Your promotional gift card program is a business-critical strategy that’s designed to entice, reward, and thank prospects and loyal customers.
But is your current card program using the latest technology that maximizes your marketing budget, generates more revenue, and reveals a treasure trove of customer insights? Or is it still relying on traditional card programs that funnel your budget, earnings, and customer data directly to the bank?
If any of these apply, your program is likely still operating with traditional vendors where:
- You pay money up front to fund your card program
- You don’t see any revenue generated from transactions or interchange fees
- The consumer spending data — how, when, and where customers spend the money — is a complete and utter mystery to your company
Welcome to the new era of promotional cards
While traditional card programs had a long run, the new era of issuing promotional gift cards has arrived. Maximizing your brand’s promotional card program has never been easier or more profitable.
With the new way of issuing promotional cards, here are three major ways to make more from of your investment.
1. Keep more marketing dollars in your pocket
With the new way of issuing promotional gift cards, tying up large sums of money on the front-end is a thing of the past. Modern prepaid card programs come equipped with features like just-in-time (JIT) funding which lets you allocate money on-demand when the card is actually used, rather than up front.
Each year, up to $3 billion worth of gift card balances go unused, according to the Mercator Advisory Group, which provides data on the payments industry. If your brand is currently using a traditional card program that requires upfront funding, you’re spending money that you’ll never see again, and that some of your customers will never get around to spending.
With The new way of issuing cards are funded on-demand, your brand doesn’t have to waste the money your customers don’t spend. This means improved cash flow and more money in your pocket.
2. Unlock new revenue streams
Every time someone swipes the gift card you gave them, the issuing bank captures in all the transaction and interchange fees. With the new way of issuing cards, your brand generates revenue on every transaction made on the cards you provided.
Some brands allocate the revenue generated from this new way of issuing cards as cost savings to the program, while others attain a scale where the interchange and transaction fees can become an additional stream of revenue for the organization.
However you want to apply the funds, the important point is that your brand gets far more from the existing program, and the cards that you are already providing to your prospective, new, and loyal customers bring more value to the business.
3. Deliver invaluable customer data
With the traditional way of issuing promotional cards, the issuing bank collects all of your customer’s spending data while you're left in the dark.
When you issue the cards directly, your company gains access to real-time customer spending data and insights. Finally, you can see where, when, and how customers spend outside of your four walls.
These broader customer data insights guide personalization. For example, if you see a trend that your new customers spend their prepaid promotional cards to treat themselves to a delivery food service, you may want to forge a partnership with a provider to create an additional incentive to bring more new customers on board. Using these patterns, you can also offer specific incentives and merchant-funded rewards.
Don't reinvent your promotional card program, make it better
Your promotional card program is a valuable tool that rewards your customers, and brings them closer. However, if the nuts and bolts of the program still rely on traditional card providers, you’re leaving money and valuable data on the table.
Changing how you issue the cards, and how they're funded brings new revenue streams, better cash management for your company, and more customer spending insights — all without requiring any change from your customers. Same program, same benefits.
There’s no need to reinvent your promotional card program: We're here to make it more profitable and meaningful for your business..
If you’re ready to optimize your brand’s promotional card program, reach out to us today.
