As we discussed previously (see links at the end of this post), LEGO has been working on restructuring the LEGO VIP program by adding more ways to earn and redeem points. The new LEGO VIP Rewards Center is now live so we have a chance to check out all the changes and additions to the program. So, let’s take a look.
The first difference that you will notice is that the LEGO VIP icon changed color from red to blue. The second difference is that now the LEGO VIP program has a separate dedicated micro-site called LEGO VIP Rewards Center. You can get to the site by clicking on the blue LEGO VIP logo wherever you see it at the Online LEGO Shop; home page, your account page, footer, etc. Once you click on the logo, you will be taken to the LEGO VIP Rewards Center. Or you can go directly to Rewards.LEGO.com.
➡ LEGO VIP REWARDS – STORE & PHONE SHOPPING: At the LEGO VIP Rewards Center, you are greeted by all the options for earning and spending your LEGO VIP Points. The first section for redeeming your points when shopping at official LEGO stores and over the phone is not yet filled in at the time of this writing.
➡ LEGO VIP REWARDS – ONLINE SHOPPING: The next section for redeeming your points at the Online LEGO Shop is already available. As you can see above, you can redeem 650 points for a $5 discount on your next purchase, and you can also redeem 2600 points for a $20 discount, $6,500 points for a $50 discount, and 13,000 points for a $100 discount. If you want to get other discounts, you have some more choices on the following page once you select a discount. You can basically double up the amounts listed above by selecting two units. So, for example, you can get a $10 discount by selecting the $5 discount and then choosing x2 in the drop-down list on the following page.
Once you are done selecting your discount, you will get a code, which you will need to enter in the appropriate field during checkout at the Online LEGO Shop. The LEGO VIP online discount is valid for 30 days from the point of redemption. Also, please note that the LEGO VIP online discount can only be used at the Online LEGO Shop. They cannot be used on LEGO phone orders or at LEGO brand retail stores.
➡ LEGO VIP REWARDS – SWEEPSTAKES: In this section, you can redeem your points for entries into sweepstakes. The only sweepstake currently listed is for a chance to win a 4-night stay at the LEGOLAND Florida Resort for a family of four, including two-day resort tickets with a private guided tour and building experience at the LEGOLAND Model Shop and many other perks. Flights, transportation, and some food and beverages are also included. Participating in this sweepstake costs 100 point. If you are interested in this opportunity, make sure you read the fine print because there are some rules and restrictions.
➡ LEGO VIP REWARDS – OTHER: The next section is called Exclusive VIP Rewards, where you can redeem your points for various interesting items like exclusive art prints, downloadable coloring sheets, small LEGO sets, key chains, and more. Note that the shipment of physical rewards will require purchase, however there is no minimum amount. You will receive a code that you can enter at the checkout page of the Online LEGO Shop.
➡ LEGO VIP REWARDS – TICKETS: For 4,000 points, you can get one ticket to any LEGOLAND location around the world, and for 1,500 points you can get one ticket to a LEGOLAND Discovery Center. In both cases, you will receive a promotional code, which you can redeem at LEGOLAND.com. And, you can also get a ticket for the LEGO House in Billund, Denmark for 2,500 points. You can redeem this promotional code at LEGOHouse.com.
➡ LEGO VIP REWARDS – EARNING POINTS: At the bottom of the main page of the LEGO VIP Rewards Center, there is a link to the section to different ways to earn points. (You can also access this page from the top banner.) This includes Double VIP Points opportunities, which is usually two select sets each month, plus some shorter events. We will probably see more ways to earn points in this section once the year end holiday season comes around.
An interesting new way to earn points is by interacting with LEGO’s social media pages and filling out short surveys. In fact, you can earn 100 points right now by visiting LEGO’s Instagram page (25 points), Facebook page (25 points), and filling out two short surveys about your shopping habits and your favorite LEGO themes (25 points each). Not a bad deal!
And, of course, we can still earn VIP Points in the regular way; by shopping for LEGO sets by phone, in person at official LEGO stores, and the Online LEGO Shop. Notice that the amount of points earned are different from what we are used to. Previously, $1 equaled 1 point during regular shopping (twice as much during Double VIP Point periods). So, you earned 100 points on a $100 set, which equaled a $5 discount on a future order (basically 5% off). Now, a $100 set earns you 650 points, which you can redeem for a $5 discount code. So, purchasing a $100 set still gives you the same discount, just the points amount is different and it’s a bit harder to calculate what points are actually worth.
