Gift Card Blog - ScripSmart

App Store Gift Card Valued At $10,000 Will Be Given Away

Apple is at it again: they're giving away another $10,000 gift card. Last time they gave away a 10,000 iTunes Gift Card in celebration of the 10 billionth app downloaded. This time around it's a $10,000 App Store Gift Card to celebrate a similar milestone: 25 billion apps downloaded. The person who downloads the 25 billionth app could be the lucky winner.

Note: iTunes Gift Cards and App Store Gift Card are essentially the same thing, only called different things for marketing purposes.

First off, this is a great gift card promotion. At $10,000 the winner will be able to download a lot of stuff from the App Store/iTunes/iBooks. You can also gift things, so be sure to make note of who the lucky winner is, they'll announce it on the promotion's official web-page.

Every time you download an app, you'll be entered to win. You can also enter by submitting a web-form or calling an 888 number. I believe such an alternate method is a legal requirement when holding a sweepstakes; however, there is a chance a person who uses such an alternate method will win. Of course, that would means the person who downloaded the 25th billion app will not win.

Gift Card Promotion Tips

In late 2010, ScripSmart ran a "Review a gift card on ScripSmart, enter to win a $50 Amazon.com Gift Card" promotion. The goal was to drive more consumer reviews of gift cards, and by that measure it was a failure. It just didn't deliver more reviews for us.

While $10,000 is an extraordinary amount for a gift card promotion and one most companies will not be matching, I learned two valuable lesson regarding gift card promotions and this promotion reminds me of them:

1) Make the offer meaningful: while just about anyone would take a free $50 Amazon Gift Card, not just anyone will take the time to sigh up for an account, find a gift card and submit a review for the chance to win $50.

2) Put a full court press on marketing: After we launched the promotion, we placed a banner on the top of the website to let others know about it. I wrote a blog post and sent a message out via twitter. While those are all great steps, that is where the promotion of the sweepstakes ended. Looking back, I'd suggest a gift card in the $500 range and spend more time thinking about the most effective ways to let others know about the offer. 

The good news here is I would do it differently next time around. Cheers to them for putting together a great promotion worth talking about.

Oregon Cash Back Law For Gift Cards - Effective January 1st, 2012

June of last year, Oregon passed SB 756. In short, it requires all gift cards which are sold to be redeemed for cash if the balance is $5 or less and the gift card has been used at least once. The effective date of this legislation is January 1st, 2012.

I'm a fan of seeing cash back laws. The fact is, a consumer should not be required to spend more than the balance of a gift card in order to receive the full benefit and just 3.6% of store-issued gift cards offer a cash back option unless required by law. Because so few retailers offer a cash back policy, you can expect to see more states enact similar legislation in the future.

Not Retroactive, 2011 Christmas Gifts Are Exempt

This change to Oregon Gift Card Law is not retroactive. In other words, all of the gift cards purchased prior to January 01, 2012 are not covered by the new law. So if you received a gift card for christmas this year the merchant is not required to give you cash back. This is only for gift cards sold on January 1st, 2012 and moving forward.

Oregon Got It Right

There are several states with Cash Back Laws. The laws vary slightly, but I think a $5 threshold is reasonable for both consumers and businesses. Thankfully the legislators in Oregon decide to make this rather simple. However, the legislators in Massachusetts did a poor job of crafting a law which is easy for everyone to understand and, in turn, comply.

Massachusetts General Law Part II Title II Chapter 200A, Section 5D reads:

"A purchaser or holder of a gift certificate which, by its terms, prohibits the purchaser or holder from adding value thereto and which has been redeemed for at least 90 per cent of its face value shall make an election to receive the balance in cash or continue using the gift certificate. A purchaser or holder of a gift certificate which, by its terms, authorizes the purchaser or holder to add value thereto and which has been redeemed in part, such that the value remaining is $5.00 or less, shall make an election to receive the balance in cash or continue using the gift certificate."

