Free Gift Card Delivery (isn't "free")
What "free" delivery gift card services DON’T tell you.
Getting your gift cards delivered “free” might sound like a great bargain, but it’s not as good as it seems.
Back in the 1800s, saloons offered a “free lunch” to customers who bought drinks, but it wasn’t really free – they made the food extra salty to sell more drinks.
Today, some incentive and rewards companies offer “free” delivery of gift cards with a similar strategy.
They want you to think you’re getting a great deal, but in reality, it can end up costing you more. You usually pay far more terms of overall cost. And you end up with less successful incentive deliveries and lower recipient satisfaction.
“Free” deliveries don’t return to you the funds from gift cards that are never claimed by the intended recipient.
That’s a lot of money wasted! The industry average for unclaimed cards is 20% and can be as high as 40% for many B2B programs. That’s hardly “free” delivery.
Walmart and Starbucks held about $3.5 billion in deferred gift card revenue.
Read more about E-gift card claim rates over time and how TruCentive delivers more, and costs less.
7 ways “free” gift card delivery services cost more and deliver less:
So, if you’re delivering, or considering a “free” gift card delivery service, don’t forget the creative saloon owner and view the seven ways “free” delivery incentive gift card services cost more and deliver less.
Before choosing a “free” gift card delivery service, consider these seven ways it may actually cost you more and give you less value:
1. They cost 20-30% of what you send
They don’t return the funds from gift cards that are never claimed. The industry average for unclaimed cards is 20% and can be as high as 40+% for many B2B programs. This means “free” is 20-40% of what you send. This is expensive compared to alternative solutions which you would expect to pay about 10% for delivery.
2. One-and-done
Typically, these services have a “one-and-done” delivery strategy. They will send your incentive once, but that’s it. No reminders to continually put your brand and message in front of the recipient and to make sure they ultimately get the satisfaction of claiming your incentive.
3. Cookie cutter designs
Most services have a drop your logo in a box and add your message email builders. This limited design capability and doesn’t maintain your branding or give you creative control. Matching your incentives delivery with your everyday communication maintains brand consistency and builds a stronger relationship between the incentives you send, you, and your organization.
4. Transparency
Because “free” delivery services make more money with low response rates, they tend to provide limited visibility into whether an incentive has been delivered, viewed, or claimed. Some platforms consider any email that has been delivered without a hard error as claimed. With so many businesses using accept-all email servers, the number of truly “claimed” incentives is a mystery.
5. Follow up
“free” delivery services don’t give you the option to follow up after a recipient claims their incentive. Sending an email or SMS soon after someone claims their incentive is a great time to reinforce your message, add additional information, or include an additional call to action.
6. Adding a secondary call to action
Incentive delivery is more than just delivering a gift card. It’s the whole experience. “free” services don’t maximize your incentive dollars by helping generate more activity. The best time to ask for more is when a recipient has just claimed their gift card. Adding a secondary call to action; a button to review your product, comment on your support, or get feedback on the program associated with the incentive you just delivered are all great ways to get more from each incentive dollar.
7. Convoluted redemption process
Many “free” services have extremely convoluted redemption processes which often include the requirement to have yet another email sent to you to claim your gift card. As you might suspect, they are likely gathering information from your marketing efforts and/or just making the process just difficult enough to make the redemption number drop which of course impacts the satisfaction of your recipient while improving their bottom line.
The free delivery model defies common sense marketing
The concept of free delivery in marketing raises a perplexing question:
“If a vendor’s profit is tied to your lack of success, what incentive do they have to contribute to your success?”
The more you fail in getting recipients to redeem your incentives – the more the delivery company makes! It’s a counterintuitive model that challenges traditional marketing wisdom.
Incentives are a direct reflection of your organization
The delivery of every incentive, from the initial email or SMS message to the culmination of the incentive claim process and subsequent follow-ups, serves as a direct reflection of the quality, care and reputation of your organization.
Any frustration or dissatisfaction experienced by participants at any stage of the incentive process casts a shadow over your entire program and, by extension, your brand.
The ramifications of this extend beyond the immediate transaction, influencing how your organization is perceived by employees and participants and potentially deterring future engagement.
It underscores the importance of a thoughtful and comprehensive approach to incentive delivery, where success is not just measured by the end result but by the positive journey experienced by participants throughout the entire process.
Learn how TruCentive can make your incentive programs more successful and engaging - and save you money!
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When we’re done, you’ll:
- Possess a solid grasp of constructing your project.
- Have a comprehensive understanding of best practices for incentive delivery.
- Learn the secrets of the incentives industry and the savings and advantages of utilizing TruCentive for your next program.
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