Another new feature is that you can now get a digital version of your LEGO VIP card for your mobile device, currently for the Apple Wallet or Google Pay. They can be used when shopping at LEGO stores. To access this feature, you will need to navigate to the LEGO VIP Rewards Center from your phone and follow the directions.
So far, the new features of the LEGO VIP program seem pretty good. We can still earn and redeem points the same way as before, but now there are additional ways both accumulating and spending points. I’m especially excited for the opportunity to redeem points for rare and exclusive items. I did prefer the simpler math of the original LEGO VIP program, and I’m not a fan of having to generate a code before redeeming points at the Online LEGO Shop. This adds several additional steps and requires more planning. However, it’s possible that they will be able to make the process more seamless in the future.
So go ahead, check out the new LEGO VIP Rewards Center and let me know what you think! And if you have any questions let me know that as well, and I can forward them to the appropriate department via the LEGO Ambassador Network. So feel free to share and discuss!
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Admin, the phone and in-store rewards are now added. They are the same as the S@H rewards. It’s crazy to me that now I have to print out a voucher before going to shop. It adds unnecessary complication to the whole process.
Yeah, I liked the old system where I just had to show the card in the Stockholm and Copenhagen store and a cute girl told me I had accumulated enough points to reduce the cost.
(Well, it technically didn’t have to be a cute girl, but still…)
Hey, I wouldn’t complain if part of the program is cute girls managing my account. But seriously, what’s up with this having to get a voucher thing? I don’t think anyone asked for this. I like that we can redeem our points for other things. That’s cool. But why couldn’t they just add that feature to the regular checkout box?
Not everyone is going to understand the new system ( most adults with money , like grandparents) . It’s funny toys r us had a similar program with redeeming points . Look where they are now. Why can’t Lego just add another dollar per point? ( so instead of one dollar a point , you get two points two dollars .
I agree that the system is too complicated. If they wanted to offer other ways to redeem points, why couldn’t they just add them to the shopping site? This is just going to send people to shop elsewhere instead of directly from Lego. Doesn’t seem to make much sense.
With three kids, I don’t have the time to manage vip points in such a complicated manner. We go to the store when we have time, and when we check out, the cashier asks us if we want to redeem any of our points. That’s it.
It seems that the new system doesn’t allow to do that, and we have to seriously plan ahead of what we are going to buy, how many points we want to redeem, etc. It’s just not going to work for families with children.
Here’s a curious thought. The point system seems to be a little easier online then it is in the Lego stores. So, I’m wondering, because stores are closing all around that Lego is preparing themselves for closing some stores possibly in the future? Not any time soon but, because people shop more on line now. It’s just preparing for the worst maybe?
That sounds strange, since they still could do both, simultaneously…
Not a big fan of the new VIP system at this time. I like things simple not overly complicated when trying to use the VIP points. Computers should be used to make thinks easier not harder.
So this makes each dollar you spend worth 6.5 points. I think someone’s been reading up on video game micro transactions.
Any time you have an inflated overly complex monitary system it’s made to obfuscate information.
Another restriction that I discovered when playing with the system was that if you are getting a code for a physical reward, you can only use one at a time. So keep that in mind for planning your purchases.
Here are a few notes that I can see why LEGO wants to adopt this system.
1. By giving each dollar a partial point value, in this case 6.5, it’s more likely for them to round down resulting in less points. Not a whole lot in the grand skeme of things, but enough worldwide that it becomes a significant rounding benefit to LEGO. Mathematically speaking.
2. Complexity means people are less likely to use it. This means LEGO pays out less thereby saving money.
3. For those who do get invested in it, the system is designed to engage those people. The game industry calls these customers “whales” and they’re the type of people companies like to milk for money.
4. They are looking to bleed off points that don’t translate in lost revenue. For instance, if the only benefit you get is a dollar amount then that’s money they lose. But if the benefit is a ticket or chance for a prize, or downloadable content that doesn’t have a continuing cost for them, then it costs the company less.
