Frequently asked questions about our Instant Gift Certificate & Gift Card Shopping Cart System!
We have compiled a list of some of our customer's most frequently asked questions to help you better understand our Instant Gift Certificate Shopping Cart:
- I already have a page on my website telling people we offer gift cards or certificates, so why should I do this?
- Does your system allow me to sell Virtual or Instant Printable Gift Certificates?
- How do I track when a printable Instant Gift Certificate has been redeemed?
- Can I offer discounts for holiday specials or promotional offers?
- Can I offer special timed deals like Groupon or similar Deal of the Day websites?
- Can I export customer data out of your system so I can market to them via email or regular mail?
- I am new to online sales, what about support and do I need to know about online security?
- How is your shopping cart system different from the free Paypal or Google checkout buttons?
- I added your shopping cart to my site but how does the customer get the gift card or certificate when an order is placed?
- I am getting online orders but how do I get the money for these orders?
- I am selling physical gift card, how much should I charge for shipping?
- Does your system handle state sales tax?
- I have special packages or services, can I offer a gift card or instant gift certificate for those packages/services?
- Can I create individual logins for my staff?
- Can I use your system if I have multiple locations or a franchise?
- Do you supply physical gift cards or certificates?
- What type of payment does your shopping cart accept?
- What happens if my customer wants a refund or loses the gift card or instant gift certificate?
- What happens if a gift card or instant gift certificate is purchased from my website with a stolen credit card?
- What is the length of the unique instant gift certificate order number that your system generates?
- Can I use your system to sell products on my website?
- Can your system integrate with my existing point of sale or back office system?
- Which Authorize.net gateway account do I need SIM or AIM?
- Can I use your system to send complimentary Instant Gift Certificates to customers?
- I get a lot of phone orders for gift certificates. Can I use your system to send instant gifts to customers that have paid over the phone?
- I already have a page on my website telling people we offer gift cards or certificates, so why should I do this?
Having a page on your website just telling people to call your store to place an order is NOT the same as offering actual online sales where the order & payment is collected online! Some people may call, but you are missing out on the millions of core online shoppers that expect the convenience of ordering & paying online not to mention the time you will save your staff from fielding these calls. These days it's simply too easy to click to a competitors website...and then you have lost a sale. Our shopping cart system can be easily added to any page of your website in just 5 minutes to begin accepting secure online gift certificate orders.
Back to top
- Does your system allow me to sell Virtual or Instant Printable Gift Certificates?
Yes! Our system allows you to offer customers the conveience of Instant Printable Gift Certificates online. You can also offer your current physical gift card/certificates that you ship yourself. You can even offer both and let the consmer decide which they prefer.
Back to top
- How do I track when a printable Instant Gift Certificate has been redeemed?
Your printable instant gift certificates are assigned a unique Gift ID #. When you are presented with the printed gift certificate at any of your locations, you just login to TheGiftCardCafe.com Merchant Login to look up and check that it's a valid Gift ID #. If the gift certificate is used in full you can mark that gift certificate in the merchant login as REDEEMED or if it was partially used just enter the amount and our system will track the remaining balance. You can then print an updated gift certificate with the remaining balance or email it to the customer with the click of the mouse.
Back to top
- Can I offer discounts for holiday specials or promotional offers?
Yes! Easy to use controls allow you to offer an across the board discount for all purchases, or choose to discount based on a specific dollar amount. For example offer discounts like: Get 10% off when you order $100 or more! or Get 10% off all orders!
Back to top
- Can I offer special timed deals like Groupon or similar Deal of the Day websites?
Yes! Our Special Deals feature allows you to quickly setup limited time offers similar to Groupon or those other Deal of the Day websites. Limit by date or by the number deals you wish to sell. This is a great tool for helping to drive new business through your doors or to just promote a special limited time offer. Each Special Deal has a unique link that you can use on your website, in an email, or on your social media site so customers can purchase just that special deal. Even if you don't use our system for Instant Gift Certificates you can still use this as a stand alone feature. View more info on our Special Deals feature .
Back to top
- Can I export customer data out of your system so I can market to them via email or regular mail?
Yes! Quickly export a comma delimited .CSV file with the purchaser or gift recipient email and mailing address. This feature is perfect for importing into another database or third party application. We also offer email marketing services for an additional fee.
Back to top
- I am new to online sales, what about support and do I need to know about online security?
Don't worry we got you covered! You don't need to know anything about online security because we handle all of that for you. We have the best support in the business, because if you are successful then we are successful. But don't just take our word for it, check out some of our client Success Stories & Testimonials. If you have support needs or questions about our service Contact Us.
Back to top
- How is your shopping cart system different from the free Paypal or Google checkout buttons?
There are many differences, but the most important is that our system has Instant Printable Gift Certificate features not offered by these other services. We provide a "professional" shopping cart which allows for easy checkout and does not put hurdles in front of the purchasing process. Our clients have found that our shopping cart converts 3 times higher than when they were using services like Paypal or Google checkout.
Back to top
- I added your shopping cart to my site but how does the customer get the gift card or certificate when an order is placed?
For Instant Gift Certificates, nothing needs to be done! You will receive an email notification with all the order details and the Instant Gift Certificate is automatically sent to the recipient [View Instant Gift Certificate Sample]. The gift recipient will print the Instant Certificate and present it at your store just like a physical gift certificate or card. You can validate and redeem the instant gift certificate via our secure merchant login.
When an order is placed for a physical gift cards/certificates, you will receive an email with all the order details [View sample email]. This is your order receipt and your cue to ship the gift card or certificate to the shipping address listed on the receipt.
