As the end of summer draws nearer, shoppers are looking for deals on back-to-school items.
The back-to-school season is an important time for retailers. According to the National Retail Federation and Prosper Insights & Analytics’ annual survey, “Families with children in elementary through high school plan to spend an average of $874.68 on clothing, shoes, electronics and school supplies,” per USA Today.
Retailers often try to capitalize on this shopping fever by offering sales and deals for those preparing to head off to school—price reductions that have become more desirable given the high prices shoppers are finding in stores nowadays. For example, one internet user was shocked to discover that a Mead notebook was being sold for $16.
Now, a user on TikTok has sparked discussion after claiming that the “deal” she was offered by Apple wasn’t all it seemed to be, so much so that she cites the offer as a “scam.”
Is Apple scamming back-to-school customers?
In a video with over 18,000 views, TikTok user and professor Dr. Mara Einstein (@drmaraeinstein) explains how a recent purchase from Apple led to her being “scammed.”
According to Dr. Einstein, she was shopping for an iPad via Apple’s educational discount area. This section offers discounts for those who are buying products connected to an academic institution.
Seeing that a normal iPad was being sold for $599, and that the educational discount brought the price down to $549, she decided to purchase it. Here, she was met with a surprise.
“They said, ‘We’ll give you $100 off.’ Great. ‘And we’ll give you a $100 gift card also.’ Nice,” the professor recalls. “I’m not going to be able to use the $100 gift card on that purchase. I have to come back and purchase something again. But that’s a sort of standard marketing technique these days, and I get it. They want me to come back to their place and buy something for more than $100, right? You get it.”
While the purchase was completed without issue, Dr. Einstein says she noticed something peculiar when she got her credit card statement.
Alongside the discounted charge for her iPad and a related purchase, she saw another charge for $100.
“I call up Apple, and the woman says to me, ‘Oh, that’s how they charge it.’ That’s how they charge what?” the TikToker asks. “So it turns out they were charging me for the gift card. They didn’t order the gift card; they sent me something saying, ‘We’re giving you a gift card.’ I don’t want this gift card—you guys gave it to me for free.”
While she was able to get the charge removed by escalating the issue with a manager, she cites the charge as “deceptive marketing.”
“You’ve given it to me for free, and now you’re taking it away,” she concludes. “But ok, get rid of that $100, but I’ll be contacting the FTC. If this did happen to you, do contact the FTC and let’s make sure Apple isn’t doing this to anybody else.”
@drmaraeinstein @apple tried to #scam the wrong person. If you are planning on buying any new Apple products, make sure to check your credit card statement. And if they charge you for #free #giftcards make sure to contact the #ftc #falseadvertising #deceptivemarketing #marketing #advertising #socialmediamarketing #bts #backtoschoolshopping #computer #ipad #college #highereducation ♬ original sound – Professor Einstein
What is the Apple gift card deal?
Discussions on Apple’s website indicate that several buyers have felt similarly deceived by the practice.
“I [purchased] an iPad Air thru the Apple education website on 8/5/23,” recalled a user. “It clearly stated ‘special $100 gift card’ and showed that indeed $100 was subtracted from total. However my credit card was charged on the supposedly ‘free gift card,’” stated a user.
Another user wrote, “As others have correctly stated, the ‘gift’ card is indeed purchased by, and invoiced to, the customer. I was also able to confirm that the cost of the qualifying product (in my case a MacBook Air) is reduced by an amount equal to the promotional card.”
While the breadth of similar comments may indicate that advertising surrounding this promotion was unclear, Apple’s Terms and Conditions regarding the promotion lay it out with relative clarity.
“Qualified Purchasers who purchase an Eligible Product through a Qualifying Location during the Promotion Period shall receive a discount equal to the value of the Promotion Product (depending on their purchase, as set forth in the chart below) off the price of the Eligible Product at the time of purchase. Customers will be charged for all items in their cart, including the Promotion Product,” the Terms and Conditions read.
Dr. Einstein responds to commenters
Despite what it says in the Terms and Conditions, Dr. Einstein posted a follow-up video stating that she stands by her original analysis.
“They can [get away] with it legally, but should we let them? I don’t think so,” she writes in the caption of the follow-up.
The video shows her going through the purchasing process for an iPad on Apple’s education website. When it comes time to check out, it shows that she is getting $100 off of the iPad as part of a “special offer.”
If one scrolls down, it is revealed that the customer will get a $100 Apple gift card. The website appears unclear that one will be charged for the aforementioned gift card.
“I didn’t look at this and say, ‘Oh, I have to pay $100 for this gift card.’ I looked at this and said, ‘They’re giving me a $100 gift card,’” she explains.
She also says that the Terms and Conditions are not easy to find on the page, claiming that the link upon which one should click to find them looks more like a “design element” than a way to find the true price of the item.
@drmaraeinstein I stand by my analysis that @apple is using deceptive and unethical marketing practices. They can geg awsy with it legally, but should we let them? I don’t think so. #Marketing #advertising #socialmediamarketing #deception #scam #giftcards @target ♬ original sound – Professor Einstein
Commenters share their thoughts on the deal
In the comments section, users offered their thoughts on the “scam” laid out by Dr. Einstein, with some claiming they felt similarly deceived.
“Oh you’re a so right!!! I was charged for my gift card for my son’s computer i purchased for college. How did I not see that!!” exclaimed a user.
“This just happened to me!” added another. “I googled it and it’s standard practice but the explanations were so convoluted I just gave up and paid it.”
“This happened to me on a laptop purchase. Free 150 gift card. Then I see a separate charge for the gift card! I was royally angry at this deception,” recalled a third. “I do not purchase anything from Apple.”
The Daily Dot reached out to Apple via email and Dr. Einstein via email and website contact form.
Update 11:13am EST August 22: In an email to the Daily Dot, Dr. Einstein explained that “just because something is legal doesn’t mean it’s not deceptive.”
“The FTC is concerned about consumers being scammed and manipulated. For example, what multilevel marketing companies do is technically legal, but it’s also deceptive, and the FTC take kindly to those companies’ practices,” she wrote.
“I got recourse from Apple because I complained. And as I noted in the video when I spoke to a manager, he fairly quickly removed the hundred dollar charge and took back the ‘free’ gift card,” she continued. “If people haven’t used their gift card I suggest they try calling and getting a refund.”
She then offered advice for Apple on how to improve this promotion.
“As a former marketer and somebody who works in bringing deceptive marketing practices to the public, what I recommend to Apple is that they rework their content so is not to confuse people,” she detailed. “Put in parentheses right after where they mention the gift card that terms and conditions apply. in the shopping cart it shouldn’t say -$100 in red, it should say this total includes $100 discount.”
“From the comments I received it appears that Target and other companies have also been using this practice,” she added. “Given that it appears to be a much bigger issue, it should be something that the FTC takes a look at.”
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