When are new rewards, like gift cards, loaded?

[j9645r]

I have been trying to redeem my points for some gift cards, but as soon as I see one I would like, such as the Michael's or Olive Garden gift cards, they are sold out. When are new rewards loaded to the system? I think I logged into the system twice yesterday to see if anything new had been loaded, and the Olive Garden gift card was not there. Then this morning, I log in, and it is sold out.

[AARPJanelleM]

@j9645r The new rewards are randomly added to the catalog. The gift cards have been very popular so be sure to act fast if you see one that you're interested in! 

[j9645r]

I see there is no rhyme or reason to it, then. I'll stop bothering with points-earning opportunities if I can't get anything I can use with my points.

[LR54]

The advice on the AARP website is to get a good night's sleep.  It's repeated in many of the AARP articles and videos, but this website doesn't walk the talk.  Personally I don't think that the random times to post new gift cards or select instant wins should be during normal sleeping times across the time zones.

[KristBelt]

excellent point!

[a170938b]

They seem to appear without a recognizable pattern during the day or during the night. And disappear fast if they are useful at all, as there isn't much to redeem points on. For instance, a few days ago, the $5 Amazon card was not there when I fell asleep in the evening but I saw and redeemed it just before 3am CT; it was sold out by 6am CT.

[nswan]

I stumbled across this thread.  The same issue continues to cause frustration.  You are encouraged by AARP to take these points earning opportunities, but they offer very few valuable rewards, and those are gobbled up almost immediately.  I find offerings of “instant wins” and “sweepstakes” frustrating and pointless.