gift card

ANZ pre-paid Visa Gift Card

2007-04-28T02:35:00.001-07:00

Barbara Drury December 6 2006 The Sydney Morning Herald & The Age (subscribe)
Barbara Drury reviews a new gift card that keeps on giving all over the world.
What it is Just in time for Christmas, the ANZ has launched a pre-paid Visa Gift Card that works like a gift voucher and looks like a plastic credit card. The cards can be given to friends, relatives, employees and even children, provided they are old enough to sign their name. You choose the amount you wish to give and let recipients choose their own gift anywhere in the world that Visa is accepted.
How it works You can buy the cards from selected ANZ branches or online from the dedicated site, www.PrepaidShop.com.au. There is a variety of design. You don't have to be an ANZ customer to buy the cards. Because the cards are a cash equivalent they are issued with a PIN code for security. The code must be activated by the purchaser or recipient before the card can be used.
The recipient can then use their gift card anywhere Visa is accepted electronically - over the phone, the internet or the shop counter - but they can't be used at ATMs to withdraw cash. In a retail outlet, recipients will need to sign as they would with a credit card.
Jenny Fagg, ANZ managing director consumer finance, says the cards are available in 22 branches so far but expects this to increase.
What it costs You pay a flat fee of $6.50 via the web or $6 at a branch on top of the face value of the gift card. The minimum face value is $25 to a maximum of $500 on the web or $1000 from a branch.

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Pros The prepaid gift cards should appeal to parents who want to give their children money to travel within Australia or overseas.
Garfield Wright, a Cannex analyst, says the ability to use the card online means grandparents, for example, could give one to a grandchild to download music. They may have the edge over gift vouchers, for example, if the recipient lives in another area or town and you don't know which retail outlets they use.
Fagg says overseas companies use the cards to reward employees but at this stage ANZ is promoting them simply as gift cards.
The gift card is easy to purchase, can be sent direct to the recipient with a personalised greeting and is more flexible than a voucher.
Cons The gift card may look and feel like a credit card but it is like cash in the hand - so if it is lost or stolen you can kiss your cash goodbye. The PIN code is protection against the card going astray in the post before it reaches the intended recipient, but there is no security once the card has been activated.
The cards must be used within 12 months of issue and, while Fagg says overseas experience shows most cards are used in the first month, any residual amount on expiry is forfeited.
In practice, recipients may find, after making their purchases, they are left with a dollar or two on the card that is awkward to spend and can't be cashed out. Fagg says residual amounts can be used as part payment for goods but it is likely that these small amounts will end up in the bank's kitty.
Wright says not being able to top it up or use it to withdraw cash at ATMs are disadvantages, especially when given to someone for the purpose of travel. Also, the card can't be used at merchants or with taxi drivers, for example, who still use the old hand-held machines that take an imprint of your card.
The issue fees, $6.50 online or $6 from a branch, are steep for relatively small gifts. The fee on the minimum purchase of $25 is close to 25 per cent of the value of the gift. For small gifts, a voucher is still more cost effective because there is no fee attached.
Where it fits in Pre-paid gift cards linked to a global credit card network are already extremely popular overseas but only just starting here. Westpac has the MasterCard Gift Card available in all branches but not over the internet, costing $4.95 for gifts of $15 to $800. Travelex has a pre-paid card aimed at tourists that provides access to the Visa network and has access to ATMs.
ANZ's Fagg says the bank's branches and call centres have been reporting that customers want pre-paid cards as a convenient money-equivalent gift.
Cannex's Wright applauds the card's flexibility but says its restrictions make it most useful as a replacement for store vouchers.

