5 reasons customers love gift cards - and why you should offer them
Shopping for someone else can be a challenge, especially if they’re picky, you don’t know them well or it feels like they already have everything. Gift cards allow merchants to capitalize on the difficulty of gift-giving by offering their customers freedom and flexibility. Because they’re so popular, gift cards are a great tool for businesses to boost sales, increase loyalty and engage customers.
Here are five reasons why gift cards are an in-demand option that more consumers are expecting, and why it pays to include them in your product offering mix.
1. Guaranteed satisfaction
People want to know their gifts won’t end up being returned, and that they’re actually giving something useful to the recipient. But it can be hard knowing what a parent or niece will like while still keeping an element of surprise. The perfect solution, a gift card works much like cash but has a more personal and intentional touch. Recipients get the chance to splurge on a gift or experience they may not otherwise purchase for themselves, like a fancy meal or the newest tech gadget.
2. On-demand purchasing power
Many businesses now allow customers to buy and use gift cards online, making picking up a last-minute gift a breeze. Electronic gift cards are also great for people who live at a distance from the person they’re giving a gift to and offer the ability to send a gift in an easy, cost-effective way. Recipients will love being able to use their gift cards to shop from the comfort of their own couch, on their laptop, tablet or smartphone. Some gift cards can even be integrated into Apple wallet or your store’s mobile app.
3. They’re easy to use
Besides allowing for digital payment options, gift cards are also a cinch to reload and reuse, which is handy especially if the card is for a favourite store. Many retailers also have a registration option, so both givers and recipients can be worry-free about losing the card since they know they’ll be covered. Their small size also makes them super easy to place in a greeting card, with no wrapping required.
4. They come with bonus packs
One of the latest trends supporting gift card sales is offering incentives for the purchaser, like a discount coupon, an upgrade or an extra $10 gift card. For example, many restaurants will tack on this extra gift card, but specify a timeframe when it can be used – usually during a slower window to keep customers coming in and boost sales. These bonuses can either become part of the gift or can be used by the giver. It’s a little something extra that customers appreciate, and often encourages more visits and spending at your business.
5. They inspire creative gift-giving
Long gone are the days when gift cards were considered unimaginative. Nowadays, people can give and receive truly unique and experiential gifts from both large and small retailers. For example, dads can enjoy a fun night out at the local comedy club, featuring the comedian of their choosing. Or they can get their car detailed at the neighbourhood mechanic. Gift cards can be for gifts of all shapes and sizes that go beyond basic and boring big box retailers.
Motivated to add gift cards to your business? With Elavon Canada’s Electronic Gift Card solutions, you get a complete package of marketing features designed to maximize your sales, plus the administrative and security features you need to make program management simple and cost-effective. All transactions are handled by Elavon’s secure and powerful network. You’ll process the cards with the same speed and ease as credit and debit cards, which means there’s no hassle of manually processing paper gift certificates.
We also provide unmatched flexibility at the point of sale. Our solution can be implemented using a wide range of terminals, software and eCommerce solutions, and can even be integrated with your existing POS terminal. No matter what your requirements are, Elavon works with you at every step to design the perfect program for your business.