| By Jim Bruene on May 22, 2008 5:52 PM | Comments (3) |
It's an unusual time of year to see a free iPod offer (see previous coverage here, here and here). Usually, they appear closer to the fall "checking account season" when consumers start thinking about holiday gift giving. That way, even if they don't need an iPod themselves, they might still be motivated to get one to give to someone else.
However, Bank of North Georgia, one of 36 bank brands owned by Synovus, has an offer running through June 20. Customers opening a new personal checking account, including free checking and sending three bill payments by the end of July, earn a free iPod Nano. The bank may be testing the pull of the freebie during the graduation gift season. We checked the other Synovus banks and none are offering free iPods, at least not prominently (note 1).
Bank of North Georgia is using a homepage graphic of the latest generation iPod Nano, complete with Flash video running on the Nano screen. The fine print (as shown on the offer landing page):
The iPod ships before Oct. 1, just in time for the next holiday. Thanks to Bank Deals for the find.
Bank of North Georgia homepage (20 May 2008)
Note:
1. Tested from a Seattle IP address on 20 May 2008. We refreshed the homepage multiple times to see all offers presented in the main window. We did not search the entire websites of the 36 banks.
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can you open an account online? does not look like it :(
The thing that I like most about this offer is that it actually seems attainable. So many "Free iPod" giveaways are so far fetched and out of reach I think they'd do more harm than good.
At least in this promotion they outline what you need to do (which doesn't seem unreasonable if you are an educated online banker) and what you get, guaranteed.
Valley Credit Union also has a free iPod checking promotion. Members will receive a shuffle for most checking accounts or a nano if they open a high balance checking account. The only requirement is direct deposit.