At least a couple times a year, grocery stores non-typical promotions involving gift cards, a freezer, or something else you don't usually find in your weekly ad.

You'll usually find freezer promotions around March and gift card promotions around tax time.  Albertsons is currently running one such promotion.  If you buy $100 worth of gift cards to OTHER stores (found in their "Gift Card Mall" display), then you get a coupon for $20 off of a future purchase.  (You can also find this deal at other Sav-On stores such as Jewel Osco.  Call your local store to verify that they're participating before you purchase your gift cards.)

Are these deals worth it?

That depends.  If they offer gas cards or cards to stores you would have already spent money at then you'll spend no more than you previously would have but will get a bonus for having bought the gift card at Albertsons first. 

At our store, they offer gas gift cards to Shell or Arco gas stations.  I can take my regular monthly gas budget of $200 and use it to buy gift cards.  In return, I get $40 back to spend at Albertsons.  I've just made $40 to spend on groceries without spending anything I wouldn't have otherwise spent.

We're also going to be replacing our washer.  I've done the research and know that after price-match, guarantee discounts, coupons, and taxes we'll pay just over $400 for the washer we want at Lowes.  Since our Albertsons also offers Lowes gift cards, we'll spend our $400 there first on gift cards.  For doing so, we'll get back $80 which is a bonus savings on what we were already going to spend...just for buying a gift card first.

The gift cards offered at each grocery store CAN vary even within the same chain.  In this promotion, buying a gift card to Albertsons is not allowed.  (Previous promotions at tax time have allowed you to buy an Albertsons gift card.)  At my store, they have gift cards to Shell, Arco (both gas station chains), Lowes, Home Depot, Sears, Kohls, several different fast food restaurants (like Jack-in-the Box), sit-down restaurants like Olive Garden, sporting goods stores like Cabellas, mall stores like Disney (which can also be used to purchase tickets for a Disney trip), and Southwest Airlines. 

If you have extra money, you could really capitalize on this deal by buying gas gift cards for a couple of months so you can get the bonus now.  This deal runs through Saturday, June 18th.