That's a mouth full and not very easy for consumers or business owners to understand. I'm not sure why the notion of adding value would even be a factor. Furthermore, adding a percentage in the mix just seems to over complicate the situation. In short, a gift card is redeemable for cash if:

1. The gift card is not reloadable, has been used at least once and the balance is less than $5

2. The gift card is not reloadable and at least 90% of the funds have been redeemed.

For more detail, take a look at ScripSmart's full list of cash back laws for gift cards for each state. Cheers to Oregon's legislators for getting this one right.

Buy A Home Depot Gift Card, Donate 5% To Veterans

The Home Depot has teamed up with The Mission Continues to launch a "Celebration of Service" fund-raising campaign. There are several ways to participate, one of which is buying a Home Depot Gift Card.

If you buy a "Celebration of Service Themed" gift card from now until Veterans Day, November 11, 2011, The Home Depot will donate 5% of the face value to help complete 200 service projects in 60 days which are aimed specifically at improving homes, facilities and community centers where veterans live and receive services.

This is a rather clever gift card promotion and just another way gift cards are being used for more than just gift giving. Cheers to The Home Depot for coming up with a great way to promote their gift card while giving back to the country.

The Best Of Both Worlds

Just to clarify: the great thing about this promotion is you get the full value of the gift card and the great feeling a donation is being made on your behalf. For example, when you buy a $200 Celebration of Service themed Home Depot Gift Card, you'll still get the $200 gift card and the home depot will donate $10.

Full details of the promotion can be found here on the The Home Depot Foundations website.

American Express Launches An eGift Card

Earlier this week, American Express launched a new product: the American Express eGift Card. We recently added our review of the gift card and it performed well for a bank-issued gift card.

Here are a few things to know about the new American Express eGift Card:

1. $2.95 Purchase fee
2. No expiration
3. No post-sale fees
4. Delivered via email
5. No shipping fees
6. Requires activation by the recipient
7. Only redeemable online and via phone
8. Unused gift card may be refunded

The Trade Off

The American Express eGift Card actually has a higher Gift Card Score than the traditional plastic American Express Gift Card. This is mainly a result of purchase fees. The big trade off here is the restriction of not being able to use the gift card in-store in exchange for lower purchase fees.

That being said, it is possible the American Express eGift Card would work in-store. It just depends on the merchant's ability to manually key in the gift card number because there is nothing to swipe.

A Growing Trend: eGift Cards

Visa, MasterCard, Discover and American Express have historically not offered an eGift Card option to consumers. It's great to see American Express offer another option with lower purchase fees. Naturally, it would be even better if American Express could guarantee the egift card could be used in-store. I expect to see more egift cards enter the marketplace over the coming years.

Be sure to checkout our current and full review of the American Express eGift Card.

Recycle And Get An Apple Gift Card

A growing gift card trend is paying consumers with gift cards instead of cash. I've written about Amazon.com paying consumers for used electronics with Amazon.com Gift Cards before and Apple offers a similar program.

In fact, recently Apple updated their Reuse and Recycling Program to include iPhones and iPads. In other words, you can receive an Apple Gift Card in exchange for recycling qualified "iPhone, iPad, and Mac or PC desktop and notebook computers".

Offering an incentive is a great way to get consumers to responsibly dispose of old and unwanted electronics. Naturally, by giving the consumer a gift card instead of cash, Apple can increase the dollar amount of the reward an be certain the money will be spent within the company.

Gift Card Tip

I price checked an original 16GB iPhone 3G in working order and was quoted $30; keep in mind, that number included free shipping to Apple. While $30 may not be a big help towards your next MacBook and the Apple Gift Card can't be used in the iTunes or App Store; the Apple Gift Card be used to purchase an iTunes Gift Card at the Apple Store.

Maine Improves Gift Card Laws Related To Unclaimed Property

Late last month, Maine legislators passed LD 247 (HP 200). The bill amends Maine Gift Card Law as it relates to unclaimed property. In short, gift cards will still be considered unclaimed property by the State of Maine; however, the date of abandonment has been pushed from 2 years to 5 years of inactivity. Also, a sentence which allowed the gift card issuer to keep 40% of the face value of the gift card when turning the money over to the state was removed.

To sum it up, the full face value of gift cards must be turned over after 5 years of inactivity and according to Maine's Office of Legislative Information, the effective date of these changes is September 28, 2011.

