Gift cards have been the most popular gift for the past 5 years. That’s a pretty great reason to put a plan in place to accelerate your gift card sales this holiday season, no matter what type of business you own!
7 Compelling Facts About Gift Card Sales:
Need more reasons why gift cards are a great way to boost holiday sales? Here are seven compelling facts that will help convince you.
- Gift cards sales were projected to increase by 6% in 2016 and will account for over 18% of holiday sales!
- Two-thirds of consumers have purchased at least one gift card.
- Retailers who switch from paper to plastic cards typically see a 50-100% increase in sales.
- The average amount loaded on a digital gift card is 10-15% more than a plastic gift card.
- 61% of gift card holders spend more than the amount of their gift card and 75% of those who overspend spend 60% more than the value of their card.
- Gift cards are most popular with teenagers.
- 40% of gift card recipients do not use the total value of the card.
As you can see, gift cards can significantly increase your bottom line in December and beyond so their promotion and sale are well worth your attention.
4 Tips for Boosting Gift Card Sales
Here are a few tips for selling more cards:
Start with plenty of in-store promotion.
- Signage - interior, window and sandwich boards
- Flyers with purchase
- Train employees to ask for the sale. For example, "Would you like to purchase a gift card for a friend or family member?"
Create incentives for gift card purchase.
For example, customers can get a $20 gift certificate for themselves with the purchase of a $100 card.
Hint: If your average sale is about $150, then the incentive should be given on gift card sale of $200 – increasing your average sale!
Capture the late shoppers.
More than one in every four digital or online cards sold in December are sold between December 21st and 24th. Email daily during week before Christmas.
Make it easy to purchase.
Even if you don't sell online, create a link to pay for gift cards through a Paypal account to use in your email and on your website and social media.
Set a goal for gift card sales this holiday season and create a strategy to achieve it.
Gift cards can not only help you make this a more profitable holiday, they can give you momentum going into the new year!
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