Giving Your Gift Cards A Personal Touch

In our last blog, we refocused on the benefits of selling gift cards in your store. Numerous studies have shown that they help for businesses to increase their sales. Seems like a no-brainer, doesn’t it? Gift cards make life easy for both the givers and the recipients. And while some shoppers feel that it’s lazy or impersonal to give gift cards, they only present business owners with more opportunities.

Those opportunities involve giving your gift cards that personal feel. As Tamara Schweitzer writes on Inc.com, you can’t simply assume that gift cards will sell themselves. Well, in truth, they kind of do. However, you have the opportunity to create much greater wonder around your gift cards. You have the chance to sell an experience, not just a product. Schweitzer lists a number of tips to show you how.

Provide Promotions. In our last blog, we mentioned that your store should include signage to clearly communicate to your customers that gift cards are available. However, “simply putting up signs or telling customers in an email that you offer gift cards isn\’t enough to actually increase sales,” insists Schweitzer, “You want to give customers a good reason to buy a gift card…through various promotions.”

For example, perhaps you can offer your clients a free gift card if they spend a certain amount in your store. Don’t assume that you’ll be losing money in the deal. The giving of the gift card ensures that a customer will be returning to your place of business. Also, keep in mind that consumers generally spend more than the face value of the gift card. You’re simply bound to make more money in return for your generous offer.

There is a science to this, however, says Schweitzer. You’ll need to make sure that you state on the offer of the gift card that it is not eligible for purchases made on the same day. Feel free to start small. A $5 or $10 gift card is still something that customers will appreciate. Never take your focus away from customer satisfaction. This is what you’re doing when you tie your gift cards into such promotions.

Build Your Lists. Customer loyalty is key, says Schweitzer. And your gift card sales will work to increase your customer loyalty. Consider that your gift cards are essentially referrals. In many cases, the cards are purchased for friends and family members who are being recommended to your brand. You’ll want to take measures to keeping these new customers coming back.

As Schweitzer points out, however, not everyone likes to give up their personal information. But it’s still important to keep connected with your new client base. She suggests that you utilize gift cards as part of an incentive for people to join your emailing list. Perhaps, everyone who joins the list can receive a $5 gift card. That way, you’re bound to increase your customer base.

Be sure your emails aren’t all about sales and promotions, by the way. No one likes that, Schweitzer reminds us. You don’t want to overload your customers with information that may only turn them off. It’s important to give people value in your emails. Include interesting tidbits of information and ask questions that may get them involved in conversations with you.

This is exactly what makes social media work so well. It’s time to get the word out about your gift cards. To order yours, call Canadian POS Corporation at 1-877-748-2884 today!