How 3 Nonprofits Used Digital Gift Cards to Deliver Fast, Dignified Support

For people facing homelessness, financial hardship, or system-involvement, covering everyday essentials is often an ongoing struggle. Nonprofits supporting these communities understand the importance of meeting immediate needs—yet traditional methods like checks, vouchers, or in-kind supplies are often slow, rigid, or difficult for recipients to use.

Digital and physical gift cards have emerged as one of the most effective tools for nonprofits to provide fast, flexible, and dignified support, especially when urgent needs arise. Recent research from Payments Journal highlights why: gift cards are instantly active, easy to distribute in bulk, trackable, customizable, and able to be tailored to the exact needs of each population served.

Below are three real examples of nonprofits using gift cards through the Engage2Reward™ Gift Card Ordering Platform to improve access, remove barriers, and uplift at-risk individuals.

1. Providing Essentials to Homeless Populations—Fast and Without Barriers

A California nonprofit dedicated to transitioning individuals out of homelessness and poverty has long relied on gift cards to meet urgent needs. Their outreach teams provide housing-enriched services, connecting thousands with stability and long-term support.

During COVID-19, the speed of aid became especially critical. Instead of issuing checks—which often require a bank account or additional steps to access—the organization supplied Walmart, Target, and CVS^® gift cards so individuals could immediately purchase hygiene items, groceries, medicines, and family essentials.

PaymentsJournal emphasizes this advantage clearly:

“When you give a gift card, they are instantly active and ready to use, so there’s no barrier to usage.”

— Jordan Hirschfield, Director of Prepaid, Javelin Strategy & Research

For individuals experiencing homelessness, immediacy and dignity matter. Gift cards deliver both.

2. Empowering Court-Involved Youth and Families Through Incentives

A Massachusetts nonprofit focused on disrupting the school-to-prison pipeline leverages the Engage2Reward Platform to easily order and distribute CVS gift cards as incentives.

The gift cards help motivate youth and caregivers to engage in mental health screenings, attend appointments, and stay consistent with required programs—key actions that support long-term well-being.

Digital delivery has been transformative. With electronic gift cards sent instantly via email or SMS, the organization avoids delays, provides incentives at the moment of need, and can track distribution efficiently.

This aligns with Payments Journal’s findings that digital gift cards offer:

• Instant delivery in moments of crisis or urgency
• Flexible usage for items deemed most essential by the recipient
• Accessibility without requiring a bank account or cash handling
• A balance between digital and physical options depending on access needs

As Hirschfield notes, nonprofits can “access someone in the right way”—whether they have a phone for digital delivery or need a physical card because they’ve lost everything.

3. Raising Quality of Life for Families, At-Risk Youth, and Homeless Individuals

Another Massachusetts nonprofit serves individuals and families through vital social, health, and community programs. By leveraging a mix of digital and physical gift cards from over 250+ brands available on the Engage2Reward Platform—including Panera Bread, Chipotle, Dunkin’, Applebee’s, Amazon, Walmart, Target, and CVS—they empower recipients to obtain food, toiletries, clothing, and basic household supplies.

This organization values flexibility and choice. Gift cards enable them to tailor assistance—for example, offering a big-box retailer for toiletries or a restaurant brand for immediate, no-prep meals.

Payments Journal confirms that this “tailoring the give” approach is a major benefit of gift cards:

“Gift cards can be aligned specifically to what is needed. That way, the nonprofit can say the aid directly hit the mission.”

— Hirschfield, Javelin Strategy & Research

Gift cards ensure aid is mission-aligned, trackable, and impactful.

A More Efficient, Accountable Way to Deliver Aid

Digital gift cards are reshaping nonprofit operations by offering:

Speed and Scalability

Nonprofits can distribute support within minutes, even in bulk. “With digital, you can turn it on in zero time,” says Hirschfield.

Lower Administrative Burden

No shipping, storage, check printing, or manual fulfillment.

Tracking, Reporting & Accountability

Digital gift cards allow nonprofits to monitor delivery, redemption, and even reclaim unused funds to reallocate resources responsibly—an increasingly important factor in nonprofit stewardship ratings.

Recipient Dignity & Autonomy

People choose what they need most—an essential component of trauma-informed, person-centered care.

With flexible form factors (digital, physical, or both), gift cards meet people where they are.

Support Your Mission with the Engage2Reward Platform

Whether you’re providing emergency assistance, supporting families during transitional periods, or incentivizing program participation, the Engage2Reward Platform makes it simple to:

• Distribute digital gift cards instantly
• Deliver gift cards in bulk
• Choose from over 250+ brands, including essential retailers
• Set spending controls or choose open-loop Visa^® options
• Track and report distribution
• Scale from local outreach to statewide or national programs

Gift cards can be a lifeline—and the Engage2Reward Platform helps you deliver that lifeline quickly, responsibly, and with dignity.

Explore our catalog to find bulk gift cards that best support your mission.