Many merchants have re-opened or are preparing to re-open their businesses after COVID-19 shutdowns. Just because re-opening comes with new protocols doesn’t mean that merchants can’t find ways to generate more revenue. Here are 3 that we recommend:

1.Implement a Thank You Promotion

Saying thank you goes a long way with customers. Doing it with a gift card goes even further. The beauty of a Thank You gift card promotion is that it is totally customizable to the specific business. Spend parameters can be established for receiving and redeeming the gift cards along with expiration dates to bring customers back quickly to buy more at your business. For example, spend $25 and receive a $5 Thank You gift card that expires in 15 days and is redeemable towards a purchase of $20+. This is a great tool to make two sales within a short timeframe.

We offer a variety of pre-designed Thank You gift cards that can be personalized with the name of the business. The Thank You gift cards are loaded with promotional dollars so they only cost merchants when they are redeemed towards future purchases. The Thank You gift cards can be placed in curbside pickup orders and shipments. Merchants can also offer eGift Thank You cards.

2. Include Social Distancing Options

Social distancing will be the norm indefinitely. Furthermore, some customers want to shop but don’t feel comfortable visiting businesses yet. Therefore, it’s important for businesses to offer ways for customers to shop, pay, and buy gifts without physical interaction.

Our online gift card solution enables merchants to sell plastic and eGift cards directly from their websites. We offer fulfillment services for those businesses that don’t want to fulfill the plastic card orders themselves. The eGift cards are emailed directly to recipients. 

Our newly launched Gift PLUS app enables merchants to email and text gift cards to recipients directly from their point-of-sale devices. The gift cards can be used to provide a contactless check-out as well which can further encourage patrons to shop at your business.

3. Incentivize with a Loyalty Program

Incentives are more important than ever to entice consumers to frequent businesses. Soft benefits work just as effectively as tangible rewards. Many businesses are at reduced capacity due to COVID-19 restrictions so merchants can set times that only loyalty members can shop or give loyalty members preference for making reservations and appointments. These rewards can be used to sign up new members. 

It is a good time to offer double or triple points to incentivize customers and bring them back again sooner. Merchants can set a high threshold for special soft rewards such as exclusive member-only experiences that don’t cost merchants money. There are so many ways loyalty programs benefit both merchants and customers. If you don’t have a loyalty program in place, now is a great time to implement one. Loyalty programs help businesses retain customers and loyalty members spend more. 

Factor4 is committed to helping merchants re-open with success. We have special promotions and payment plans to assist merchants. Plus, we share our gift card and loyalty program expertise. Contact us at 484-471-3963 or sales@factor4gift.com to learn more. 

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