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Unlimited Free Trial for "Savable" - a Cashback Aggregation and Notification Tool

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Short version:
Savable is a chrome/firefox extension which aggregates the most popular cashback deals, and displays in an intuitive and non-disruptive way. With Savable, you not only will never miss a cashback deal, but also be able to choose the best deal available to you, and apply them in just one click. Please check this 30 sec video on how it works: https://youtu.be/kEpEDTZW4vo

Long version:
I bought a bike for my son from RebelSport online a few weeks ago. Right after I clicked the "Confirm Payment" button I realized that I forgot to use cashrewards which could have saved me a good $10. Even worse, I then found that shopback was doing a promotion and had 15% cashback with Rebel that day. As an ozbargainer, you know my feeling…..

I then realized that a tool might be useful to notify cashback deals whenever you shopping online. After some research, I found both cashrewards and shopback have their own extension, but they are way too intrusive. I wanted to use them both, but their big popups just stack with each other.

So I decided to create my owner version. After a few weeks of hard work, I published the small tool called "Savable" in both chrome and firefox. I liked it at it is both useful and not that intrusive. Unfortunately, chrome extensions are not available on mobile devices so you can only use it with your pc/laptop. You can use it with Firefox mobile but I haven't optimized the user experience for mobile usage yet. Please let me know if you want to use a mobile version so I will put some effort into it.

I plan to charge $0.99 for the tool to cover the on-going server cost. But happy to provide an unlimited free trial version to the ozbargain community as I saved a lot from here (akka spent a lot). All feedbacks are welcome.


—Disclaimer—
Technically I can see what people are browsing after they install the plugin - as most of the browser plugin does, but I don't record them. I only check if there is cashback for the site users are browsing, if there is, then shows the deals.

Related Stores

Savable
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closed Comments

  • +3

    Wow! Good work…seems like it would be very useful, Cheers OP

    • +1

      Hi foxgaocn. Thought I should mention here that the use of any unsanctioned or third party 'toolbars' and/or 'notifiers' may invalidate tracking, and will definitely invalidate any cashback claims. I'm speaking only on behalf of Cashrewards, but I'm certain the same will apply to other cashback sites. Thanks. TA.

      • Hmmm. This is concerning.

      • +4

        100% aligned with TA guys. There's a chance your cashback may be invalidated, so please use the extension at your own risk!

        SB rep here

      • +45

        Then cashrewards/SB might want to consider what the extension and the comments here are telling you - both that someone wanted to write such a tool, and that users are interested in using it.

        Basically a) people dislike the current cashrewards/SB extensions, such as the popup size and location, and b) people want a tool that checks for multiple cashback sites at once, and tells you the best offer, and c) there are sometimes better cashbacks through other sites.

        The best business response is surely a) to change your current extension to address those qualms, and b) to provide some open interface so that 3rd party tools can use cashrewards/SB and track correctly, and c) to ensure cashrewards/SB has the best or equal best cashbacks so that people have no reason to use anyone else.

        • I don't think a business is going to create a plugin that will their show competitors rates. That's like Harvey Norman having on their product pages a price comparison with Officeworks and JB Hi Fi. "Oh hey we sell this computer for $1200, but OW sell it for $1000. Shop there instead".

        • +9

          That's not what I'm suggesting, in fact I agree with you, and it aligns perfectly with what I said. I.e. BECAUSE they don't want to create a plugin to show competitor rates AND because people clearly want that AND because the reps said it may not track correctly THEREFORE they should create an interface that 3rd parties can call which will track correctly.

          This is more opportunities to be used, not less! So instead of saying it "may invalidate tracking", provide a supported way for their cashback site to be called by external tools which is supported.

      • +3

        Whats the rational behind invalidating the tracking?

      • +15

        Hey TA & idigaeroplanefood, just to clarify that I am not adding any cookies/headers to the web request. The "Apply" button is just a link to your website and all the tracking mechanism is exactly the same as users open a link from your website.

        Again this is a tool for myself and I hope the ozbargain community can also benefit from it. Also, if there are more people using cashback service, you get more transactions. I hope it won't bother you too much.

        • Im sure it works fine, but it removes traffic from their site which is the whole point of these cashback schemes. They will likely actively work so it's no longer compatible with your tool.