Back to top
- I am getting online orders but how do I get the money for these orders?
Our system securely transmits customer payments through your online Free PayPal Standard or PayPal Website Payment Pro Merchant Accounts or Authorize.Net gateway (Authorize.Net Simple Integration Method SIM) and the funds go directly into your account in real-time.
Back to top
- I am selling physical gift cards, how much should I charge for shipping?
This is up to you, but the good thing about shipping gift cards or certificates is the ease of shipping because they are small items that can fit in an envelope. Most merchants that sell gift cards online charge a nominal fee of $1 to simply cover postage. During the holidays you may consider Free Shipping to help boost sales.
Back to top
- Does your system handle state sales tax?
Yes, our system is capable of calculating state sales tax on shipping costs. The actual amount of a Gift Card is not taxable however some states require that you charge sales tax on the shipping amount if shipped to an address within your own state. Sales tax would not apply to Instant Gift Certificates.
Back to top
- I have special packages or services, can I offer a gift card or instant gift certificate for those packages/services?
Yes! In addition to the standard purchase by dollar amount, you can also offer special packages. We provide easy to use controls to add all of your packages with pricing, descriptions, and a sorting feature to prioritize your most popular packages first. You can add, edit, or delete packages at any time so offering promotions and holiday specials can be done in a snap [ View sample packages in our demo shopping cart ]..
Back to top
- Can I create individual logins for my staff?
Yes, you can create as many additional staff logins to your account as you need. You can also set various permission levels to limit the access of what a staff member can view or change.
- Can I use your system if I have multiple locations or a franchise?
Yes, our system allows you to track which location an instant gift certificate is redeemed and we provide reporting to give you the redemption amounts for each locations by date range. If you are selling physical gift cards then there is also no issue because you would redeem and track gift cards same as you do today.
Back to top
- Do you supply physical gift cards or certificates?
No, you need to supply your own physical gift cards or gift certificates. If you don't have an existing gift card system then Instant Printable Gift Certificates sounds like the perfect solution for you!
Back to top
- What type of payment does your shopping cart accept?
Our system accepts Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Discover, and Paypal. If you have a PayPal Website Payment Pro account or use your own merchant account via Authoriz.net then you can disable AMEX if you choose.
Back to top
- What happens if my customer wants a refund or loses the gift card or instant gift certificate?
Since you are collecting payment, you can establish a return policy that meets your business needs. You have the ability to refund payments back to your customers credit card via your PayPal Standard, PayPal Website Payment Pro Merchant Accounts or Authorize.Net gateway (Authorize.Net Simple Integration Method SIM). However, due to the nature of gift cards and certificates we recommend a no refund policy unless there was a transaction error. Again, you are responsible for resolving customer complaints for lost or stolen cards and refunds due to customers dissatisfied with your services. We recommend clearly posting your refund policy on your website and using the Terms area that our system provides.
Back to top
- What happens if a gift card or instant gift certificate is purchased from my website with a stolen credit card?
We do everything we can to prevent this from happening by requiring industry standard address verification and credit card security code validation during the online checkout process. However if it does happen our support team will work with you through the resolution process and if it is truly a case of fraud you would be responsible for returning the funds back to the credit card company. Essentially it's no different than if someone walked into your store and made a purchase with a stolen card.
Back to top
- What is the length of the unique instant gift certificate order number that your system generates?
The max length of our instant gift certificate number is 10 characters. Perfect if you need to enter into a third party point of sale system.
Back to top
- Can I use your system to sell products on my website?
No. Our system is specifically designed to handle the sale of Instant Gift Certificates and Gift Cards. There are many shopping cart systems on the market that specialize in selling products.
Back to top
- Can your system integrate with my existing point of sale or back office system?
Yes, TheGiftCardCafe.com can post instant gift certificate order data to a specified URL once a successful transaction has been completed. This method allows you to feed instant gift certificate order data into your existing Point of Sale or back office systems in real-time for easy management. View integration details here
Back to top
- Which Authorize.net gateway account do I need SIM or AIM?
When signing up for an Authorize.Net gateway account our system uses (SIM) Simple Integration Method.
Back to top
- Can I use your system to send complimentary Instant Gift Certificates to customers?
Yes you can! Our Complimentary Instant Gift Certificate feature allows you to easily & quickly email or print instant gift certificates for any dollar amount or custom offer (i.e. "One 60 Minute Massage", "One Free Appetizer", or even "10% off your next visit"). It's the perfect solution if you need to make an unsatisfied customer happy, as a marketing tool to get a good customer to come
back, or to send a customer or friend a birthday gift certificate without charging your credit card. You can manage comp gifts the same way you manage regular orders in our system. Comp orders are not subject to our standard per order percentage fees.
Back to top
- I get a lot of phone orders for gift certificates. Can I use your system to send instant gifts to customers that have paid over the phone?
Yes you can! With our Phone Order Instant Gift Certificate feature you can collect payment over the phone and then use our system to easily email an Instant Gift Certificate in just a few seconds. All for a fraction of the cost of mailing out physical gift certificates or gift cards. You can easily print out gift certificates for in-store orders too! Manage phone order gifts the same way you manage regular orders in our system. Phone order gifts are not subject to our standard per order percentage fees.
Back to top
View the Personal Demonstration Video:
 One of the best ways to learn about how our system works is to have one of our consultants give you a personal tour...but an even better option is to watch our detailed demonstration video whenever you like.
|
|
