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The Six Key Components of Any Successful Gift Card Program

By TDS Gift Cards

Growing a Gift Card Program can be Complicated.

It’s no secret – growing a gift card program can be complicated. While many factors influence the success of a gift card program, TDS has identified six key components that are required for your launch to succeed. 

Your brand will need a team dedicated to the daily management of your gift card program. You will need to find and identify a processor that can fulfill the needs of a global gift card plan, spanning multiple countries, currencies and formats. And managing your print production and maintaining a consistent marketing schedule is imperative to growing your program over time. These six components will define your program, so it’s essential to identify and have a solution for these aspects.

Key Component 1: Program Management

Running a successful gift card program requires industry expertise and dedicated resources to accelerate growth and minimize costs. There are day-to-day decisions that have to be made to make your gift card program stand out from the rest. Many opportunities can slip through the cracks if your brand doesn’t have a strong team dedicated to managing your program daily. 

TDS provides our clients with complete program management with a team consisting of leading industry experts, which helps minimize internal resources and maximize program return for our partners. Our global team assists our partners by carrying out essential functions, including:

  • Strategic Launch Planning
  • Launch Negotiations
  • Sales & Cost Forecasting
  • Retail Channel Marketing
  • Inventory Management
  • Reporting & Analysis

Key Component 2: Processing

A processor is necessary to generate the data/codes for your gift card program, and effective data management is key to operating an efficient global gift card program. There are millions of distribution opportunities globally, and each of them will require code delivery and activation capabilities. And these integrations grow to be more complicated as your gift card program expands internationally. 

The TDS Global Processing Platform makes it easy for our partners, acting as the single source of truth for data, sales, and redemptions. One connection to the TDS platform provides our partners with complete market coverage, activating and redeeming all cards and codes across the globe.

Key Component 3: First Party Distribution

Distributing your gift cards via a 1st party solution can be a massive revenue channel for your brand. Consumers often prefer buying directly from the brands they trust, so having your own gifting solution can grow your eGift card program exponentially. Hosting an in-house solution requires many resources, including customer service, fraud protection, and more. 

TDS offers our clients a fully customizable, white-label eGift solution – including branded gifting websites and branded bulk portals for corporate partners. This solution includes multiple payment/delivery options, credit card fraud indemnification, dedicated customer service professionals and is available in select regions globally. 

Key Component 4: Third Party Distribution

 

There are millions of distribution opportunities globally available for your gift card program, which comes with its own challenges. A successful gift card program requires an omnichannel approach to distribution, covering traditional retailers, loyalty programs, eCommerce sites, pin-on-receipt networks, and so much more. 

 

TDS has aggregated all meaningful physical and digital retail opportunities globally, helping our clients reach over 4 million retail locations across the world in over 40 countries. Additionally, TDS clients have access to over 700 loyalty, rewards, and incentives programs via a network of 75+ aggregators and individual programs.

Key Component 5: Print Production

If not adequately managed, card costs can quickly become one of the most significant line items on the P&L of any gift card program. Many factors are involved in optimizing your print production, such as sourcing printers, testing the print quality, and ensuring data integrity. On top of that, you need to stay on top of card inventory and shipping costs. 

TDS offers our clients a full-service print team to manage their card production globally. As a result, our team produces cards closer to need, resulting in lower overall inventory and minimizing the costs for our clients.

Key Component 6: Marketing

Leveraging retail marketing opportunities available in-store and online is key to driving customer acquisition, brand awareness, and revenue. Opportunities exist throughout many different channels, and your gift card program can significantly benefit from all of them. For example, you can drive brand awareness in-store using shippers or seasonal displays or out of the store using online advertising. 

TDS has 10+ years of experience working on behalf of brands to identify, evaluate, negotiate and implement programs that will accelerate growth and achieve program objectives. Our marketing team works diligently to present and secure the best marketing opportunities available to our partners.

If your brand wants to get the most possible out of its gift card program, then you need to make sure you have solutions for all of these components. TDS is the trusted partner for some of the largest gift card brands in the world, and uniquely offers our clients solutions to all six! Want to learn more? Join our email list today by filling out the form below.

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