Since I’ve been posting a lot about all these amazing Hot Toy figures I thought I’d write up a little post with some information in case people were wondering how it all works. I’m not an expert at all, I’m brand new to this collecting thing, but here we go.

You can purchase Hot Toy figures at various online websites and even at certain local comic shops. I believe they have to be an authorized dealer but don’t quote me on that. The reason I use Sideshow though is because they seem to be a really awesome company. You can earn “Reward Points” on purchases which you can then save up and use later on. I actually did this with the Winter Soldier I purchased the other day. It can really help and if you’re someone who really gets into collecting you could easily pay for an entire item with points.

You don’t just get points from making purchases though. Normally around Halloween they have “Spooktacular” which is a fun little event they do. Everyday during the event (I can’t remember how long it runs for) you can find special reward codes on their website. That’s where 90% of my points came from! They range from as low as $5 and can go up to $50. They might have even offered higher values but I admit I was tardy to the party. My friend Mario clued me in but I was still able to get almost $100 in reward points. It’s really as simple as entering a code word on the website. I don’t think it gets any easier.

Another reason why I use them? Contests. They are always offering some sort of contest either via Twitter, Facebook, or their website. Some are as simple as filling out a form and some ask that you get a little creative. I was actually lucky enough to win a contest on Twitter! I won the Mandarin Hot Toy figure. Yup, I got a $200 item for free all because I took a few seconds to enter a contest!

Oh, did I mention the payment plans? Yes, they offer payment plans. Like most people, I can’t afford to shell out $200 at a time on something like a figure. That’s why I’m super thrilled that Sideshow allows you to make payments. In most cases it’s two or three (I’ve seen as high as four though) and the payment amount is split evenly. Here’s an example. This is my payment schedule for Black Widow:

That means I won’t get charged anything until that first date. There is no hold put onto your card or anything like that. It’s really as simple as it sounds. When you select a payment plan you get to pick when you want the payments to happen as well.

This is from the Winter Soldier page. I find this is really helpful, especially if you have a budget for the month and know when you normally have extra money. Sometimes it might be a day or two off depending on holidays. I had a payment that was due December 25th but since that’s Christmas, my payment wasn’t taken until the 27th. Just something to keep in mind! It doesn’t happen often but just wanted to throw it out there.

I think that pretty much covers. Their customer service is pretty great too. If something you’ve preordered has arrived earlier than planned, they’ll contact you and offer you options to pay earlier or move up payments. I had it happen with the Tony Stark Mechanic figure. They’re pretty quick to respond to emails and tweets. Susan, who runs the Twitter account for them, is amazing and is quick to help if she can, or at least point you in the right direction.

This post ended up being longer than I expected but if you have questions leave them in the comments. I’ll do my best to answer them or point you in the direction of someone who can!