Twice as Many Americans Purchased Gift Cards in 2003 than in 2002

2007-04-28T02:34:00.001-07:00

From ValueLink
Gift Card Statistics
Twice as many American consumers purchased a gift card in 2003 compared to the previous year, according to a study commissioned by ValueLink, the gift and spending card service of First Data Corp. Forty-five percent of the adult population in the United States, an estimated 97 million people, purchased a gift card in the previous 12 months versus just 23 percent in a similar survey conducted in August 2002.
The 2003 survey of 1,023 U.S. adults aged 18 or older revealed that consumer awareness of gift cards has reached 92 percent, a 13 percent increase over 2002. Nearly 6 in every 10 adults (59 percent) reported purchasing and/or receiving a gift card in the past year; a 22 percent increase over 2002 findings.
"The industry's continued growth is being fueled by the creative and diverse uses of gift and spending cards, which in turn is creating a very strong consumer product cycle," said Kevin Harte, senior vice president and general manager of ValueLink.
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Survey findings also indicated that consumers increased the number of cards they purchased to an average 5.6 cards per year; a one card increase over the previous year. Households with teenagers purchased nearly two cards (7.5) over the average. Overall, consumers spent an average $197 on their purchased cards in the previous year.
"It is impressive to see such tremendous growth in the awareness and consumer adoption of a still relatively young product," said ValueLink Vice President of Product Marketing and Evolution, Karen Larsen. "We continue to see dramatic growth across the board in 2003 as consumers have welcomed gift cards as a part of their mainstream retail experience."
Despite growth in awareness, use, frequency and volume of purchases, just 8 percent of consumers reported that they purchased a card for their own use during the previous year versus 12 percent in 2002. However, 60 percent of those consumers also said they had reloaded value on a previously purchased card. That action indicates a strong preference for the spending card application that continues to grow in popularity for frequently purchased services or items such as coffee beverages or fast food products, according to Larsen.
While employed, college-educated women living in metro area households with at least three members continue to lead the demographic breakdown of gift card purchasers, there were interesting gender differences:
· Men continue to load a higher average dollar value on cards, $48 per card versus $37 per card for women.
· More than two-thirds of the women surveyed (68 percent) give gift cards as a primary gift versus just 57 percent of men.
· Nearly three in 10 males (29 percent) choose to give a gift card as a secondary gift as well, versus just 16 percent of women.
Other key research findings include:
· Purchasers and receivers rate their overall satisfaction with gift cards as 9 on a scale of 1-10, with 10 being "extremely satisfied" and 1 being "not at all satisfied."
· 79 percent of consumers purchased gift cards in person at a store location. Another 6 percent made the purchase on the Internet/merchant Web site, and 4 percent via the telephone.
· Compared to the average $197 spent on gift cards in the previous year, middle age purchasers, age 45-54, average $235 per year; and purchasers in the age range of 55-64 average $241 per year.
· Nearly 50 percent of all purchased cards had a $20-25 value.
· The growth rate for reloading gift cards has more than doubled -- 20 percent to 42 percent growth -- between 2001 and 2003.
· 54 percent of consumers spend the initial value of their gift card within one month.
· 61 percent of consumers spend the initial value of their gift card in their first visit.
· 56 percent of consumers spend more than the initial value of their card.
In addition to confirming their acceptance and use of gift cards, survey respondents provided a glimpse at the potential for continued growth by indicating a desire to purchase an average of six cards in the coming year.
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Card Express International Earns Praise For Credit Union Gift Card Program
Card Express International (CardEx), a leading prepaid debit card processor, is receiving high marks for its instant issue gift card program for SELCO Community Credit Union. The praise of CardEx's efforts for SELCO have resonated in the months since the program's holiday season launch, and reflects CardEx's focus on servicing credit unions.
Irvine, CA (PRWEB) April 18, 2007 -- Card Express International (CardEx), a leading prepaid debit card processor, is receiving high marks for its instant issue gift card program for SELCO Community Credit Union. The praise of CardEx's efforts for SELCO have resonated in the months since the program's holiday season launch, and reflects CardEx's focus on servicing credit unions. Last November, the company announced an agreement to provide eight CUs, totaling over 348,000 members, with customized, Visa prepaid debit cards. That deal was an outgrowth of CardEx's relationship with Pemco Technologies, a leading provider of innovative payment solutions.
"SELCO's Sure Fit Gift Card program was successful due to ideal timing. Our members had a need during the holidays and CardEx was there to fill that need," said Ann Carpenter, SELCO's Product Manager, Operations Management. "Effective marketing included inviting branch window advertising, marketing at each teller window, "on hold" messages, a website promotion, monthly newsletter announcements, and the gift card designs were great."
SELCO has been a Pemco Technologies customer since 2002, providing the credit union with debit and signature processing, as well as instant issue interface. Pemco also lauded CardEx's gift card program. "CardEx was great to work with," said Tanya Packer, director of business development. "They were responsive to our questions and acted on our concerns. By helping us with SELCO's gift card program, CardEx has helped us provide a needed line of business and strengthened our relationship with this customer."
About Card Express InternationalCard Express International (CardEx) is a leading global processor of prepaid debit card products and services utilizing the Visa® and MasterCard® platforms. The company's state-of-the-art proprietary debit card platform is adaptable and scalable to support a myriad of products in a high volume capacity including gift, incentive, payroll, travel money, general purpose consumer reloadable, expense accounts, and virtual cards, among others. For more information, visit www.CardEx.com.
About SELCOSELCO Community Credit Union and the SELCO Family of Companies, provide services to nearly 80,000 members and consumers in Western and Central Oregon. For more information about SELCO visit www.selco.org.
About Pemco TechnologiesPemco Technologies provides innovative payment solutions to the financial industry including credit signature processing, debit signature processing, PIN-based processing, ATM services, cardholder award programs, fraud management/ detection/prevention, and gift card programs. Award-winning reliability and renowned customer service have made Pemco one of the nation's top payment solutions companies. For more information about Pemco Technologies visit www.pemcotech.com.
# # #

Bank Gift Cards Come Wrapped With Limits

2007-04-28T02:33:00.001-07:00

Consumers Rankled By Obscure Charges, Rules
By Caroline E. Mayer
Washington Post Staff WriterFriday, February 17, 2006; Page D01
Visa likes to say that "finding the perfect gift just got easier" with its gift card.
But recipients of those cards -- or similar ones issued by MasterCard or American Express -- are discovering that using them presents unexpected difficulties. Kari Schoerner, who had a $25 Visa gift card, used it to buy a $13 book. Then the Perryville, Md., Army contract specialist tried to use the balance as partial payment for a $30 clothes purchase. The card was rejected for insufficient funds because the balance was only $12. Discouraged by her inability to combine the leftover value with cash, Schoerner stuck the card in her purse and hasn't tried to use it since.
"It kind of stinks," said Schoerner, who said she will still try to use the card. "I will make sure I spend less than what's on it, so I probably won't be able to use the full value of the card."
Lisa T. Winston of Forestville had the same problem with her $50 American Express gift card. The government employee has about $2.39 left on the card and is not sure when she will be able to use it: "Unless I buy some gum at CVS . . . I guess it will just go to waste." Next time, she said, "just give me the cash."
Credit card companies either say that they have been unaware of the problems or that they are working to solve them.
With the demise of paper gift certificates, plastic gifts cards have become a big and rapidly growing business, exceeding $110 billion in sales last year, according to David Robertson, publisher of the Nilson Report, which monitors the credit industry. "By the end of the decade, that $110 billion number will triple, so it's going to be a very, very lucrative business for some, steady income for others."
Over the 2005 holiday season, the National Retail Federation estimated, three out of four consumers purchased gift cards. And now, at tax time, leading tax-preparation software company TurboTax is giving taxpayers the option of receiving tax refunds in gift cards.
Most gift cards are store cards that may be used at only the issuer's stores. But bank cards -- those that carry the logo of the major credit card issuers -- have been rapidly gaining in popularity. Banks have aggressively promoted them as more versatile because they can be used almost anywhere.
But increased use has been accompanied by growing complaints. Dan Horne, assistant professor of marketing at Providence College and a gift card expert, blames the difficulties on the data-processing systems that have been set up to process electronic payment transactions.
Many systems are not capable of handling multiple forms of payment for a single transaction. And often merchants cannot determine how much money is left on a card. So, if a purchase is for more than the card's balance, the card may be automatically rejected, just as a regular credit card is blocked when customers exceed their credit limits.
The result, Horne estimates, is that about 5 percent of cards' value may go unredeemed.

The Great Best Buy Gift Card Scam, Part II

2007-04-28T02:32:00.003-07:00

Szandor Blestman
March 22, 2007
A few days back I wrote an article on something that happened to me on my birthday with Best Buy and a gift card I received. I have never received so much response to an article. When I first sat down to write about my experience, it was not my intention to become a type of Don Quixote. I am now under the delusion that maybe something I’m doing will actually help to make the world a little better, a little nicer, a little more chivalrous. It seems that some people don’t care and others wish to have their concerns addressed but don’t know where to turn. The latter get very angry and frustrated. I thought I could use this space to share some of the response I got to my story.
One gentleman wrote me an email calling my concerns ridiculous. He asked me what right I had to expect cash for my gift card and what I felt should be the refund limit on the card. He then informed me that there are far more grievous problems with gift cards such as expiration dates and balance reduction over time so my complaint was extremely foolish. My verbatim reply is below:
Sir,
Thank you for responding to my article. Feedback is always welcome. You ask a poignant question that I think deserves an answer. What right did I have to expect a cash return on my gift card? And interesting query. Upon reflection, I realize I wasn't thinking about my rights at the time I inquired about the change. I also really didn't think about my rights when I tried to get my money back for the merchandise. I wasn't even really thinking about my rights when I wrote this story in the first place. I was simply relating an episode in my life as honestly and objectively (albeit from my point of view) as I could and unveiling it as it happened. I didn't think I had claimed that I had a right to expect a cash return on my gift card, but I guess my actions could be taken as an indication that I felt I had a right to expect cash. I suppose we have the right to have expectations no matter what those expectations are. Just because we have expectations does not necessarily mean they will come to pass. As it was, at the time of the incident, I thought my wife had paid for the gift card with cash because that is her usual modus operandi. My expectations certainly were not met. In the long run, I guess Best Buy had the right to refute my expectations and they exercised that right just as I exercised my right to ask for what I felt I was due. As explained in the story, when it was explained that they had to put the money back to her credit card I accepted that and took the necessary steps to make sure that happened. I guess what I was really expecting was some good customer service, someone to listen to me and take care of my needs. I've always been taught that the customer is always right and to strive to make sure he's happy. I think that doesn't apply anymore in today's world. I have gotten a lot of feedback since this article has come out and I now realize that Best Buy simply does not care about the customer. As for how much I think the cash limit return on the card should be, 100% sounds good to me. The important thing should be that the customer has a good experience and you have won a customer for life. I have a story that was related to me about that too. Thank you also for the information about the cards losing their value and expiring. I had no idea that was the case. Yes, that certainly would have been a shame if I had waited, or lost the card and then found it again only to find that it had expired. That would certainly be a situation much worse than the one I experienced. You ask why companies should issue a card at all? Perhaps they shouldn't. I know I prefer cash and perhaps many people do but don't say so just to be polite. But, my opinion aside, the company should issue cards as a courtesy to the customer and in hopes of gaining new customers. They should not impose draconian rules upon those cards which would only serve to anger a potential customer, especially in this day and age when everyone has a platform they can climb upon to tell their story. I am sorry you feel my complaint was foolish, perhaps I am just a fool for questioning the rules. Perhaps from now on when I feel I am getting taken advantage of I should just keep my mouth shut. More likely I will continue to relate episodes of my life to anyone who is willing to read them. Thank you again for your interest.
Another gentleman told me to grow up, reminded me that retail workers make little money, and called me petty, a slovenly middle aged pseudo elitist and a schmuck. I guess he feels that because retail workers don’t make much money they are incapable of providing excellent customer service. I didn’t mean to imply in my article that I found fault with the employees of Best Buy. On the contrary, I think they were just being good little soldiers and obeying the orders of their superiors. I blame Best Buy’s policy makers, the ones at the top. As for being petty, according to a Fox News report dated Dec. 18th, 2006, Best Buy reported $43 million in gains from unused gift cards. I wish I had $43 million, then maybe I wouldn’t be so slovenly and could in fact be a real elitist. And talk about petty, Best Buy couldn’t dip into that $43 million and give me $8.49 change? If that’s not petty I don’t know what is.
Yet another gentleman informed me of a time when he had received a $25 gift card from Best Buy and they had refused to give him around $2.00 in change that he had coming to him. This was some time back and he has refused to step foot inside a Best Buy store since. He then went on to tell me a story about a gift card he had received from a small pet store that sold tropical fish. Since he keeps tropical fish and they’re hard to wrap, he felt that was a good application of a gift card. He went to the store and bought a couple of fish, but not enough to cover the entire amount on the card. The owner of the store asked him if he wanted the balance on the gift card or if he’d prefer it in cash. He told me the amount wasn’t much, around $10, but he took the cash. He continues to use that store for all his tropical fish needs even though they may sometimes charge more than a big chain pet store for certain supplies.
There were a few people who realized this article was more than just about the money, that it was about customer service. They related to me their own stories of poor to no customer service at Best Buy. One woman informed me that she had bought a new laptop computer from them for $900 with the new Windows Vista operating system installed on it. She took it home and discovered that it wouldn’t work with the software she used to conduct her business. This made the computer useless to her. She took it back to the store to ask if she could get the operating system replaced with one that would work and they told they could do that for a rather large fee. She then asked if she could return the unit seeing as how it was no good to her and get her money back and they told her they could do that for a $250 restocking fee. That's $250 they wanted to take from her without giving her anything in return. This was within a couple of days of her buying the unit. Angry and frustrated and finding no satisfaction with the so called customer service at Best Buy, she left the store with the merchandise she could not use and swore to never shop at Best Buy again.
One gentleman informed me of a situation he had with a PDA he bought at Best Buy. He told me that while it was in warranty the screen went bad and was somehow out of sync. He had bought the extended warranty. He took it back and they told him it would take them 45 days to repair it. He informed them that he used the unit every day and asked if they could exchange it for him. They informed him that wasn’t their policy. He asked if they could give him a loner for the 45 days that they would have it and they told him that wasn’t their policy. He finally gave in and let them take the unit. When it came back 30 days later he went to pick it up (surprised that it had arrived early) and found that it was not fixed. He asked if they had checked the screen and they said they had, then he showed them that it was still bad. They then told him it would take another 45 days for it to be fixed. He told them no, that he wanted an exchange. They said they could do it now but that his model was obsolete and he’d have to pay more for the upgrade. He wouldn’t take the deal as he liked the model he had and did not wish to spend more money. He finally gave up and walked out of the store with the defective unit, never to return.
Yet another gentleman bought a mini disc player as an open item from a Best Buy store. He was told it was working. When he got it home he found it was not. He tried to return the item to get his money back but they would not allow it. It wasn’t their policy. He is yet another customer Best Buy has lost.
I could go on, but why bother. Best Buy’s customer service policy seems to be no customer service. Whatever happened to “Satisfaction or your money back.”? Whatever happened to “The customer is always right.”? There is a nice story that was related to me to show us all that even in this day and age that there are still places where good customer service does exist.
A gentleman told me that he was in an Oberweis Ice Cream store one morning to pick up an ice cream cake. The price of the cake was $34. He was paying with a credit card. The card reader was having problems communicating with the authorization center. He offered to pay with another credit card, but the cashier told him it wasn’t the card that was the problem, it was the communication between the store and the authorization center. He waited for twenty to thirty minutes for the problem to resolve itself. Finally, the cashier told him to just take the cake for free. He was flabbergasted. It was a fairly expensive cake. He offered to come back and pay later. The cashier told him no, that she was the manager and it was her right to use her discretion to give him the cake. Now there’s a company who knows what customer service is all about. They realize that with good customer service they will gain a customer for life. They understand that the sacrifice of a relatively small amount now will pay big dividends in the future. That man is likely to go to Oberweis from now on for all his dairy needs.
I’ve had a lot of interesting conversations due to the last article. I’ve discussed everything from how a younger generation has grown up not knowing what good customer service is and so they don’t expect it to how people have become sheep and just accept things the way they are and do as they are told without question. I think that sometimes we as consumers don’t realize just how much power we have. If we don’t like how we are treated at a store, we shouldn’t shop there. It’s that simple. If we want excellent customer service, we must demand it. If one has a bad experience in a store, it is appropriate to tell as many other people about it as possible, otherwise no one else will know or care. Similarly, it is also important to let people know about the good experiences you have and recommend those stores that provide good customer service. This is how we can make the merchants hear us and listen to our needs. The same can be said in other areas of our lives. As a people Americans seem to just accept political corruption, poor representation and even outright criminal activities. This will continue until we demand change and stop putting politicians in office from parties we know are corrupt. We as a people, as a community and as a nation have the power to change the environments in which we do business through the positive action of refusing to do business with those that mistreat us. It is time to start practicing this idea.
Handcrafted Gift Card Bows: Theyll never expect it!
If you're going with a gift card gift, there's a few things you need to do to make it elegant.
Distribution Source : ArriveNet Editorials
Date : Tuesday - September 12, 2006
Angela Bacci (ArriveNet Editorials - Sep 12, 2006) -- What in the world are gift card bows? Well, in a word, gift card bows and boxes are pure showmanship.They are a way to make your gift card more of a real 'gift' instead of an impersonal gesture that you just got out of the way. There's a real stigma associated to gift card presents, and taking the time to invest in a little bow or a box you make it stand out as something special.Make your gift unique and rememberedOne of the primary problems with giving out a gift card at a wedding or an anniversary is that they often have a difficult time standing out or even being noticed among all the other presents in their big shiny colorful boxes. But who said you couldn't get a shiny box and bow of your own? That'll show 'em!Be thoughtful
Always make sure you read up on and are familiar with every single fee and charge your recipient might encounter when they try to redeem their gift card. Some states have passed laws against this type of thing, but in some places there still exists the chance that they'll be faced with a dormancy fee or a balance fee when they try to cash it in, and you do not want that to happen.Make a good impressionFor some people a gift card is just a cop-out! They think that they are lazy, unthoughtful gifts. Well, nothing could be further from the truth. And by having your card in a nice box along with a nice bow you can make the whole thing fun and playful and also make it personal and appreciated.Make it a safe gift as wellStolen gift cards cannot be replaced. Make sure the person knows that carrying a gift card is exactly like carrying cash. It needs to be protected and kept in the same way! Nowadays, many stores are replacing and redeeming lost or stolen gift cards, but it is still a concern.