        • +8

          @Kambo_Rambo: I reckon they don't need that much traffic as they don't sell Ads on their websites. What they need is transactions - they get more revenue with more transactions. I also believe that "bake a bigger cake" is better than "I want to take more, and you should take less" mindset.

        • I think it would be hard for them to check and invalidate against.

          Do you know what the source of the initial request that they see would be?

          If I google 'cash rewards' and then click to go to the CR website they can see I came to them from google.

          If when using your toolbar the source is something local like "foxgaocn's toolbar" then they could use that to see how people arrive.

          Based on what you said it seems that everything would work against 7.4 https://www.cashrewards.com.au/en/terms-and-conditions
          TA where does it say a tool like this would invalidate a claim?

          Can I ask for your thoughts on this https://www.ozbargain.com.au/comment/6047174/redir
          TA/SB I dont know how your toolbars work but I'd also be interested to hear how you guys do it.

        • +1

          The notification with a comparison of cashback is a great tool. Would use in favourite browser which is heavily adblocked anyway, so for cashback will do as I always do anyway, open a new private window of a different browser which is configured for tracking of all cookies.

      • +1

        Just to clarify - you mean it may invalidate tracking and if so then it will definitely invalidate any cashback claims? Not that using unsanctioned 'toolbars' will definitely invalidate any cashback claims?

  • Great effort. Thanks for the tool.

    Just noticed on the website, available was spelt incorrectly under 'How it works' section.

    • Thanks, will fix soon

  • -5

    OP, please assist the creator and address typo in "how it works" section…

    "Get notified if cashback is avaiable"

    • +3

      OP is the creator and already responded.

  • +1

    Great Job. Well Done.

  • +3

    Before installing it says: It can read & change all website data.
    How secure is this?

    • +8

      I have to inject content into the web page, that is basically how most of the chrome/firefox extensions work. Google and Mozilla reviewed the source code before I can publish, so no worries if you ever use any other plugins/extensions.

      • thx for explanation. Will check it out.

      • +8

        Google … reviewed the source code before I can publish

        Ah, I see, you must think Google cares about Android security to the extent that it would review code on its marketplace like it says it does.

        Let me enlighten you: Google's "review" procedures are so hopeless that criminals merely change the name of malicious applications and upload them from a new account after security researchers have reported them. In other words there is no review at all and Google is lying when it says it does.

        https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/malicious-app…

        • +2

          Sorry this is not an Android app and is an extension for Chrome, you can't use it on Android.

  • -2

    Would be great to have this on internet edge too. I purchase a xiaomi robot vacuum v2 3 days ago without using ebay cashback :(

    • +22

      according to my research, only 3.6% Australians are using IE edge. I'll probably do safari before IE, sorry :(

      • +1

        In my opinion, don't do either of those crappy, single-platform, proprietary browsers.

      • Yeah. Give me the Safari extension!

    • +10

      Your problem is that you use Edge.

      • Please tell me why is it a problem "preferring" Edge vs another browser ?

        • +6

          There isn't, but don't expect developers to support your niche browser.

    • So use chrome or firefox.

    • +1

      Edge is just a program that you used to download Firefox.

  • anyone else having issues installing on chrome? I get "Price Not available" listed when i try to install

    • @mustbargain might be a locale issue. I just enabled UK and US, can you please try again?

      • Thanks mate, it worked now. The work proxy route's via other countries and i think that was the issue.

  • +1

    both cashrewards and shopback have their own extension, but they are way too intrusive

    Agreed.

    Is there a way of disabling your extension with a hotkey?

    • +1

      It will popup the first time you visit the site, then only the icon will be shown within the same session. You may also to move the icon to somewhere else if you like.
      Please let me know if you still think it is intrusive, I can add the disable feature for sure.

      • That'd be great if you could!

        I'm more worried about privacy than anything and being able to enable/disable it with a hotkey would be a solution.

      • +1

        Please let me know if you still think it is intrusive, I can add the disable feature for sure.

        yep
        Definitely need a way to hide/remove the pig
        Dragging it around isnt the best, and if you hover over it the menu of discounts pops up again

  • +1

    Privacy policy seems ok

    What personal or sensitive data do we collect?

