GiftCard Partners Blog

GCP serves many kinds of incentive and gift card programs, including corporate health & wellness programs, workplace safety programs, employee motivation and recognition, benefits and sales incentives, and customer loyalty and rewards programs. This white paper is the result of a comprehensive survey and includes gift card usage success stories offered by HR professionals, sales managers, healthcare administrators, non-profit organization managers, and more. You will find this report full of innovative ways to incent and reward your employees, partners, customers, and volunteers to incentivize and build loyalty.
Click here to visit GCP’s 2011 Gift Card Usage Whitepaper page to download

It is widely known and accepted that employee engagement is critical to productivity and improving your company's bottom line.  As 2011 draws to a close and we look to 2012, and a (hopefully) improving job market, employment agency Randstad released some concerning numbers this week. In their annual "Employee Attachment Index" survey, which measures employee-employer attachment, it appears that employee engagement is decreasing and that many employees are looking to move on, as soon as the market is more stable.

At this time of the year, we can’t get enough news around good deeds, especially when it involves something close to our hearts – our military servicemen. Credit Unions are typically buying gift cards in bulk as incentives to new customer incentives, but this year the Service Credit Union of Portsmouth, New Hampshire is giving for another reason. The Credit Union’s President/CEO Gordon Simmons has awarded 70 gift cards totaling $3,500 to Colonel Paul "Hutch" Hutchinson, commander

As mobile wallet technology becomes more common, and more retailers begin accepting programs like Google Wallet and MasterCard PayPass it is important to know how and when to use your mobile wallet technology. These tips will help maximize your experience AND keep your financial information secure.
Tap-and-pay systems: Systems like Google Wallet and MasterCard's PayPass are going to only gain momentum. The technology is improving (for instance moving away from a tap, and more towards a wave motion), and the types of locations accepting this form of payment is increasing. How different would it be to do away with metro card systems for public transit, and simply be able to swipe your SmartPhone? It may happen sooner than you think.
PayPal mobile payments: Mobile banking apps such as these allow you to make purchases, and even in some cases, transfer funds without disrupting your life. You can order pizza and pay from the couch, or even transfer bonus funds from your company to your employees, making year-end bonuses instant and convenient.
Roaming credit card readers: These devices allow small businesses and organizations, such as a Girls Scout troop in Ohio (who boasted a 13% increase in cookie sales) to use credit cards without paying a prhibitive fee. These credit card readers come at either a nominal fee (usually a small percentage of each sale) or free to the user. And don't fear about the initial security concerns, readers encrypt financial information before transmitting to the bank. Mobile wallet technology is growing, so make sure you know the basics of how to use it, when to use it, and which products to take advantage of.
For more information on mobile wallet technology check out the article in U.S. News and World Report.

I am quite familiar with QVC; I can’t say I’ve shopped QVC, but I DO expect to have many gifts under my tree in big brown QVC boxes for Christmas. In fact, approximately 99.9% of all gifts given to me by my parents since about 1990 came from QVC. Although they are most known for their televised shopping experience, the online channel now accounts for more than 1/3rd of their sales. Their recent partnership with CashStar will leverage CashStar’s
“digital gifting and incentives platform to provide a personal, compelling and convenient gifting experience”, says CashStar in their recent press release. I for one, would love an eGift Card from QVC, so I can pick my own QVC gift this year…I’ve never known how to return the gifts my parents get me…and frankly I pick out better gifts for myself. Read more on this interesting integration of TV, online, gift cards, and the eGift:
CashStar to Power QVC's eGfit Card Program