Gift Card Scam

2007-04-28T02:32:00.001-07:00

Netlore Archive: Email rumor describes a new scam in which crooks copy down the numbers of gift cards sold on store display racks and use them to make purchases online
Description: Email rumorCirculating since: November 2006Status: TrueAnalysis: See below
Email example contributed by Krisztina B., 16 November 2006:
Fw: Gift Card Alert!!!!!Well the crooks have found a way to rob you of your gift card balance. If you buy Gift Cards from a display rack that has various store cards you may become a victim of theft. Crooks are now jotting down the card numbers in the store and then wait a few days and call to see how much of a balance THEY have on the card. Once they find the card is "activated", and then they go online and start shopping. You may want to purchase your card from a customer service person, where they do not have the Gift Cards viewable to the public.Please share this with all your family and friends...
Comments: True. I found confirmation in several different news sources that this form of consumer fraud does exist. It was described in the Wall Street Journal as follows:
In one scam, crooks copy numbers from gift cards hanging on store racks. After the cards are purchased and activated, buyers use them to shop online by entering the card numbers.So do the thieves. To figure out which cards have been activated, they phone an 800 number to check on balances for card numbers they've copied. When they discover activated cards, they use the card numbers to buy merchandise on a store's Web site, explains Dan Doyle, vice president of loss prevention at Beall's Inc., a Southeastern department-store chain.
Scam is real but rare, says Nat'l Retail Federation
"Instances where consumers lose money from theft of gift card information are extremely rare, but they can happen," confirmed Joseph LaRocca, vice president of loss prevention for the National Retail Federation, in a December 4, 2006 press release. "Most gift cards are outfitted with scratch-off security codes and protective packaging, in addition to a special verification number distinguishing one gift card from another. Also, retailers have created complex back-end systems to prevent criminals from obtaining proprietary gift card information."Given a selection between prepaid gift cards displayed on an open rack versus ones kept behind a customer service counter, the latter is probably still the safer choice. The National Retail Federation recommends only purchasing gift cards from reputable businesses, not online auction sites or other resellers. Before buying any gift card, be sure to check the protective packaging for tampering.See the resources below for more consumer tips.

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Gift Card Scam

2007-04-28T02:30:00.001-07:00

Netlore Archive: Email rumor describes a new scam in which crooks copy down the numbers of gift cards sold on store display racks and use them to make purchases online
Description: Email rumorCirculating since: November 2006Status: TrueAnalysis: See below
Email example contributed by Krisztina B., 16 November 2006:
Fw: Gift Card Alert!!!!!Well the crooks have found a way to rob you of your gift card balance. If you buy Gift Cards from a display rack that has various store cards you may become a victim of theft. Crooks are now jotting down the card numbers in the store and then wait a few days and call to see how much of a balance THEY have on the card. Once they find the card is "activated", and then they go online and start shopping. You may want to purchase your card from a customer service person, where they do not have the Gift Cards viewable to the public.Please share this with all your family and friends...
Comments: True. I found confirmation in several different news sources that this form of consumer fraud does exist. It was described in the Wall Street Journal as follows:
In one scam, crooks copy numbers from gift cards hanging on store racks. After the cards are purchased and activated, buyers use them to shop online by entering the card numbers.So do the thieves. To figure out which cards have been activated, they phone an 800 number to check on balances for card numbers they've copied. When they discover activated cards, they use the card numbers to buy merchandise on a store's Web site, explains Dan Doyle, vice president of loss prevention at Beall's Inc., a Southeastern department-store chain.
Scam is real but rare, says Nat'l Retail Federation
"Instances where consumers lose money from theft of gift card information are extremely rare, but they can happen," confirmed Joseph LaRocca, vice president of loss prevention for the National Retail Federation, in a December 4, 2006 press release. "Most gift cards are outfitted with scratch-off security codes and protective packaging, in addition to a special verification number distinguishing one gift card from another. Also, retailers have created complex back-end systems to prevent criminals from obtaining proprietary gift card information."Given a selection between prepaid gift cards displayed on an open rack versus ones kept behind a customer service counter, the latter is probably still the safer choice. The National Retail Federation recommends only purchasing gift cards from reputable businesses, not online auction sites or other resellers. Before buying any gift card, be sure to check the protective packaging for tampering.See the resources below for more consumer tips.

