Why You Should Promote Gift Cards All Year-Round

With the holiday season now behind us, there is a misconception about gift cards in the minds of many. Gift cards, some people think, are holiday season-based gifts. And while it is certainly true that gift card sales – much like everything else – pick up during the busy holiday shopping season, they remain extremely popular items throughout the year.

After all, there is always a reason to buy gifts. Birthdays, anniversaries, graduations and the upcoming Valentine’s Day (just a little over a month away now!) are all occasions when gift cards come in very handy as gifts. People want them. They allow recipients to get whatever it is they like – for free! So, truly – how can one go wrong with buying a gift card for a loved one? On EcommerceInsiders.com, Terri Scott shares the same sentiments.

“What could be easier for gift givers than to purchase a branded gift card for their friends and loved ones, especially when the gift recipient has particular or unusual tastes?” she asks, “Now, imagine many gift recipients (especially those with unique, unusual tastes) perceiving your brand as their product solution? What would that be worth to your bottom line?”

Scott admits that holiday shopping provides a significant increase in gift card sales every year, but there is a long-term benefit to selling gift cards during the holiday season. “The idea is to hook the customer with the gift card, then create a great shopping and customer experience that makes them likely to return – this time spending their own money,” she writes, “This is especially true of online stores selling exhaustible products like beauty supplies, specialty food and drink, etc.”

On IndependentRetailer.com, Timm Walsh agrees. He writes that research from the Retail Gift Card Association (RGCA) has found that gift cards remain popular all throughout the year. He notes that they continue to be among the most requested and given gifts in the United States. The constant demand for gift cards, in fact, makes it unlike any other retail product.

“More than 80 percent of the population plans to give gift cards this year (2016) for various occasions, and the vast majority of shoppers like to give gift cards because they can be assured the recipient will be able to purchase what they prefer,” Walsh writes, “Recipients also enjoy receiving gift cards, and most consumers surveyed credited the ability to purchase what they want as the top reason they like getting gift cards.”

He also reveals that gift cards have a very “unique distinction” in the retail industry. Also unlike any other product, they practically require no promotion at all. Walsh states that “89 percent of shoppers will buy gift cards without a promotion or deal being offered. In a world of discounts and comparison shopping, gift cards are among the last remaining products that consumers will buy simply when they want them, versus waiting for a discount.”

At Canadian POS Corporation, we make it easy for Canadian retailers to get in on the gift card craze. For more information about how you can begin selling gift cards in your store, call Canadian POS Corporation at 1-877-748-2884 or email us at info@localhost.