Can You Earn the Southwest Companion Pass by Ordering Flowers and Gifts?

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I’ve written that the easiest way to earn the Southwest Companion Pass is by applying for 2 Chase Southwest credit cards with the 50,000 point sign-up bonus.

But did you know there could be another way to earn the Companion Pass by ordering flowers and gifts from 1-800-Flowers?

1-800-Flowers ran a promotion where you could earn 1,500 bonus Southwest points per order of ~$30 or more.  If you made 74 orders, you’d get the 110,000 points needed to earn the Companion Pass – assuming the points count!

I decided to run some experiments to see if this is a good way to earn the Companion Pass!  The promotion has since expired, but I’ll tell you what happened for the next time they have this deal!

Frequent Miler also ran similar experiments so check out his posts on this as well!

The Promotion

Link:   1-800-Flowers

Earlier this month, you could earn 1,500 Southwest points for every order of $29.99 or more at 1-800-Flowers when you used promotion code “RR57“.  This code no longer works, but they run promotions like this a few times a year.

So if you made 74 separate orders, you’d earn 111,000 Southwest points (74 orders x 1,500 Southwest points per order).

And if you already have Southwest points from credit card sign-ups or flying, this could be a great way to get the last few points needed for the Companion Pass.

For this to be most cost effective, it’s best to order items that cost exactly $29.99.  And 1-800-Flowers sells lots of different gift items, like gourmet food baskets, plants, candy, and popcorn.

And to avoid paying shipping costs on every order (which can cost $25 or more!), you’ll want to enroll in the Celebrations Passport program.  For ~$30, you’ll get free shipping and no service charge from 1-800-Flowers for an entire year.

In my experience, points earned from 1-800-Flowers promotions do count towards the Companion Pass.  But sometimes points can take a while (up to 8 weeks!) to post.

That could make or break the deal for folks who are concerned about timing the posting of points for the Southwest Companion Pass!

Note:   There’s a current 1-800-Flowers deal that earns 1,000 Southwest points on purchases of $29.99 or more.  Use promotion code “RR22” when you check out.

While this isn’t as lucrative as the previous promotion, it’s still a good way to get extra points!  And I’ll let you know when the 1,500 point deal comes back!

The Experiment

I decided to order some items from 1-800-Flowers to find out:

• Which items or brands are eligible for the promotion?
• How long does it take for points to post?
• Do the points qualify for the Southwest Companion Pass?

Note:   Frequent Miler reports that you’ll get the promo code bonus points, but not shopping portal bonuses if you go through a cash back site or shopping portal first.

1.   Love’s Embrace Roses

I ordered a bouquet of roses on November 11, 2014.  They cost ~$32 including taxes and were delivered on November 21, 2014.

I could see the points in my Southwest account on December 3, 2014.  But the transaction date was backdated to November 21, 2014.

2.   1-800-Baskets Apple Caramel Cookie Pie

I’ve got a bit of a big sweet tooth, so I ordered an apple caramel cookie pie for ~$32 including taxes.  I placed the order on November 14, 2014, and it was delivered on November 18, 2014.

And the points appeared in my Southwest account on December 3, 2014, with the transaction backdated to November 18, 2014.

3.    Popcorn Factory Sea Salt Slim Popcorn 24 Pack

A 24-pack of Popcorn Factory popcorn costs ~$30 plus tax.  I ordered it on November 14, 2014 and it was delivered on November 18, 2014.

The points from this purchase posted to my Southwest account on December 3, 2014, with the transaction backdated to November 18, 2014.

4.   Fannie May Chocolate Strawberries

Not all items are eligible for this promotion.  For example, I tried to order chocolate-dipped strawberries, but when I entered the promotion code it didn’t work.

But the code did work for a ~$30 box of 12 Fannie May Artisan Chocolates.  I ordered them on November 14, 2014, and they were delivered on November 18, 2014.

The points posted to my Southwest account on December 3, 2014.  The transaction was also backdated to November 18, 2014.

5.   Cheryl’s Secret Santa Box

A box of frosted holiday cookies costs ~$32 including tax.  I might need to visit the dentist after this experiment!

I ordered the cookies on November 14, 2014, and they were delivered on November 18, 2014.   The points were added to my Southwest account on December 3, 2014.  Again, the transaction was backdated to November 18, 2014.

Meanwhile, our kitchen counter started to get a little cluttered.

6.   Bonsai Tree

1-800-Flowers also sells plants, so I ordered a bonsai tree for ~$40 plus tax.  I ordered it on November 14, 2014, and it arrived on November 18, 2014.

It came packed very securely.  There might have been a little incident trying to get it out of its packaging!

The points from the bonsai tree were deposited to my Southwest account on December 3, 2014, again backdated to November 18, 2014.

The Results

The good news is, all the points showed up in my Southwest account within ~3 weeks of placing the orders.  But the transactions were backdated to the item delivery date, so really it only takes a few days!

The GREAT news is that all the points counted toward the Southwest Companion Pass!  So 1-800-Flowers promotions are a good way to top-off your account if you need a few more points to earn the pass.

Here’s a summary of the results:

Item	Date Ordered	Date Delivered	Points Posted	Backdated To	Counted Toward Companion Pass?
Roses for Emily	11/11/2014	11/21/2014	12/3/2014	11/21/2014	Yes!
1-800-Baskets Apple Caramel Cookie Pie	11/14/2014	11/18/2014	12/3/2014	11/18/2014	Yes!
Popcorn Factory Popcorn	11/14/2014	11/18/2014	12/3/2014	11/18/2014	Yes!
Fannie May Chocolates	11/14/2014	11/18/2014	12/3/2014	11/18/2014	Yes!
Cheryl's Frosted Cookies	11/14/2014	11/18/2014	12/3/2014	11/18/2014	Yes!
Bonsai Tree	11/14/2014	11/18/2014	12/3/2014	11/18/2014	Yes!

So definitely watch for 1-800-Flowers promotions.  And when the 1,500 point bonus returns, I’ll let you know!

Bottom Line

1-800-Flowers ran a promotion where you’d earn 1,500 Southwest points on orders over ~$30.

This is a great way to earn points for the Southwest Companion Pass, and I can confirm that the points do count!  The points should be credited to your Southwest account at the time the items are delivered (but you might not actually see them for a few weeks).

This promotion has expired, but you can still earn 1,000 Southwest points on orders over ~$30 when you use promotion code “RR22” at checkout.  Not all products are eligible.

But I had more experiments in mind for this promotion!  Stay tuned…