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Gift Card Scam

2007-04-28T02:09:00.001-07:00

Netlore Archive: Email rumor describes a new scam in which crooks copy down the numbers of gift cards sold on store display racks and use them to make purchases online
Description: Email rumorCirculating since: November 2006Status: TrueAnalysis: See below
Email example contributed by Krisztina B., 16 November 2006:
Fw: Gift Card Alert!!!!!Well the crooks have found a way to rob you of your gift card balance. If you buy Gift Cards from a display rack that has various store cards you may become a victim of theft. Crooks are now jotting down the card numbers in the store and then wait a few days and call to see how much of a balance THEY have on the card. Once they find the card is "activated", and then they go online and start shopping. You may want to purchase your card from a customer service person, where they do not have the Gift Cards viewable to the public.Please share this with all your family and friends...
Comments: True. I found confirmation in several different news sources that this form of consumer fraud does exist. It was described in the Wall Street Journal as follows:
In one scam, crooks copy numbers from gift cards hanging on store racks. After the cards are purchased and activated, buyers use them to shop online by entering the card numbers.So do the thieves. To figure out which cards have been activated, they phone an 800 number to check on balances for card numbers they've copied. When they discover activated cards, they use the card numbers to buy merchandise on a store's Web site, explains Dan Doyle, vice president of loss prevention at Beall's Inc., a Southeastern department-store chain.
Scam is real but rare, says Nat'l Retail Federation
"Instances where consumers lose money from theft of gift card information are extremely rare, but they can happen," confirmed Joseph LaRocca, vice president of loss prevention for the National Retail Federation, in a December 4, 2006 press release. "Most gift cards are outfitted with scratch-off security codes and protective packaging, in addition to a special verification number distinguishing one gift card from another. Also, retailers have created complex back-end systems to prevent criminals from obtaining proprietary gift card information."Given a selection between prepaid gift cards displayed on an open rack versus ones kept behind a customer service counter, the latter is probably still the safer choice. The National Retail Federation recommends only purchasing gift cards from reputable businesses, not online auction sites or other resellers. Before buying any gift card, be sure to check the protective packaging for tampering.See the resources below for more consumer tips.

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Best Gift Cards in Phoenix - Where To Find Gift Cards Gift Cards - Free Gift Card - Gift Cards in Arizona Credit Card Scam Warning - Netlore Archive Shoe Gift Cards & Gift Certificates - The Easy Way ...A Brief Introduction To Sports Card Collecting
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Who Loves MoneyDo you love money? If you don't, don't go here!www.BrownsBlessing.com/sonic?BlessU
Earn Easy Cash Now$100 startup. Exclusive system. I saw profits within minutes!www.dotlaker.free1up.com/
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FraudFree Guide! Everything you need on Fraudwww.SearchDoppler.com Get All 8 GlyconutrientsThe Superior Glyconutrient Formula! All 8 Sugars. See Test Results HereMicroNutra.com

Why Gift Cards Are EvilTHEY'RE THE

2007-04-28T02:07:00.001-07:00

best insult money can buy.
By Daniel Gross
What do you buy when you're too lazy to find a real present? Probably a gift card. In a Christmas shopping season that lacked a must-have product, the most successful item may have been that nondescript, infinitely malleable slice of plastic.
Gift cards, which came on the scene in the late 1990s at Blockbuster and Neiman-Marcus, have spread into every nook of the vast retailing sector. Wal-Mart sells them for as little as $10. Barnes & Noble offers them. Fast-food joints like McDonald's and Dunkin' Donuts are getting in on the act. So is American Express. A survey released last October by ValueLink, which creates gift cards for companies, estimated that in the previous 12 months, 64 percent of American adults (139 million people!) either bought or received a gift card, up from just 37 percent in 2002.
After Christmas, Bloomberg news reported that sales of gift cards in the 2004 holiday season may have exceeded the National Retail Federation's prediction of $17.3 billion. Michael Niemira, chief economist at the International Council of Shopping Centers, has suggested that 11 percent of holiday sales may have been embedded in gift cards. And Providence College marketing professor Dan Horne, a gift card specialist, said Americans likely spend between $40 billion and $45 billion annually on gift cards.
The appeal of gift cards is obvious. They save time and mental energy for purchasers, who don't have to struggle to choose the right present. A $50 gift card from Barnes & Noble somehow seems more thoughtful than simply slipping two twenties and a bunch of wrinkled ones into an envelope. For recipients, gift cards ward off the uncomfortable and highly inefficient process of receiving and returning unwanted gifts. Every recipient of a gift card can be honestly and genuinely gracious—who doesn't like free money, after all?
Retailers love gift cards most of all. They're high-margin, low-maintenance sales that can be easily conducted online. They stimulate much-wanted traffic in the post-holiday season doldrums of January and February, especially at restaurants. And to the extent gift cards save merchants the expense and hassle of handling returns of unwanted gifts, they are a huge boon.
So, what's not to like? A few things. Buy a gift card and you're essentially lending cash to the retailer today that is paid back through merchandise tomorrow, or next week, or next month. ValueLink reported that 27 percent of those in its survey blew the cards out within seven days, and another 31 percent did so within a month. Which means that about 42 percent of cards retained some cash value on them for at least a month. Wal-Mart and Neiman-Marcus can borrow all the cash they want from banks or the bond market on rather favorable terms. Do they really need us to extend short-term interest-free loans to them?
And gift cards frequently carry a price for their recipients. Walking into a store with free money in your pocket is like walking into an all-you-can-eat buffet after fasting—you'll feel psychologically impelled and entitled to consume more than usual, because the short-term cost will seem lower. "When customers go into the store, they don't feel constrained to just stick to that card," said Karen Larsen, vice president of global marketing and business development at ValueLink.
That's one of the reasons retailers issue gift cards in low denominations. The Neiman-Marcus $50 gift card won't go very far on its own. Ditto for the $10 card at Wal-Mart. Indeed, ValueLink said that 55 percent of those in its survey spent more than the initial value of the card they received. (In an exquisite example of how commerce blasphemously adopts sacred language, such incremental spending is referred to in the industry as "uplift.") Dan Horne says that "the evidence is that there is incremental spend of 40 percent." But he hastens to note that some shopping experiences are far more uplifting than others. A core Wal-Mart shopper with a $100 gift card might spend $110 on his next visit, providing a mere $10 of uplift. A core Barneys fashion victim, armed with a $100 gift card, might spend $200.
Finally, depending on the recipient's self-esteem and level of paranoia, gift cards can seem a wee bit paternalistic and controlling. Gift cards are tailor-made for recipients who are irresponsible or deficient in taste and self-awareness—or who are simply prone to feeling that way. Give your teenager $50 and she might blow it on midriff-baring halter tops at Abercrombie & Fitch. But that J. Crew gift card can be spent only on presentable clothing. Dismayed that your boyfriend's recent reading list extends only as far as Maxim? A Border's gift card could send a message. For the insecure male on your list, a Thomas Pink gift card could be a not-so-subtle hint that his shirts are blighted with ugly stains.
So, let's review. A gift card is great. But every moment you don't use it, Wal-Mart or some other giant retailer is collecting interest on the giver's cash. When you go to redeem it, chances are you'll end up spending some of your own coin. And it probably reflects the giver's implicit criticism of your poor taste and untrustworthiness. Aren't you glad Christmas is over?

