Socializing Rewards Points
The Citi Thank You Program is revolutionizing the use of rewards points. Imagine being able to share points with your friends to save up for a get-away weekend, or save up points with one friend for another friends' birthday present. Many people pool points for gift cards from retailers who partner with Citi to make their gift cards available through the Citi ThankYou program such as CVS/Pharmacy and Charming Shoppes stores. This allows consumers to use points for gift cards for themselves, or to use as gifts, giving the recipient of the gift a chance to choose their own gift. You could even pool points with friends and family to make a group contribution to a good cause. Well, now you can. The new Citi ThankYou Point Sharing App on Facebook allows groups of friends to pool points in order to redeem the value of the points for a bigger reward. This app is the beginning of a revolution in monetizing social media. This app is allowing users to move assets and share funds through Facebook, a social media platform. This app will soon promote itself, benefiting not just the Citi ThankYou Program, but its users and potential users as well. The more people use the Point Sharing App, the more people will post on Facebook about it, making the App and its use go viral across the platform. A rewards program that rewards itself, an incentive social media innovation.
For more information on the Citi ThankYou Points Sharing App check out the pymnts.com article.
More Good Deeds with Gift Cards
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
Top 5 Reasons Why The Children's Place is Perfect for Scrip
Your Scrip purchase decision makers use a wide variety of gift card brands for their participants. Whether they are fundraising or using gift cards for budgeting purposes; they want brands that they shop for on a regular basis. Here are the top 10 reasons why The Children's Place (TCP) is a perfect Scrip choice.
Non-profits Energize Blood-Givers with Gift Cards
This blog is in no way meant to be alarmist. I grew up on the coast of RI; I know how ocean-side communities fear hurricanes. This blog is meant to highlight a use of gift cards that we’ve seen repeated in several places, including our recent Summer 2011 Gift Card Usage Survey (results to come) and this story, from Naples FL. Blood drives are so important to maintaining the critical and highly perishable supply of blood that is needed to support the victims of natural disasters, in addition to the normal supply required. A recent NY participant in GiftCard Partners’ survey shared that they use gift cards to keep their most loyal donors and supporters engaged with them and to positively impact their blood giving experience, frequency and long term supporter status. In my opinion; this is how to rally help for friends and neighbors... from
www.naplesnews.com: “The blood center will offer $10 gas cards and the chance to meet former Miami Dolphins defensive star, Kim Bokamper. Successful donors will also receive a $5 Patric’s Restaurant gift card and gift cards from Sylvan Learning Center, Sugar Palm Café Bakery & Sports Clips while supplies last. Event participants will have the opportunity to win the following grand prize drawings: one of two pairs of Tampa Bay Rays game tickets, one of three pairs of Fort Myers Miracle Baseball tickets, a 10-passenger sightseeing cruise from Cruise Naples and one of 3 three $50 gift cards courtesy of Lu Lu Belle Children’s Boutique. Plus, visitors can enter to win the blood center’s summer grand prize drawing of 4 adult two-day Busch Gardens admission passes and lodging from Wingate by Windham. Visit
www.givebloodcbc.org or call 239-436-5455 for more information.” Gift cards are a great way to inspire and incent people to take part in such a critical campaign.
Read the full report and blood donor offer here.
Gift Card Donations Offer Back to School Expense Relief
Every once in a while I’ve got to blog a gift card feel-good story. In Indiana, the Worth County Development Authority is offering students in the county a $75.00 gift card to help with pricey back to school expenses. The non-profit organization is donating more than 1,300 gift cards, that’s more than $100,000 worth. Back to school can be a stressful and expensive time for families; it’s nice to see this creative use of gift cards. Watch the video below:
