Save-On-Records

Save-On-Records was RCA Victors's short-lived coupon-based "record club"-(ish) merchandising concept, which offered two free albums a year to club members, one each in July and October. (These were nominally exclusive to members when issued, but they appear to have all been subsequently issued as normal commercial releases.) The program was meant to drive foot traffic to traditional record dealers, so members had to "join" by buying a $3.98 coupon book at a record shop (which entitled them to a free copy of $3.98 RCA Victor LP at time of purchase), and could subsequently redeem one or two of those coupons per month, in-person at the shop, for $1 off any of the month's "selected" titles. Members received a monthly newsletter by mail touting that month's selections, at least one of which included a 7" EP. Selected titles initially included one release each per month in the Classical and Popular categories but later expanded to a third in Jazz. The program was launched in March 1956 and seems to have petered out after a few years; the monthly selections were often called out in Billboard magazine but the last such reference available in Google's archive was for the December 1958 items.