5. Mail-in Rebates. As an added sales inducement, footwear companies have the option of offering
athletic footwear consumers a rebate on each pair purchased from retailers. Mail-in rebates, if
offered, can range from as low as $1 per pair to as much as $10 per pair. Companies who give
rebates provide retailers with rebate coupons to give buyers at the time of purchase. To obtain the
rebate a customer must fill out the coupon and mail it to the company's nearest distribution center,
along with the receipt of purchase. The customer service staff at the warehouse handles verification,
check processing, and mailing the rebate check. Some buyers lose the coupon or the sales receipt
and other buyers, for various reasons, fail to take advantage of the rebate offering. Studies show that
15% of purchasers mail in the $1 rebate coupons; 20% mail in the $2 coupon; 25% redeem the $3
coupon; and so on up to 60% for the $10 coupon. Other things being equal (price, S/Q rating,
models offered, and so on), companies offering bigger-than-average mail-in rebates will outsell
companies offering smaller-than-average mail-in rebates (or no rebates).