GiftCard Partners Blog

Canadian small businesses are choosing people over profits, as consumers face the rising prices of everything from food, to gas, and even insurance.  Business owners are saying that they would rather absorb those costs through their businesses, than pass the financial burden on to their employees.  According to the American Express Small Business Monitor small businesses react to uncertain economic times by favoring long term employee and customer loyalty over short term economic gain.  Businesses see their employees as the most important asset to the company, over monetary revenue. Do you think this attitude could or does translate to small business behavior in the United States? Do you feel that the economic climate in Canada is different enough from the United States that small businesses can afford to make a larger investment in their employees? The GCP team found this article particularly intriguing, and are interested in your opinions on this issue, feel free to leave us a comment or tweet us @giftcardpartner.  Looking forward to hearing your thoughts!   For more information check out this
Financial Post article

What’s the high level? The
2011 Gift Card IQ Survey reveals good news for retailers when it comes to “bigger” incentive gift card budgets. The five largest budget categories (all above $75,000) all increased. For example: -    Budgets “more than $100,000 nearly doubled to 15 percent this year, compared with 7.8 percent in 2010.”

The "Kicks for Guns" program in Central Florida, will be held from this weekend in order to get illegal and unwanted guns off the streets of the greater Orlando area.  No questions will be asked of anyone turning in a gun, and people who turn in guns will be rewarded with gift card options from select local retailers.  These types of buy-back programs are common in communities when local law enforcement is trying to rid the community of certain dangerous materials.  Another common buy back program is for old prescriptions.  Often in communities local law-enforcement will reward community members with a relevant gift card in exchange for their old prescriptions. This is a way for the community to come together to promote safety and unity, and indulge in the offered rewards. For more information on the
gun buy back in Orlando click here.  Have you seen any other buy-back programs? Where and what was the reward? Let us know by leaving a comment.

The voice of the consumer should be heard very clearly if retailers are going to make the most of the coming holiday season. On August 4th, 2011, Retail TouchPoints (RTP) published their Holiday Outlook and Retailer Case Studies from savvy retailers who are using technology in answer to call. “The retail industry is moving into the second half of what could be considered the best-performing sales cycle since the economic downturn, and the pressure is on to maximize holiday sales. To succeed during the 2011 holidays, retailers are adopting more innovative, customer-engaging strategies and tactics to create winning experiences across all channels” says RTP.
The 2011 Holiday Outlook is a report from
Retail TouchPoints (RTP) that addresses key trends and strategies driven by “omni-channel shoppers”. What will you find in the report? *    Shopping technologies are becoming an important factor for showing which retailers will capture the all-important economy recovering sales. “Shopper-driven technologies, such as tablets, and tactical ideas on how retailers can utilize the mobile channel to cater to today’s time-starved, empowered shoppers *    Retailers can learn about mining the social sphere to extend their holiday strategies beyond engagement and storefronts, capitalizing on peer reviews and user-generated content. *    Unique and effective ways retailers can be on the forefront of cross-channel innovation, by utilizing new media and integrating the shopping experience to drive customer engagement and sales.” And case studies from *    Kirkland’s “Glee Spree” multichannel promotion *    Coach’s recent venture into mobile commerce *    Hallmark.com’s ability to forecast and cater to seasonal online demand; and *    JCPenney’s aggressive iPad implementation designed to deliver a seamless in-store experience Click here for the RTP article:
Retail TouchPoints 2011 Holiday Outlook Highlights Holiday Must-Haves Click here for the Retailer Case Studies PDF:
Savvy Retailers Can Count On A Winning Season

Incentive Research Foundation (IRF) and the
Incentive Federation recently published a study that highlights gift cards as an employee reward preference over cash rewards. The study about incentive awards recognizes non-cash incentives as a way to control spending, while motivating employees and channel partners. The preliminary results of the study point out that employee cash incentive awards are averaging $732.00, which is triple the cost of non-cash awards. “The study validates our experience and belief that the average cost of a cash award is roughly triple that of either merchandise ($206) or gift cards ($240),” according to Incentive Federation Chairman Stephen Slagle.  “The total cost of incentives is especially important in our post-recession economy, so the data points stimulated extensive discussion around the benefits of each award type,” he explained. To read more about this study, visit
IMA’s Return On Performance. Check back with us regularly; we’ll publish a link to the full study results once they are available.