    We don't collect any personal data. We will need to use your browser URL in order to look up the cashback providers for the site.

    With whom it is shared?

    We don't share any data with 3rd parties.

    How you will be notified of any Privacy Policy changes

    We will update the Privacy Policy Page in case there are Privacy Policy changes

    • +2

      The Privacy Policy has overlooked the data that Google Tag Manager collects to provide analytics, but that's a small oversight.

      • Good point. Google is super pervasive and whilst some people are ok with that, many do not understand just how prevalent they are.

    • We don't collect any personal data. We will need to use your browser URL in order to look up the cashback providers for the site.

      Does this mean every URL I visit is sent back?

      Why send the entire URL and not just the domain?

      More importantly why send the URL/domain at all?

      From a privacy point you get to see a lot from the URL (search terms, product details etc).

      Why not have a list that is pushed to the clients containing all domains/cashback providers so the matching is done locally?
      This would also save you from having to process every URL that every user visits.

      • Technically I just need the domain, I chose to parse the domain from backend just to minimise the javascript code, nothing else.

        Push the list to clients is not a good idea since there will be a big amount of data, and I might keep adding it.

        I don't collect any user-specific information and hope that getting the URL ppl was accessing is fine

        • +2

          Technically I just need the domain, I chose to parse the domain from backend just to minimise the javascript code, nothing else.

          This is not great for privacy and getting the hostname is as simple as window.location.hostname which you can then parse the domain from backend rather than having to send entire page URL which is invasive.

  • I assume in time you will add others such as PricePal and overseas ones? Also assuming the current rates are kept up to date with some sort of bot? If so will be handy to have a cashback comparison without having to go looking.

    • +2

      Hey LeTintin, PricePal is already included :) And yes the rate is updated daily.

  • This extension makes some pages not display correctly.
    What's more worrying is these web pages are completely unrelated to shopping (eg: web-based emails).

    • Hey @fury, can you please let me know which websites you encounter the problem? I tested quite a few sites but apparently cannot cover all. Thanks in advance.

      • Message sent.

  • Thanks, just clicked the try now button (Looks good!) - has this activated the unlimited trial?

    • +4

      Yes, the current trial will be unlimited as I won't check the license for users who installed before a certain date.

      • +1

        Cool! thank you. What about reinstalls?

        • +6

          Haven't dug deep into google license API yet, I hope they give me information on when the extension was initially installed so I can skip the check.

  • Thanks @foxgaocn for putting together a great Extension for the browsers, very much appreciated!

    A mobile extension would be amazing also

  • The website for this is very polished. Well done. Seems like a handy tool but I can't test it for another few days

  • Looks awesome.

    Do you have a process for logging possible issues? Or should they be raised here?

    • +1

      Hey @tonydav, I don't have an issue tracker yet. You can click the "contact me" link on the website to report an issue. Thank you.

  • +2

    Nice concept. Do you plan on adding more cashback providers eg. TopCashback?

    • +4

      I will if there are good ones to add. Within Australia, I found CR and shopback are the best, pricepal is not competitive in most cases.
      Please let me know if you use other cashback providers often. TopCashback seems to be a good candidate :)

      • Mrrebates.com is a favourite of mine as is ebates.com

      • PricePal is very competitive at the Founder tier. :)

  • Thanks thats awesome

  • +1

    Thanks, looks great!
    Would it be possible for your plugin to detect if there is a current cashback offer active, and if so highlight it. Also if a current offer is active could it highlight if a competitors cashback offer is better?

    • +1

      I was thinking to provide the "detect active cashback" feature as I always afraid that it is not activated yet whilst I was shopping online. Will look into this.

      • +2

        And next step - automatically checks on Price Hipster and give a warning "This item has been cheaper before… and per pervious cycles is expected to go on sale in xx days!!!" ;)

  • Thank you OP for the effort!

  • +1

    This is great. The cashrewards extension has been fine, but the popup is in the worst spot. Especially considering it sends you back to the homepage and it is always covering up the cart icon to tell you the cashback has been applied.

    Speaking of, is there any way to add the functionality to actually take you back to the page you were on before clicking the cashback link?