Gift cards are not gifts
Holidays have rapidly devolved into what amounts to an exchange of cash. A gift card says nothing about the personality of the recipient -- but it says lots about the giver.
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By Liz Pulliam Weston
Gift cards are incredibly popular. They're also an oxymoron.
A gift, ideally, says, "I thought about you. I considered your likes and dislikes, your needs and wants, your dreams and desires, and found you this token of my esteem that I hope will delight you."
A gift card says, "There! Checked you off my list."
It's not just me that says so. Judith Martin, the doyenne of etiquette known to millions as Miss Manners, dismisses gift certificates -- and, by extension, gift cards -- as "a pathetic compromise convenient to people who do not trust their judgment about selecting the right present for those whose tastes they ought to know."
Think about it. Would a lover, in the flush of romance, lean close to the object of his affection and present … a gift card? Would proud grandparents present the latest addition to the family with … a gift card? Would your best and closest friend, the one you've known for years, who's stuck with you through the roller-coaster ride of life, walk into your hospital room and give you … a gift card?
(If the answer to any of those questions is yes, by the way, you need to start hanging with a better class of people.)
Yet gift cards continue their relentless spread:
Last year, 74.3% of respondents surveyed told a National Retail Federation survey they planned to buy at least one gift card, up from 69.9% the year before.
Half of respondents (50.1%) said they would like to receive a gift card, up from 41.3% two years earlier.
The younger you are, the more likely you are to be delighted by a gift card: 82% of Americans under 44 said they appreciated receiving gift cards, according to a national survey by Coinstar, purveyor of coin-counting machines and gift cards.
The death of shame
Many young people are so enamored with gift cards, with being "empowered to make their own choices," as one retailer laughably put it, that they don't even realize what they're missing.
Older people might, but hey, they're busy, cards are convenient, so what's the harm?
The harm is that the art of gift-giving is quickly devolving into an entirely commercial exchange. How much longer until we simply start thrusting wads of dollar bills at each other?
Some people, apparently, would be delighted with that prospect. While researching party themes for my daughter's upcoming celebration, I stumbled across a posting by a woman who proudly included the horrifying words "monetary gifts would be much appreciated" on her 3 year-old child's invitations. She went on to explain that "I wanted money as gifts for my daughter's savings and for us to buy bigger toys, like a big kitchen and a Barbie Jeep that she wanted, instead of guests giving her small toys."
It's official. Shame is dead.
Video on MSN Money: Gift cards are no bargain
Think twice before buying a gift card for that hard to buy for person on your holiday shopping list. Find out why it's like burning money. Click here to play the video that will save you cash.
Heaven forbid that givers use their own judgment and spend a little time picking out small items that might give the recipients pleasure. Just give us the cash and get out of the way.
A real gift brings you closer
It's not that I've never given a gift card. I have, three times that I can remember. But I viewed these cards what they were: a cop-out, an admission that I had grown so out of touch with the recipients that I didn't know what would please them. In two cases, I used the experience as a prod to spend more time with the giftees and get to know them better. In the third instance, I finally decided that what had been a close friendship no longer was and ended the gift exchange -- to mutual relief.
It's also not that I don't understand the practical aspects of the gift card. I do. I just can't help mourning the passing of a lovely tradition, one that helped us focus on each other and had the potential to bring us closer.
How would I have felt, for example, about the new friend I rushed to the hospital one night had she thanked me with a gift card rather than a basket of chocolate-dipped strawberries, each more luscious than the last? Of course, no gift was expected or required, but her thoughtfulness created a bond.
Or would I have felt nearly as welcomed by my new mother-in-law if, on my first Christmas as a wife, she'd presented me with a gift card rather than the antique soup tureen that had been in her family for years? Her present told me I was part of the family.
And should I give up trying to please my husband who is -- Kenneth Cole as my witness -- one of the hardest human beings in the world to shop for? I think not. With each gift, and each return, I learn a little bit more about his tastes and style. It's a challenge to delight and surprise him, but occasionally I do -- and it's worth the effort.
The search for a gift is a gift itself
Sure, the old way included plenty of opportunities for misfires -- for the tie shaped like a fish, the sweater that's six sizes too big, the dolls from the aunt who could never figure out that her teen-age niece no longer played with Barbies. But those experiences taught us the fine art of tact and diplomacy, of expressing gratitude to people who tried to make us happy, however bizarre the actual result.
It also drove home the point, as few things do nowadays, that special occasions are about people -- not about getting more stuff or increasing our net worth.
If you find yourself purchasing gift cards, maybe the solution is to buy less and think more. Do these folks really need to be on your gift list, or would you all be better off getting together for coffee or drinks and skipping the exchange? If you really need and want to purchase a gift, maybe you can start brainstorming ideas year-round, rather than panicking at the last minute and settling for a piece of plastic.
If you really must buy gift cards, then at least:
Make certain events off limits. Even etiquette expert Peter Post, who believes gift cards have become acceptable in many situations, makes a distinction between cards and "real gifts." There are certain situations, like weddings, where "you should give a real gift rather than a gift card," says Post, great-grandson of manners-icon Emily Post. Valentine's Day and anniversaries are other situations that call for the real deal.
Get the latest from Liz Pulliam Weston. Sign up to receive her free weekly newsletter.
Combine a card with a real gift. If you want, it can even be from the same retailer that's providing the gift card to facilitate returns. Even a small gesture is better than none at all.
Think twice before giving one to someone you love. If you ever shared a home with the recipient, you can -- and should -- do better by them.
Don't add to the recipient's burdens. If your recipient would have any trouble redeeming the card, don't give it. "It probably wouldn't be appropriate to give one to your grandmother in her 80s," particularly if she suffers from limited mobility, said Post, author of "Essential Manners for Couples." "It's not for (a recipient) who finds shopping more of a burden than a pleasure."
Liz Pulliam Weston's column appears every Monday and Thursday, exclusively on MSN Money. She also answers reader questions in the Your Money message board.

