The Economist – Cashback, Rebates & Rewards

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I have been reading "The Economist" for almost twenty years now, and I believe it continues to be an indispensable point of reference for anyone seeking an authoritative and comprehensive source of information. It is challenging to find a magazine that covers such a broad range of topics, from social issues to demographics to economic and financial matters. Last but not least, I can say that I have always had a positive experience with their customer service, which has been consistently courteous, professional, and ready to provide the best solution to any possible inquiry.

I have been a regular subscriber to the Economist for over 20 years. Like most news media, the Economist will always have a political bias, but the articles are written in such a way as you can still establish your own truth. I always learn something and it provides a financial or economic perspective with the topical news stories of the day. I also like the fact that they are weekly news stories rather than daily, because there is more time for considered news writing, fact checking and a balanced perspective and less knee-jerk reactions and sensationalism. The Economist maintains a unique position within media and long may it continue. Always a good read!

I am rating the Economist 4 stars because of its journalism -- which is of the highest caliber. I truly appreciate the content they put out, the events they organize, the newsletters they send out, and, on the occasion when I've met an editor or journalist from the Economist, they were truly admirable, intelligent people. That said, I don't believe that the logistics underpinning their operations are up to par. I've been trying to update my payment details (change the credit card number associated with my subscription) for more than a week now. Their webpage isn't working, so I've contacted customer support through chat. They asked for my phone number and I gave it to them, but they claim that "my number isn't recognized" (I don't know what that means, it's a functional phone number that other people are able to call). They recommended I contact them myself. I did, but their call centers are closed because of bad weather. I also emailed their customer service team a screenshot of the error that I keep getting when I try to insert my payment details on their webpage (I've tried changing browsers and devices, the error persists so it's probably from their side). All the while, their customer service team has been giving me generic advice like -- try calling our call centers (only to then admit that I actually can't because they're closed) or "try inputting your details online" (although I've tried a dozen times and it doesn't work, a fact that I brought to their attention several times via different channels). Now, it's the beginning of the year and many people are likely looking into subscribing to new publications. If a publication makes it so incredibly hard to pay for a subscription, no matter how amazing it is, it's likely that it will lose subscribers. So, dear Economist team, for the sake of your talented, insightful team, I truly hope you sort out the subscription/ payment issue sooner rather than later. Logistics are boring, but necessary to run an operation like yours.

I saw a lot of 1 star reviews based on subscription and payment and delivery issues. I think The Economist is more than just some ordinary item you order online. It should be judged on the quality of the product and its content, more than for other, frivolous reasons. I have not taken a paper subscription. But I did order items and I never had any issues. I accidentally ordered a wrong issue and I was refunded, even though this is not usually a refundable item in the media industry. For me, The Economist has a strong influence over who I am as a person. It gives me access to a broad number of viewpoints from very competent and credible speakers and helps me shape my understanding on many issues.