Now as far the options it gives, it’s still a good thing. The problem is that it comes at the cost of a lot of convenience.
Admin said in a previous thread that the VIP program is now managed by a third party company and that VIP points are pegged against DKK. 1 DKK = 1 point, and all other points are adjusted against this.
Having a complicated system like this does make it easier for them to devalue points without people noticing. All they have to do is increase how many points are needed to redeem vouchers or decrease how many points we earn for sets.
I know they did a survey and people wanted to be able to earn and spend points in more ways, but I don’t think anyone had this in mind. What we were talking about is being able to earn and spend points at Legoland, or being able to purchase exclusives with points. Not having to pull out a calculator to work out the math, or fiddle with vouchers. This part is crazy.
Hmm, good points here. I’m generally not in favor of the added complexity of 6.5 points a dollar (living in a foreign country I do enough conversion in my head) and the whole creating a special code seems like pointless complexity. But I never did save much with the VIP program anyways, so it doesn’t make a huge difference to me. Often discounts available at Amazon or Walmart more than offset the point difference so I just shop there.
I wonder about the code though; does that mean that you can give your unique code to someone else and anyone could then redeem it without being connected to your LEGO ID? Possibly useful?
I agree. I just brought up the last comment as a thought not a definite Lego wouldn’t purposely close their stores and set it up that way. You never know these days , what’s staying open and what’s doesn’t is hard to predict. I believe Lego may take a Financial hit this year because of the new point system. Maybe not . I do believe that people are going to shop online more . Time will tell. I hope the time limit on using the points in the store changes.
Did anyone else lose their wishlists when this converted over?
Yes, that’s one of the known issues. I lost mine as well. They are working on it.
Glad to hear that. I’d hate to have to try to remember the sets I wanted!! XP JK, sort of. 😉
Yes, I called Lego about it but they could not explain why or how it happened. I asked Lego to restore my wish list but they were not able to do it. All Lego would do for me was to send a note up the chain of command about it.
Thanks for reporting. Hopefully they resolve the issues soon. Sadly, it looks like we will have to repopulate our wanted lists. 🙁
I heard that wish lists are coming back sooooooon. 👍
UPDATE: This is a message on behalf of the LEGO VIP team they wanted us to post:
A message to our valued VIP customers
We are currently in the process of upgrading our VIP Program to give our fans more benefits and more rewards.
To do this, we need to move to a new online Rewards Centre in order to provide you with more opportunities to earn and redeem LEGO VIP points.
This involved migrating all of our existing LEGO VIP Rewards accounts from our old platform to the new centre. We have millions of accounts, and unfortunately during this process not all VIP points information was successfully migrated. As a result, some VIP accounts are not showing the correct points balance.
Please don’t worry. No one has lost points. We have a backup of all points information, and are in the process of fixing the issue. It will probably take a day or two, but we will make sure everyone’s account is showing the correct points balance.
We apologise for any inconvenience and also want to reassure you that no personal data has been impacted by this migration, only VIP points data.
If you have any questions please don’t hesitate to reach out to our awesome consumer service team. https://www.lego.com/en-us/service
Thank you for your patience and understanding. We’re working as fast as we can to fix this!
LEGO VIP Team
The vip program was already not very good. I mean walmart and amazon almost always have the same or better prices. It only really made sense during double vip points. Now, with this complicated system, there is even less incentive to shop from lego directly. Why are they doing this?
From a business standpoint, I guess there are mainly two incentives for such programs:
1. Reward loyalty, or rather connect the customers tighter to your products.
2. Collection of data, to help with more focused advertising and so on.
But both points were already met, so it feels a bit strange to over-complicate the systems so the customers would get frustrated and do their shopping elsewhere.
How tedious!
I guess I’ve missed my best chance to redeem my points simply and at their peak value. Fortunately, my grandson is less interested in Legos as he gets older so I guess I’ll just find something, cash out the points I’ve got and look for other ways to buy presents than Legos.
Don’t give up on them just yet. Customers are making it know to LEGO, loud and clear, that they don’t like and don’t want the new system. I’m fairly certain they will rethink how they approached this whole idea. At least that’s the hope…