How to build excitement around a gift card programme

2007-04-28T02:05:00.001-07:00

By Malcolm Fowler (Vice President & General Manager, Ernex)Published by The Wise Marketer in May 2005.
Many specialty retailers and restaurants offer stored value gift cards, but differentiating one programme from the next is increasingly hard. Or is it?
Is there anything that merchants and hospitality providers can do to make their stored value programmes stand out from the crowd? We think there are several things you can do to increase the excitement and velocity of your programme.
Swipe and win sweepstakes For a standard stored value gift card programme, merchants can use different types of promotions to increase the level of excitement. For example, creating a swipe and win sweepstakes when the gift card is redeemed is an excellent way to drive additional sales. Think about it: your customers are purchasing a gift card that has a certain value, and the person they give it to has the opportunity to not only redeem their gift card for your product or service, but also to potentially win a prize. Who wouldn't want to give a gift card that may make the recipient a big winner?
Custom coupons Another opportunity that can benefit both the merchant and the customer is the use of receipt coupons, or custom coupons, as part of your gift card programme. You can use these coupons to drive customers to locations that need an increase in traffic. Or better yet, make your coupons applicable to certain times of the day when traffic isn't as high as you'd like it to be. For example, many restaurants are finding this an effective way to drive traffic to days of the week or times of the day that are not traditionally strong for them. Giving customers a free appetizer or dessert is a great marketing investment for creating a busy restaurant during traditionally slow periods.
If you are using stored value cards as a cash replacement and you want customers to re-load their cards, give them a bonus when they add value to the card. An excellent way of encouraging the re-load is by adding custom messages on the receipt as the value of the card is depleted. An alert like "Your card value is $10 (or £5). Re-load your card with US$50 (or £35) and get a coupon for a free coffee" alerts customers to their card status. Implementing the reward is as simple as printing a coupon for the free item as part of the re-load transaction.
Use perceived value Loyalty programmes have long used the practice of leveraging perceived value to make them more attractive by rewarding customers for the right kind of behaviour (the profitable, coming-back-often kind). Stored value gift card programmes can make use of the same practice. But exactly what is the perceived value, how does it differ from actual value, and how can it be applied?
If you visit the redemption page of your favourite loyalty programme, you may find that some awards seem more attractive than others. For example on a frequent flier programme site you might see that a free flight anywhere in North America "costs" 25,000 points. One night in a hotel also "costs" 25,000 points. Now wait just a minute - that flight is worth US$700 and that hotel night is worth US$150. Is the airline taking advantage of you if you redeem for the hotel night?
Well, if you need both a flight and a hotel night, it is obvious where you should use those points - on the flight, hands down. The key to understanding why the flight seems like such a good deal (and the hotel less of a deal) is to stand in the shoes of the CEO of the airline. To put you in a seat on the airline (that would have otherwise been empty) costs the airline less than US$100. The CEO's best marketing team can't get free hotel nights from the hotels so that hotel night is probably costing the airline about the same as the free flight. You are being treated fairly.
The airline is simply leveraging the difference between the actual cost of the air ticket and the value you associate with it (the perceived value). That's why airline, hotel, retail, restaurant and other loyalty programmes usually offer their own product or service as the base reward in their programmes - it simply is the most cost effective way to provide value.
Restaurateurs are in exactly the same situation - the cost of providing a meal is probably the lowest expense reward they can provide. It makes it a challenge to create meaningful rewards of similar value that aren't based on the core dining service.
Leveraging extreme value Take heart, there are other classic examples of leveraging perceived value. If you can offer something that is difficult to put a price on - priority service, a backstage pass, a ticket on the 50 yard line at the Superbowl - you have an opportunity to create extreme perceived value. There are thousands of marketing programmes that generate excitement, entries into draws, and traffic by using exclusive opportunities as their drawing card. Think of your stored value gift card promotions in the same light and offer similar rewards as part of your gift card swipe and win sweepstakes to increase gift card usage.
Look inside your own business and see what you have to offer - a reservation on a Friday night at your exclusive flagship location, a guided wine tasting by your chief wine steward, tickets to a sports event provided by one of your suppliers, even a gift for children in the dining party. These are all opportunities to create a reward with high perceived value and low cost. Ask your customers and they will tell you what they value highly.
If you can find something your customers prize that you can provide at little or no cost, you will have an effective tool to use inside your loyalty or gift card marketing programme. Look hard - it's worth the effort!
Evaluate your options It doesn't take much to make your stored value programme stand above the rest. Just a little innovative thought around what you want your customers to do, and what they would view as a valuable reward for performing that action. Best of all, the incentive that you provide can be at a low cost to you, but have great perceived value to your customers.
Loyalty marketing... for the latest facts, figures, tips, tricks, research, case studies, best practices, technologies, examples and practical how-to's, The Loyalty Guide Volume II is the major 950-page report that covers it all. Costing less than a conference pass, details of its contents, downloadable chapter samples, pricing and ordering information are online at http://www.theloyaltyguide.com.

