GiftCard Partners Blog

Google announced earlier this month that as of August 21st it would suspend support on Google Wallet for gift cards and loyalty cards (often utlizing point systems). This seems like it could be a blow to the gift card industry, like for those who sell bulk gift cards, as it limits the ways gift cards can be distributed and redeemed. However I am scratching my head to figure out if we, the gift card industry should even care that much.

The realm of Corporate Health & Wellness is vast and changing constantly. GiftCard Partners is dedicated to keeping you up-to-date on the latest in corporate wellness, health and wellness program strategies, creating a healthy workplace, and more…enter the CVS/pharmacy eNewsletter. This
quarterly enews is a great way to stay current with all the news, trends and technologies in the Corporate Wellness industry. This issue highlights:

Raises, promotions, extra time off, these words may be a risky topic for employers to discuss when they are working on a tighter budget than last year. Not to mention looking for employee recognition ideas for more and more employees doing  a job well done. Incentive Magazine talks about the
“Power of Perks” and how leading organizations are recognizing their value and trying to find how it can fit into their organization. Finding a way to acknowledge the hard work of your employees as a whole can be as easy and affordable as an office party, and the most important part of a party: office catering. Ever heard the expression, the quickest way to an employee’s heart is through their stomach? Boston Market recognized this and made it easy for employers to feed their workforce on a budget; offering discounted rates on volume purchases of their new Boston Market Catering eGift Card. Mass employee recognition doesn't need to be time consuming, expensive, or dreaded. Getting the office together in a social setting helps take some of the stress from the work week off their shoulders and gives employers the chance to celebrate achievements, goals reached and success of the company WITH their employees.
Learn more about the perks and savings of using Boston Market Catering eCertificates for your company’s office catering needs.

Gamification is a trend that continues to gain traction in the workplace. It can be applied to health and wellness initiatives, employee motivation programs, and even training programs. New research from the University of Colorado indicates that new employees who participated in online gaming and interactive modules as part of the training process showed higher overall retention rates, a greater knowledge of the organization and their particular role, and a higher level skill set. Gamificationtraining engages employees in the process of on-boarding, rather than having new employees sit through hours of static training sessions where they listen to so much information it is more difficult to retain and later apply. Gamification alsoallows employees to learn and apply simultaneously, making information more digestible and creating mechanisms to help employees remember important points. Gamifying employee training is an innovative way to invest in employees right from the start. Employees will appreciate the engaging training sessions and feel supported by the organization from the outset of their time. Using gamification for ongoing employee training, for employees who have been with the organization for a period of time, can go one step further byusing incentives for game winners and goal reachers. Using small incentives such as a gift card to a popular retailer such as 
CVS/Pharmacy or 
The Cheesecake Factory for those who achieve or meet their goals from the training will not only ensure that employees absorb the desired material but that all employees are motivated to complete the training and work towards its goals.

Last week GiftCard Partners’ senior management attended the 2013 Innovation Project at Harvard University, an annual summit that focuses on payment innovation from all angles. Payments experts spoke, including government leaders like Rosie Rios, Treasurer of the United States, and Raj Date, CEO of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, as did  payments industry leaders such as Steve Levitt author of Freakonomics, and Don Kingsborough, CEO of Pay Pal.