To:  All PORTERS Members

     As you have probably noticed, PWRS has now released PORTERS 2.0.  There are a lot of changes, some major and some minor.  There will be more changes coming in the next few months as we spruce up our entire website.  Rest assured that the basic operation of the site will not change.  We will be adding many “asked for” changes to the web site in the near future to make it more user friendly and intuitive.

Rewarding Referrals

     The first major addition is the “Referral” block.  We all know that the best form of advertising is by “word of mouth”.  We have developed a referral program that rewards those PORTERS members who bring new members to us.  Here is how it works:

    1.    Introduce PORTERS to a friend and give them your “Referral” code (shown on the right side of your “Home” tab.  Have your friend fill out the application form and enter your referral code.

    2.    We take it from here:  We will call them and set them up on PORTERS (complete with discounts).

    3.    Then for the next year for every PORTERS point that he or she earns from purchases, you will receive the same number of points.  Imagine how fast your points will grow!  It is our way of saying “Thank You” to you for your support.

 Naturally, referrals must be new customers as all of our present customers already have their own referral code.)

     Now if you can read between the lines and you are a member of a train club, why not setup the club as a PORTERS member and earn points when the members purchase their own goodies?  It is a great way to earn stuff for your train club.

Manufacturer Credits

     The next new feature relates to the PORTERS Points which you have been earning for almost a year now.  What you have not been aware of is that you have been also earning “Manufacturer Credits". 

What’s that you say?  For every PORTERS Point you have earned, you have also earned a “Manufacturer Credits".  Here are a couple of examples:

     1.    If you purchased a whole bunch of MicroTrains cars and earned 5148 Porters points, you also earned 5148 Manufacturer credit (which you can see by clicking on “Manufacturer Credits” on the right side of your “Home” tab).

    2.    If you purchased Athearn items (earning 2853 PORTERS points) and purchased Kato items (earning 742 PORTERS points), by clicking on “Manufacturer Credits”, you will see the corresponding Manufacturer credits of: Athearn – 2853 credits and Kato – 742 credits.

The PORTERS "Club Lounge"

     This now takes us to the “Club Lounge” (also on the right side of your PORTERS “Home” tab.  The “Club Lounge” is a special area where you can acquire very unique items from participating manufacturers.  We are just starting to populate the lounge now, so look for more things to come. 

    What makes these items unique is that they have never been sold nor can you buy them. (at least nor for cash).  But you can acquire them by using a combination of PORTERS Points and Manufacturer Credits that you have earned. Here is an example:  If you find an Athearn item in the club lounge that requires 1728 points, you will need 1728 PORTERS points AND 1728 Athearn Manufacturer Credits.

     Sound confusing?  Just remember you need the required number of PORTERS points AND the same number of Manufacturer Credits (specific to the manufacturer of that product) to acquire that item.
 
Question:  What happens if I am a little short of credits or points?
Answer:  Go ahead and place the order for the item, remembering that you must have the correct number of points/credits before you can acquire it.  You will need to make additional purchases to bring up you point/credit count before you can get the item.  If other customers want to acquire the same item (of which there will be limited number produced) and they have the required points/credits, they will get theirs first; or said another way - their order will go ahead of your order.

     Remember points and credits are applied to your account only after the products are invoiced and paid for. Sorry, it doesn’t count to have placed an order for something, that order needs to be in stock, invoiced, and paid for before you can use any points from it.

Question:  What happens to my points/credits if all of the items I want are gone before I get my points/credits total to the point I can acquire the item?

Answer: When you place an order for a club lounge item, whatever points/credits required are "set aside" or frozen, guaranteeing that you will get that product (and won't accidentally spend those points/credits on something else).  If you are short of points/credits, whatever points/credits you have are also frozen until such time as you have accumulated the  required number.  If you do not get to the magic number before the item is gone, all points/credits are restored to your account.     

     Also remember points/credits are never used for shipping.

Question:  Why do you need to redeem Manufacturers Credits and Porters Points to obtain  an item from a specific manufacturer?

Answer: We need to be able to provide evidence of your support of a specific manufacturers products in order to award a specific product from that manufacturer.

For Example: a customer who buys alot of Atlas product would not qualify for a special Micro Trains car, just by purchasing Atlas products. The customer would need to demonstrate a desired level of support for Micro Trains products (by earning Micro Trains Manufacturers Points) and PORTERS points together.