Click here to sign up for Sunshine Rewards to get cash back on every purchase.

* What are the point of the programs? Some merchants make it easy to learn about their programs while others seem to hide them.
* Traditional cash programs where you get a percentage back from every purchase to spend later on the site. Great examples are drugstore.com dollars, eBay bucks, and Football Fanatics.
* Points programs where you get points for purchases and can later convert them to credits on the merchants site. Most popular included Best Buy Rewards Zone and 1-800-Flowers Fresh Rewards. A new one to Sunshine Rewards is SubscriptionAgent.com.
* Loyalty programs where you do not get get free merchandise credits but you might get even better deals. Prime examples are the Shoebuy 10% coupon for repeat buyers and the Sephora Beauty Insider program.

This week starts some changes to the She Shops Around podcast that hopefully everyone will like. The first change is that instead of focusing on just 3 merchants, we are spreading the love around a little more and talking about many different merchants that fit the topic.

With the release of the second movie in the Twilight series coming this month (Twilight Saga New Moon on November 20), we decided to focus on all things Twilight. Cindy hasn’t seen the movie or read the books, which balanced out Tricia, who is a little addicted.

Show Notes:

* Official Twilight Merchandise. We talked about places where you can buy the most official Twilight merchandise including Amazon, Hot Topic, Nordstrom, Entertainment Earth, and Toys R Us.
* Fan Made Merchandise. Tricia’s favorite place for fan-made Twilight merchandise is CafePress, but you can also find some great items at Zazzle, Customized Girl, and eBay.
* Odds and Ends. Although they don’t have a lot of items each, there are a number of merchants with just a few items worth mentioning. Some of them are AllPosters.com, Skinit.com, Emitations, Fandango, TFAW.com, and Celebrate Express.
* Costumes. We could have spent hours on this topic but touched briefly on BowlingShirt.com, Chickdowntown, Coastal Contacts, and PacSun.
* General Twilight gift ideas for the Twilight fan in your life.
* Highlighted how you can all of the Twilight merchandise you could ever want at BuyTwilightStuff.com.

On the next podcast we will start looking into holiday shopping bargains with an eye toward some guests joining us after the New Year.

In the absence of a good theme this week, we decided to talk about the last place that each of us shopped online. Interestingly, we had all shopped at the places that the others had last shopped (that sentence seems weird). It was our second week using the free conference calling site instead of Skype and it went well.

Show Notes:

* Cindy explained why she shopped at KraftyKid.com despite the fact that she has no kids at home. She got so caught up in the excitement of everyone else buying the craft grab bags that she ended up buying some for her grandsons. (Earn 10% cash back at Sunshine Rewards)
* We’re hoping that KraftyKid.com will be able to stay in business even though their site says that they are no longer doing the Craft of the Month clubs. The grab bags are terrific.
* Tricia talked about drugstore.com and the volumizing hairspray that she purchased there the other day. Everyone was in agreement that drugstore.com has a huge selection of different types of items as well as regular coupons and discounts. (Get drugstore.com coupons and earn 5% cash back).
* Cindy loves the “BOGO.” Angie thought Tricia’s talk about the Sexual Well Being section was TMI.
* Angie introduced Restaurant.com and everyone talked about what a great deal their restaurant gift certificates are as well as how it helps you to try out new restaurants. (Shout out from Tricia to Mudsocks in Noblesville, Indiana!) (Get Restaurant.com coupons and earn 7% cash back)

Next time we will be back to a more traditionally themed podcast. Maybe.

We skipped an episode of podcasting because we were preparing for Affiliate Summit. So we figured that we had better bring our members back something good! Unlike most of our podcasts that have a clear theme, you won’t find anything that links together these three merchant reviews except that they are all merchants that we learned about at Affiliate Summit East in New York. Each of the three is unique in its own right, and we were able to see up close and personal the products from each of them while we were in New York.

Show Notes:

• Cindy walked us through the new ShopKenPaves.com website. Ken Paves is known for being a hairdresser to the stars (including Jessica Simpson). Now you can get his line of hair extensions, cosmetics, and hair products online. (Earn 5% cash back on purchases from Sunshine Rewards)
• Tricia revealed (shockingly) that she colors her hair.
• We were all very impressed with what we learned about Ken Paves and the care that goes into formulating everything that he sells. Look for a video on the videoblog soon where you can see Angie trying out bangs!
• Tricia introduced the Christian products site DaySpring. You may have seen some of their products at your local Hallmark store. They are the world’s largest producer of Christian greetings.
• DaySpring features free shipping on orders over $50 directly on their site, and you can find coupons codes online for $ off certain minimums. (Earn 7% cash back from Sunshine Rewards and check out our exclusive DaySpring coupon!)
• Do you Poken? After being introduced to the Poken at Affiliate Summit, Angie introduced us to the Poken Zoo program. We have a feeling that if you haven’t seen a Poken yet, you will be seeing one soon! (Earn 10% back on purchases through Sunshine Rewards.)
• Pokens allow you to exchange social networking information with people just by touching your Pokens to each other. You have to check out the site to see how cool they are. Angie already ordered her little pink “Geisha.”