New Gift Card Scams: 8 Tips to Protect Yourself

2007-04-28T01:41:00.001-07:00

The Gift Card Scam on the News
Let's first talk about the gift card scam that's making news. It's actually quite clever. Here's an example of the email going around:
--- Begin Email --- The crooks have found a way to rob you of your gift card balance. If you buy Gift Cards from a display rack that has various store cards you may become a victim of theft. Crooks are now jotting down the card numbers in the store and then wait a few days and call to see how much of a balance THEY have on the card. Once they find the card is "activated," they go online and start shopping. You may want to purchase your card from a customer service person, where they do not have the Gift Cards viewable to the public. --- End Email ---
As bogus as this may sound, it can actually happen. The good news is that, so far, it hasn't happened very often. Nonetheless, according to KOMO TV in Seattle, Wal-Mart shoppers have already been hit with this scam.
Here's How This Scam Works:
Gift cards have a unique number in a magnetic strip that is used to track usage and outstanding balances. This usually works well, and has the benefit that you often won't lose your remaining balance if you lose the gift card, since you can simply call to report the card as stolen or lost.
Now imagine that a scammer comes into a store that displays gift cards on public racks (such as Wal-Mart) with a small and inexpensive mag-strip scanner in his pocket. This scanner can easily read and store the unique gift card serial numbers.
So, the scammer simply grabs some of these gift cards from the rack, finds a quiet place and quickly scans each card to get its unique serial number. They then put the cards back (or leave them somewhere in the store) since they are done with them.
(Incidentally, this high tech approach isn't even needed. The crook can simply copy the unique numbers by hand on a pad of paper. However, this is much more time consuming.)
Depending on the gift card packaging, this can be very easy to accomplish or the crook might need to pry the gift card from its base and then carefully reposition it back after stealing the number. In either case, it's not very difficult for the scammer to do this.
Next, real customers come in to buy some of these gift cards and "charge" them with real money.
How does the scammer know which gift cards have been charged? Every few days, he simply calls the gift card phone number and enters the unique numbers to find out which cards have been charged -- and what the remaining balances are.
Most of these systems don't require a password, so it is very easy for the scammer to do this. Other times the scammer is able to steal the PIN at the same time as the gift card number.
And since most of these gift cards aren't given to the recipients until Christmas, most of the cards will be fully charged!
The scammer can then go on a shopping spree and drain the gift card balances.
If scammers are somewhat more technically sophisticated, they can even purchase a similar real gift card, charge it with $5, and then reprogram the card with a stolen unique ID number -- and use the card to physically shop in the store instead of being "limited" to shopping only online.
According to KOMO TV, a Wal-Mart spokesman says the company "is working with law enforcement at the highest levels possible to rectify the problem and catch the people responsible."
The National Retail Foundation (NRF) confirmed this scam was occurring last week in a press release, and said: "Reports about a new gift card scam detailing how consumers could lose money from gift cards if criminals steal the card numbers from the back of the card are accurate but somewhat misleading."
ScamBusters Recommendation: Even though this type of gift card scam is now only occurring on a very small scale, we still advise that you don't buy gift cards displayed on public racks since this scam is so simple for scammers to execute. Why take the chance?
We also recommend you follow the eight tips for protecting yourself that we outline below.
Little Known Gift Card Scams That Actually Pose a Bigger Threat This Holiday Season
With gift card sales estimates at $24.81 billion this holiday season (up from $18.48 billion last year according to the NRF), it is not surprising that there are bigger gift card scams going on right now, even if the one on the news is overstated.
According to experts, there are three MUCH more common types of gift card scams:
1. Used, counterfeit and fraudulent gift cards are being sold on auction websites.
2. Sellers often overstate the value of real gift cards they are selling on auction websites, so buyers don't get what they think they are purchasing.
3. Scammers are using stolen credit cards to buy gift cards and then selling these gift cards for cash, either at online auction sites or elsewhere.
In other words, auction gift card scams now pose a much bigger threat than gift cards displayed on public racks in stores.
Here are two other current gift card scams:
Crooks swap blank gift cards that they stole on previous trips to a store for cards activated by clerks when they purchase them. Since the clerks don't realize that the returned cards are blank rather than the ones just purchased, the scammers are able to steal fully charged cards.
Thieves also carefully open the packaging of new gift cards and replace them with used, worthless cards. When the card is sold, the gift card the scammer has in his possession gets activated, rather than the worthless used card that the real buyer has. (This will only work on some types of cards.)
8 Tips for Protecting Yourself From Any Gift Card Scam:
There are plenty of things that you can do to protect yourself from gift card scams. And the best part is that none of these things will take more than a few minutes.
Just follow these eight simple tips to make shopping for gift cards safer:
1. Don't buy gift cards from online auction sites. Since this is a large source of gift card fraud, these cheap gift cards may well be worthless to you. Sure, some of these cards are real, but many are stolen, counterfeit or used. It's not worth the risk.
2. Only buy gift cards directly from the store issuing the gift card or from a secure retailer's website -- no matter how much cheaper they may be somewhere else. If you do buy a gift card online, make sure you buy it from the place that you plan to use it.
3. Don't buy gift cards off of publicly displayed racks in retail stores. In addition, don't assume that because gift cards are inaccessible to the public, they are safe. After all, store employees can participate in gift card scams too.
4. Always carefully examine both the front and back of a gift card before you buy it. If you can see a PIN number, put the card back and get a different one. If a gift card looks like it could have been tampered with, don't buy that gift card.
5. Always ask the store cashier to scan the gift card in front of you. This will guarantee that your card is valid when you buy it and that it reflects the balance you just charged it with. This will also protect you from crooks who exchange worthless cards for the cards you think you are buying.
6. Always keep your receipt as a proof of purchase as long as there is money stored on the gift card. Since many retailers can track where the gift card was purchased, activated and used, if the card is stolen, some retailers will replace the card for you if you have your receipt.
7. If possible, register your gift card at the store's website. Although not all stores offer this option, you can uncover any misuse of your gift card sooner and report it more quickly.
8. Finally, never, ever give your Social Security number, date of birth or any other unneeded private information when you purchase a gift card. No reputable company will ask for this info.
And that's it.
Gift cards are convenient and make great gifts. Following these easy tips will help you ensure the person you buy the gift card for is the one who benefits from it!
Time to close -- we're off to take a walk. See you next week.
And that's it.
Gift cards are convenient and make great gifts. Following these easy tips will help you ensure the person you buy the gift card for is the one who benefits from it!
Time to close -- we're off to take a walk. See you next week.

How to build excitement around a gift card programme

2007-04-28T01:39:00.001-07:00