    • +3

      As per the spot, it is really hard to find an ideal one. I personally find the bottom-right is the least intrusive so decided to put there. I might not move it as different sites have different designs and there is no silver bullet. I'll make 'disable the extension' as might first priority so if you find it is annoying for some websites, you can disable it temporarily.

      I also found it's annoying that every time you applied a deal, you are sent back to the homepage. No easy solution here as a third party. What I normally do is to add everything I want to cart, then click the apply button.

      • May I suggest an option within the app to relocate the pop up to a desired location (eg. top right, bottom right, etc.)

        Maybe in one of the future releases.

        But in either case a great idea and a wonderful app I will certainly use. Thanks OP

  • Great work! Any chance of an Opera extension?

    • +10

      There probably aren't enough deals for that form of theatre to warrant a dedicated tool.

      • -3

        I'm not sure if you're joking, but I'm talking about the web browser called "Opera".

  • Great Work

  • +1

    Bravo. I can't stand the cashrewards extension.

  • +1

    I haven't posted in a while, but this extension is absolutely brilliant. Thank you for your contribution to the community!!

  • any chance there is an option to extend or choose the length of time it is displayed? cheers by the way, good work.

    • +1

      scrap that comment. just noticed you hover above the pig. thanks

  • +6

    Awesome extension, thanks OP. Would you ever consider including bonus points click-throughs from Qantas, Velocity, ANZ, etc.?

    • +6

      Thanks for the feedback. I will add this to my feature request list. I am also thinking to add shipster information.

      • +5

        Nice, thanks for that. Maybe myUnidays too while you're at it :P

        One feedback, great if you can put a scroll bar to the deals list. When it's too long, the top part disappears :(

        e.g. https://cottonon.com/AU/

        • +3

          wow, I didn't realise there are so many for cottonon.com :(

      • Thanks for implementing this!

  • Should probably consider adding an SSL to your website.

    • The site servers static info only, there is an SSL backend which does all the heavy lifting.

  • Thanks, I will give it a try.

    As a first impression - and an opinion only - I wouldn't mind the pig being a bit less conspicuous, rather than occupying a sizeable part of my screen real estate.

    • Thanks. I personally found it is ok on PC/laptop, definitely too big if you are on mobile FF though.

  • +1

    would definitely use a safari version

  • +1

    On your website I get a 15px horizontal scrollbar. I think you need to add a <DIV class="container"> around the row with the download links. Or if you like the wider spread on larger screens the add a <div style="padding: 0 15px"> to offset the negative margin on the row.

    Thoughts.
    - I think the icon is too big for me I'd almost prefer just having the tool bar icon make a very obvious colour change or animation. Or possibly instead of a floating icon make a fixed bar along the bottom of the page.
    - I don't suppose there is any way to know if one of the referrers is currently active - that is one thing Cashrewards does that I find reassuring as I checkout.

    Hey you never know if you get a big enough install base you might end up setting up your own referral system (obviously would need to be competitive with the others - but still you seem to have the skills to do this).

    • +1

      Salute to the Ninja :)

      • FIxed the container issue and deploying now
      • Regarding to the icon, I will reduce the size in the next version. I made it floating because it won't change the overall layout of the original page, and sometimes it might cover important information
      • Regarding to the tracking, my guess is that they use some kind of cookie, but not quite sure yet.
      • Regarding to next step, I don't have a clear plan yet. At the moment I hope I can make a good number of happy users.
  • +1

    I noticed that the Pricepal cashback % range only covers White to Black tiers. I'm on the founder tier, and the rates are only visible when you sign in. They're generally 20% higher than Black. It would be really handy if your extension could include these.

    • +1

      I even didn't know there is a "founder tier" :(
      Unfortunately, I can only access White to Black tiers, unless someone from Pricepal can provider me an account with founder tier access.

      • This is potentially a dealbreaker for me, and such a shame as this plugin sounds fantastic! (I've just installed but haven't tried it yet.)

        PricePal is very competitive at Founder tier and is my #1 preferred cashback site in the cases where cashback is equal between sites (because they upgraded me to that tier back in the day). :D

        I hope you are able to get access to the Founder rates. I am happy to assist if you like.

  • Great idea - just installed it! "Feedbacks" should be spelled as "feedback".

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