Here’s an app you must use the next time you shop online

If there’s one thing all Malaysians love, it’s a good deal. There’s a certain kind of joy that comes from picking something up for less than what you’re supposed to pay. I like to call it the wallet ice-pack because it gives my delicate wallet some instant relief (albeit temporary) from the bruising I’m about to hit it with.

To make a deal even sweeter, you can add another layer of savings on top and that’s where cashback services come in. Meet ShopBack, one of the biggest cashback service providers in the Southeast Asian region. Here’s how it works.

This isn’t a new phenomenon. In fact, ShopBack themselves have been around since 2014 and they operate on a triple-win (as opposed to win-win) model and is designed to give “everyone” a win. ShopBack’s system works (and earns a profit) like the affiliate codes you’d find on popular sites. Popular YouTube channel LinusTechTips, for example, uses Amazon affiliate codes and get a small kickback (or commission) when you purchase stuff from Amazon.

The biggest difference between ShopBack and your regular affiliate codes is that ShopBack shares a portion of their commission with you, the customer. Therefore, when you make a purchase via a ShopBack link from someone like Lazada, for example, Lazada earns a profit for the purchase, ShopBack gets a small commission from Lazada, and then ShopBack shares some of that commission with you in the form of a cashback payment. Win-win-win.

Right now, ShopBack is partnered with over 500 online merchants and has paid out about RM5.4 million in cash to local shoppers since February of last year. Shoppers can earn up to 30% cashback on various types of purchases ranging from Travel, Fashion, General Electronics and F&B services among others.

Today, ShopBack officially launched their mobile app (but it has already been available for download on Android and iOS platforms since last week) and offers even larger savings if you shop with their app. Each purchase will be rewarded with an additional RM5 cashback if you make one between 19-21 July 2016.

What’s more, if you make purchases from one of the 11 e-retailers that have joined in on the app launch celebration, such as Lazada, Groupon, Foodpanda, Hermo, Qoo10, Zalora, etc., you can also get upsized cashbacks, RM10 low price deals, cash vouchers as well as 40% discount promo codes.

Honestly, this service is pretty awesome. It’s easy to use, straightforward and you have literally nothing to lose by shopping with them. From what we can tell, there is no catch and you’ll be getting a better deal when you purchase something that you’re already going to buy anyway.

Everyone in our office uses it any chance we get when we buy stuff online, be it plane tickets, gadgets or home appliances, and so far everything’s working out rather well. The only thing you should keep note of is that there is a validation period for your purchase and you can only get the cashback once that period is up. However, you can accumulate cashbacks in your ShopBack account and once it has reached a satisfactory amount, you can request for a payout to be made directly to your bank account.

For more information on this service and if you want to check out what other merchants ShopBack has partnered with, you can head on over to their website. What do you guys think of this service? Let us know in the comments below.