A gift card program can bring in cash upfront, introduce new customers to your brand and give existing customers a reason to come back. But a program that’s rushed out tends to underperform: cards sit in the wrong channels, the checkout experience is clunky, or nobody can tell whether it’s working. This guide walks through the eight steps brands follow to launch a gift card program that lasts, from setting goals to measuring results.
1. Set clear goals
Start with what the program is for, because it shapes every later decision. The most common goals are:
- New customers. Gift cards are a warm referral: the person who receives one is often a first-time customer.
- Revenue and cash flow. Card sales bring in money before anything is redeemed.
- Loyalty and retention. Cards linked to promotions or rewards give customers a reason to return.
- Corporate sales. Businesses buy cards in volume for staff and client rewards.
Pick one or two to lead with and decide how you’ll measure them (for example, card sales per month, redemption rate or the share of new customers who redeem).
2. Choose the type of card
Most brands run a closed-loop program: cards that can only be spent with your brand, carry your branding and keep the spend in your business. Open-loop cards run on payment networks and can be spent almost anywhere, so they suit rewards and incentives more than brand programs. Our guide to closed-loop vs open-loop gift cards compares the two.
Then decide on the format:
- Physical cards for in-store sales and third-party retail racks.
- Digital cards delivered by email, text or app, for online sales and last-minute gifts.
- Both. Most brands sell both, so the customer can choose.
3. Design the card and the offer
The card is a piece of your brand that travels, so treat it like one. Then set the commercial details:
- Denominations. Fixed values make for simple shelf cards; variable values suit online sales.
- Reloadable or single use. Reloadable cards can encourage repeat purchases; single-use cards are simpler.
- Promotions. Bonus value offers (for example, a bonus card with a larger purchase) are a proven way to lift sales in quieter months.
4. Get the rules and terms right
Gift cards are regulated, and the rules on expiry dates, fees, unspent balances and disclosure differ by market. Write clear terms and conditions for your cards, and plan how you’ll meet the rules in every country you sell in. Our gift card regulations guide sets out the main rules in the US, UK and EU. A specialist gift card issuer can take on the regulatory side for you.
5. Connect it to your systems
Cards have to work everywhere your customers pay. That means connecting the program to:
- Your point of sale, so staff can activate, redeem and check balances in store.
- Your ecommerce checkout, so cards can be bought and spent online.
- Your finance and reporting, so card sales, redemptions and unspent balances are tracked accurately.
Decide early whether to build and run this yourself or use a managed platform. Building in-house gives full control but takes time, security work and ongoing maintenance. Our free guide to in-house vs outsourced gift card management compares the two.
6. Plan distribution
Selling cards only on your own channels limits their reach. Most programs combine:
- Your stores and website, the obvious starting point.
- Third-party retail, where cards sit on gift card racks in supermarkets, drugstores and convenience stores.
- Online marketplaces and digital partners, which reach customers who are already shopping for gifts.
- Corporate and incentive programs, where businesses buy cards for staff and client rewards.
Third-party gift card distribution can put your cards in front of far more shoppers than your own channels alone.
7. Test, train and launch
Before going live, test every journey end to end: buying a card in store and online, activating it, spending it in part and in full, and checking the balance. Train store staff on selling and redeeming cards and on spotting fraud (our guide to gift card fraud prevention covers the warning signs). Then launch with a push: gift card sales peak around holidays, so time the launch and your first promotions accordingly.
8. Measure and improve
Once the program is live, track it against the goals you set in step 1:
- Sales by channel and denomination.
- Redemption rate and time to redeem.
- Spend above card value when customers redeem.
- New customers who first visit with a gift card.
- Unspent balances and how they change over time.
Use what you learn to adjust denominations, channels and promotions. The best programs are tuned continuously, not set up once and left alone.
Launching with epay Conductor
epay Conductor brings issuing, distribution and processing together on one platform:
- Card issuing. Branded physical and digital cards, with epay handling the regulatory side.
- Distribution. Reach across a retail network of 360,000+ locations and 745,000+ points of sale in 65+ countries.
- Processing. Activation, redemption and balance checks, plus reporting on every card.
