It's a deal! It's a steal!

MANILA, Philippines - For some shrewd people, life is about wheeling and dealing. For some very smart people, it’s about seizing the best deals life can offer. Such as the ones offered by Citibank, which recently launched its twin promos that include generous discounts, 0% installment terms, and instant rewards.

Promising a truly rewarding experience to its more than a million cardholders, country head and Citi country officer for the Philippines Sanjiv Vohra asserts, “Every promotion we launch is designed around what our clients want. We work very hard to help our cardholders get the best value for their money with the best deals in town.”

It’s a deal — and a steal! One of these twin treats lets new Citi cardholders buy on 0% installment plan, spread over 14 months, a lineup of must-have electronic gadgets at incredibly exclusive discounted prices.

How to go about it? First, get a Citi card — simply apply for one from now until Oct. 17. Once approved, this magic plastic allows you to buy a Samsung Star S5233 mobile phone for as low as P715 a month, a Canon Powershot D10 digital camera for P1,350 monthly, and a Dell Vostro A840 laptop for only P1,900 a month.

At the press conference held at Dusit Thani Hotel’s Umu Restaurant to launch Citi Card’s “Great Deals on Great Gadgets” promo, we feasted on glorious Japanese food that certainly warmed our tummies. But what warmed our hearts was the sight of three must-have gadgets being raffled off to the lucky members of media after lunch. I had my eyes — and heart — set on the mini DVD camcorder (which I learned later was worth P24,950). It wasn’t a particularly lucky week for me so I didn’t think I’d get the first prize (the laptop) and simply settled for the second prize (the camcorder). When the name of the winner was drawn, at the back of my mind — and deep in my heart — I knew it was going to be me. Think positive! Yes, I heard my name being called out as the owner of a new PhotoDV ZR950 with 37x optical zoom, 48x advanced zoom, 1.07- megapixel CCD sensor, etc. What started as a so-so week for me ended on an oh-so-auspicious note!

“Why these three items?” notes Bea Tan, Cards Business director for Citibank Philippines. “Because these are today’s must-have items. You certainly need a laptop for work or school. A digicam comes in handy when you need to record family gatherings and assorted events. Haven’t you noticed that young people nowadays always lug a video camera wherever they go unlike before when they’d only bring one when it’s a special occasion? And of course, almost everybody needs a cell phone these days.”

Bea adds, “Electronic gadgets remain to be a popular purchase among our cardholders and we handpicked the latest products from three fast-moving categories — mobile phones, laptops, and digital cameras — to attract the public to apply for a Citi card. We also carefully chose three leading brands, and we are very proud of the final selection.”

Polished, modern style and performance meet in Dell Vostro A840 with a 14.1”-wide monitor screen and a 1GB DDR2 memory. The all-weather — waterproof, shockproof, freezeproof, dustproof — 12.1-megapixel Canon Powershot D10 packs a wallop with its 3x optical zoom and smart auto mode with scene detection technology. And now shining is the Samsung Star S5233 with full touch screen with Touchwiz User Interface, large 3.0” LCD with 240x400 pixels for brilliant pictures/videos, and 3.2MP camera with 4x digital zoom.

And with Citi card, these really hot items can be had at cool prices. The Dell Vostro A840 with a retail price of over P38,000 has an exclusive Citi price of only P26,600 (P1,900 monthly on 0% PayLite for 14 months). Picture this: The Canon digicam that sells for P26,000 is only P18,900 with the Citi promo (P1,350 per month on 0% PayLite for 14 months). Say hello to the Samsung Star S5233 that fetches about P18,000 but now carries an exclusive Citi price tag of only P10,000 (P715 monthly on 0% PayLite for 14 months).

Chances are, one (or two or three) of these items is on your Christmas wish list. Did we say Christmas? Yes, with Christmas just around the proverbial corner, it’s never too early to do your requisite Christmas shopping.

“Yes, with the Christmas spending coming, we wanted to make sure we prepare our customers because after this month come the ‘ber’ months. Some people start shopping as early as now. And we want to get them in the habit of using their Citibank card. With the onset of the ‘ber’ months, you see a spike in spending. On a quarter to quarter basis, the growth rate used to be in the high 20s. However, in the fourth quarter of last year, it has slowed down to a single digit. In the first quarter of this year, it has further slowed down. But now, we’re seeing that people are more confident, the sign is more positive.”

On top of these real deals, there are Citi’s reel deals ongoing until Sept. 30. With the “Seize the Real Deals” promo, Citi cardholders get one free movie pass for a minimum single-receipt purchase of P1,500 using their City card. Spend at least P7,000 in a single receipt, or sign up your utility accounts to City One Bill, and get two free movie passes plus popcorn and drinks for two. To get three movie passes plus snacks for three, avail yourself of the Citi PayLite installment plan with a minimum purchase of P20,000.

“Seize the Reel Deals is actually inspired by a campaign we launched a few years ago and was extremely successful,” says Bea. “This time, we enhanced the offer by introducing free snacks for a truly enjoyable movie watching experience.”

A free movie pass is worth P130 and can be enjoyed in popular cinemas that include Ayala Cinemas, Eastwood Cinemas, Robinsons Movieworld, and Shang Cineplex. The promo also allows Citi cardholders to pay for as much as 50 percent of their movie tickets using their Citi Rewards Points.

The free movie passes are the latest in a series of real cool deals Citibank has been offering its cardholders. In June, the cardholders were wined and dined with discounts on their food bills at Serendra and Bonifacio High Street. In the weeks that followed, they were invited to private sales at Rustan’s, Metro Gaisano Mall, and other venues featuring leading brands from Stores Specialists, Inc.

Surely, life can’t get more rewarding than this!

* * *

To know more about Citi’s rewarding new promos, visit www.citibank.com.ph or call the 24-hour CitiPhone at 995-9999.