No dogs barking, doorbells ringing, or toilets flushing in this podcast. We almost sounded professional. Almost. Next podcast will be about where you can find college and NFL fan gear.

Although it seems like summer just began, it’s actually time to start getting ready to head back to school. Whether you have preschoolers, high schoolers, college students, or non-traditional students in your life, getting ready for school to start means buying school supplies of different kinds. Our three merchant reviews today run the gamut of everything from clothes to electronics to sandwich makers.

Show Notes:

• Angie reviewed her favorite shoe site, Shoebuy.com. Shoebuy is a wonderful merchant both from a customer perspective as well as an affiliate perspective. Free shipping, free returns and great deals. (Earn 9% back on purchases plus use Sunshine Rewards Shoebuy coupons)
• Cindy talked about Kmart (while reminiscing with Tricia about Icees and pretzels with cheese). Did you know that they sell many name brands as well as French Toast school uniforms. And you can now combine your Kmart and Sears purchases into one shopping cart. (Earn 2% back on purchases plus check out all of the Sunshine Rewards Kmart coupons)
• Tricia extolled the virtues of Children’s Place, including how she mixes and matches her kids’ clothes throughout the year. (Earn 3% back on purchases plus use the Sunshine Rewards Children’s Place coupons)
• Announced the winner of the Sunshine Rewards luggage tags.

Although this podcast was about “Back to School,” don’t let it stop you from listening if you don’t have kids. We tried hard to provide a little something for everyone in this one. Next podcast? Mystery merchants!

Summer has officially begun, and we wanted to review some of our favorite summer merchants. Although we kept with our same She Shops Around podcast format this time, we tried to incorporate some feedback from our listeners and keep the podcast at only 30 minutes. What do you think?

Show Notes:

* Cindy reviewed Bealls Department Store, a site that specializes in Florida fashion and housewares. No matter where you live, Bealls (pronounced “Bells”) is a great place to get summer clothes and outdoor items. Check out monthly Bealls coupons.
* Tricia walked through the KraftyKid.com website. Krafty Kid is an excellent place to get kits for your kids to use during the summer, at church, or for sleepovers. The kits come in different varieties, including bead kits for adults. Krafty Kid should also be looked at by scrapbook fans.
* Angie gave a nice overview of Eastern Mountain Sports. They frequently offer coupons and discounts on their wide variety of outdoor and athletic items. (EMS will even teach you how to build your own climbing wall, which I think Angie just might do). Get some great Eastern Mountain Sports coupons.
* We announced the winner of the last podcast contest (Nina P!) along with a new contest.

Next podcast…summer travel sites.

Mother’s Day is May 10, which means that there is no time like the present to get Mother’s Day gifts ordered. It’s not too late to order even personalized gifts. But if you don’t want to pay a fortune for shipping, you should get your orders made quickly. The three moms at She Shops Around are Mother’s Day gift experts! At least we think we are, given all of the Mother’s Day gifts that we have both sent and received over the past years.

Show Notes:

• Favorite Mother’s Day gifts from the past? Cindy can’t remember most of them. (What does that say about the gifts?) Angie likes gifts with a personal touch.
• Cindy reviewed her favorite online jewelry store, My Jewelry Box. High points are their quality, selection, and good prices.
• MJB often runs coupons and free shipping specials and includes a gift box with every purchase. Right now you can get a free pearl necklace with $50 purchases. (Current Sunshine Rewards MyJewelryBox coupon: MyJewelryBox.com free shipping and 15% off My Jewelry Box Use code SW045115PA)
• Tricia gushes profusely about Sephora and considers herself a Sephora junkie. Great gift ideas for mom? Philosophy gift packs with a variety of scented shampoo, gel, and bubble bath choices.
• Sephora ships all purchases with a gift bag as well as free samples. Be sure to look for gift with purchase coupons and free shipping. (Current Sunshine Rewards Sephora coupon: Free shipping over $50)
• Angie led a discussion about Canvas on Demand. Have your family pictures (or animal pictures if you are Cindy) made into beautiful canvases.
• Operation: Hi Mom is a chance for 500 military men and women to have a free canvas sent to their moms this Mother’s Day. It’s terrific to see a company supporting the military like that.
• Canvas on Demand gifts are personal and affordable and actually shop very quickly (less than a week).