the Facebook representative and received specific instructions on how I could claim my prize which will be coming all the way from their head office to a branch nearest me. Now with this positive handling of Company B, it made me feel that this is a company that will be greatly patronized by me in the long-term not just because of their products or their marketing gimmicks but because they respond to inquiries and make it a point to arrive at solutions to make things better for the customer.

 

It was quite sad at how Company A handled concerns because I am a regular user of their products. At least I had an outlet to share my thoughts-which is here in Raisie Speaks. But I am not a solo winner who helped spread the word about the goodness of their company, there are still so many more out there who were dismayed. Sure, it is just a few products but I was looking forward to trying them out and helping talk about the effects and benefits on someone who had the same skin type as me. But I believe that not responding to my inquiry was a choice and I think that they have the option to reach out to their customers in the same manner as how they promoted their activities and gimmicks online. This made me think now that I am not the only disappointed person expressing grievances, there were still so many more. So I think it really cannot be helped. I also understand that social media presence is a way for their brand to be established and it supports their marketing, but will beauty companies be receiving positive marketing and feedback if they neglected not just one or two customers but a hundred?

On the other hand, they are missing out on a positive relationship that could have blossomed between them and a loyal customer because word of mouth and other feedback is bound to spread. But then again, it is a choice. 

Onto the other side of the coin, Company B took careful note of their customers’ profiles and even asked questions as to providing feedback for their products and services. Now this is an example of satisfactory customer service. I feel that I can trust this company and do more business with them in the long term.

Building relationships should be a priority among beauty companies because it:

• Is a reflection of their brand
• Gives a sense of trust to the customers
• Can lead to long-term business between both parties
•  Can develop into promotions of other forms

I am sure there are others out there who feel the same way. But I have already learned to deal with it though. I am moving on. 

By the way, Company B’s real brand name is HBC. =) 

Raisie Speaks: 3 Tips To Save Money On Magazine Copies

Here I am again on money saving tips when it comes to reading materials. It just goes to show how much of a cheapskate I am! This time, I am going to help you save money when it comes to buying magazine copies. If you are from Zamboanga, I can mention specific places where you can find bargains. These tips, I have discovered when buying magazines for my Mom. Yes, she does not have patience to read novels with small fonts in print. Our favorites are Real Living, Yummy and Good Housekeeping, yeah, you get the idea…

So are you ready? Let’s start.

1. Buy Back Issues

I do my grocery shopping at Mindpro and every time I pass by the Bloomingdale’s ground floor section, I get to check the magazine stands and look for titles I could bring home especially during the weekends. I look for those that my Mom would also appreciate. We are in the middle of moving furniture at home, so anything related to lifestyle and home is good.

Here is a secret I am sharing with you. You don’t really have to buy the month’s latest issue unless there is content that you really need or are really interested in. The good thing about last month’s unsold issue is that Bloomingdale’s sometimes includes a back issue of another unsold magazine copy and you can get two magazines for the price of one. The next time you pass by to do your grocery shopping, you can do the same practice with the next back issue.

2. Buy A Full Year Subscription 

Okay, there are advantages when you get a full year subscription. I am thinking about getting my Mom a full subscription for her birthday to Real Living because she likes to get ideas for home décor from the articles of said publication.

Full year subscribers usually get priority when the copies are released and you can expect yours at the start of every month, about the same time as the copies hit magazine stands. Another plus about annual subscriptions is that you can save more and not worry for a full year. You will find that picking up separate issues from magazine stands are costlier whereas full subscriptions are already offered at discounted prices. And here is another bonus, if the publication decides to include freebies-yep, you get to have first dibs and not worry about being beaten to by someone else!

  3. (If You Are From Zamboanga) Go To The Sta. Maria-Pasonanca Jeepney Paradahan and Look For That Tambakan ng Mga Magazine Shop in Campaner Street

Now, this place is a go-to when you are conscious about reading material like I am, and if you want to start saving on magazine copies, be my guest. The Tambakan Ng Mga Magazine is not the shop’s name, though when you go looking for it, you can’t miss it. Now this is dumped magazine central-no kidding. You can get magazines at a discount, though there is a catch. If the magazines do come with freebies, most likely someone has already helped him or herself. =)

Whew. Now. That’s. About. It.

How did you find these tips? Are they helpful for you even if you are not from ZC? How do you save money on magazine subscriptions? You can share your thoughts with me in the comments below.

I have two giveaways ongoing which you can join if you are feeling lucky!

Sun Putty Giveaway

August CollaborationGiveaway

Sun Putty SPF 30 Giveaway- 4 Jars To Bring Home!

 How are you all doing? Boy, do I have really cool news for you lovely readers! (Obviously I can't contain my excitement because of all the exclamations (!) !)

So yep, just as the title says, Sun Putty has offered 1 lucky winner the chance to try out Sun Putty SPF 30 Broad Spectrum Sunscreen in the 1/4 oz jar in 4 1/4 oz. jars, yes,-four! quatro! apat! to share to family and friends so I won't be an isolated case just talking like in my last post here, do you get me?. So how's that for fair? I am giving a big shout out of thank you to Ben and Danielle all the way from Sun Putty dot com for this smart giveaway idea and for trusting my blog for this giveaway. =)


Alright, enough talking, let's start the giveaway!

You can provide a serviceable shipping address once you are picked as the winner and my good friends from Sun Putty will ship the prize to you. (You gotta love these thoughtful people at Sun Putty as much as I do...)

 

a Rafflecopter giveaway