The Canadian POS Corporation Blog often champions the selling of gift cards due to the many benefits they offer store owners. In our last blog, we continued this trend knowing that the holiday season will soon be upon us. Yes, we know that we’re still in the month of September. But just consider how quickly time flies. Before you know it, it will be Halloween and Christmas decorations are usually up in the malls the day after.
Gift cards aren’t only sold during the holiday season, of course. Naturally, sales pick up during that time but there is a reason to buy gifts for people all year round. Birthdays, anniversaries, child births, graduations, promotions – you name it! The list could go on and on. Are you taking advantage of all of the reasons that people buy gifts? As we pointed out yesterday, the selling of gift cards is bound to increase revenue and the number of people who visit your store.
Here are three more reasons gift cards are good for business:
1. They help your brand to stand out from its competition. Are your competitors selling gift cards? If not, doing so will definitely give you a leg up. If they do, you’ll want to create a unique display in your store that shows your customers that your brand is one that is worth recommending to others. After all, what are gift cards if they aren’t referrals? On FirstData.com, Euphemia L. B. Erickson explains this benefit.
“Gift cards are a great way to share your brand with the world,” she writes, “A well-stocked and wide array of gift card designs can help your business to stand out from the rest, giving customers another way to connect with your business and brand. Couple those with the additional opportunities to give them an exceptional customer service experience, and you’ve got yourself an additional source of new, loyal customers who love visiting your place of business.”
2. They encourage repeat business. As mentioned, gift cards make for great referrals. They are literally saying “try this company out” to their recipients. This helps to bring new people through the front doors of your store, giving you greater opportunities to transform them into loyal customers. Of course, it’s up to you to ensure that they enjoy their experiences with your company. If they do, they’ll very likely return.
Newtek points out that the more people who visit your store, the more likely they are to spend more money. “Your gift card users are not only more likely to spend more money at your establishment, but they’re also more likely to visit your business more than once,” says their website, “Who wouldn’t want to increase repeat business?” Keep in mind that the more impressed your new customers are, the more likely they will be to recommend you to others themselves.
3. They help to reduce fraud. “Any gift card program or app in the marketplace worth its salt will incorporate real-time authorization for gift card transactions, incorporating secure transactions at the point-of-sale or in-app,” writes Erickson, “The incorporation of these security measures eliminates the fraud that was once associated with paper certificates. Make sure that any gift card program you’re using is using state-of-the-art security measures so that gift card fraud becomes a thing of the past.”
At Canadian POS Corporation, our electronic gift card solution provides top-notch security through built-in features that make program management both simple and cost effective. As well, our gift cards maximize your ability to market your business to those who are looking to buy gifts for their loved ones all year long. To order gift cards to sell in your store, call Canadian POS Corporation at 1-877-748-2884 or email us at info@localhost.