A Step In The Right Direction

Cheers to this Bill's sponsor, Representative Kerri Prescott of Topsham, Maine. This is definitely a step in the right direction. At least gift cards will not be considered abandoned before they can legal expire under Federal Gift Card Law (5 years).

Also, the notion of splitting up the pot between the state and the gift card issuers makes no sense to me; it's good to see this line stricken from the books.

Still Not Enough

I've written several times about why gift card should not be considered unclaimed property. My reasoning has little to do with who should be allowed to benefit from the value of unused gift card and more to do with whether or not a state can be sure they have the right to such property.

Simply put, the location of the gift cardholder is often unknown. Typically a person who purchased the gift card is not the same as the person who actually owns the gift card. That's because most of us buy and give gift cards as gifts. As such, I don't see how a state can be certain they have the right to property. After all, some of the gift cards a state lays claim to will certainly be held by a person residing in another state.

Furthermore, a state who deems gift cards to be unclaimed property is essentially forcing an expiration date. After the value of the gift card is turned over to the state, the merchant no longer has an obligation to honor the gift card. In order to recoup the money, consumers must go to the state treasurer and search for the unclaimed property. Naturally, most consumers never get the cash from the state and it's the state's budget who actually benefits from classifying gift cards as unclaimed property, not the holder of the property.

A Word Of Advice

One of the easiest ways to be a smart gift card consumer is to use them ASAP. Naturally, that's easier said than done. I certainly have had my moments of letting gift cards sit in my wallet. If you're like me, take a look a ScripSmart's gift card alert system. Just sign up for a free account, register the gift cards you own and we'll send you helpful reminders to ensure you're getting the most out of the gift cards. It's really easy.

Gift Card Cooperatives: Omaha's Downtown Gift Card

05/19/11 Update: Omaha's Downtown Gift Card is now available for purchase.

Nebraska consumers will soon have a new gift card option: the Downtown Gift Card. In short, it's a gift card which will be redeemable at several local businesses in downtown Omaha.

According to Joe Gudenrath, Executive Director of Omaha Downtown Improvement District: the Downtown Gift Card will be available this May, cost $1.50 to purchase and the funds will never expire (the card itself expires after 9 years, but replacement cards will be issued free of charge). Joe currently has over 60 businesses willing to participate and expects to have over 100 by the time the gift card launches.

More Options, Less Risk

We've written about the pros and cons of small business gift cards and see this as a solution to one of the biggest cons: risk. The fact is, smaller business are more likely to go out of business and you're less likely to know when it's going to happen. Unfortunately, this results in a higher probability of ending up with a worthless gift card. However, a gift card which is redeemable at several unaffiliated businesses allows consumers to hedge this risk and choose from a wide array of redemption options.

Support A Cause

People like supporting a cause; we've seen the rise of gift cards for charities and a gift card cooperative offers a similar dynamic: support local business. Furthermore, a the core of this program is cooperation among local businesses for the greater good. It's just another great way to bring a local business community together.

A Trend To Continue

Cheers to Joe Gudenrath and the Omaha Downtown Improvement District for finding a new way to drive local business. I see gift card cooperatives such as this as a trend which will continue because they are a solid option for consumers.

Omaha's Downtown Gift Card will be available at select lcoations Downtown and online at omahadowntown.org.

The $10,000 iTunes Gift Card

Gift card promotions are popular with consumers and the companies who issue them. We saw what happend with LivingSocial's Amazon.com Gift Card Promotion and now we have a different promotion by Apple which is generating some great press.

Apple has celebrated the 10 billionth download from the App Store with a free $10,000 iTunes Gift Card for one lucky customer. That customer: Gail Davis from Orpington, Kent, United Kingdom. Unfortunately, the iTunes Gift Card is not redeemable at the Apple Store or on Apple.com, so it might take some time to use the value in the iTunes Store. However, she can gift apps/songs to others.

In the end, it looks like Gail and her family will enjoy free downloads for a long time to come because the iTunes Gift Card does not expire or have any post-sale fees.

New Feature: ScripSmart User Ratings

We're listening to your feedback and as a result, we've just introduced a new feature: ScripSmart User Ratings.

That's right, user can now login to review and rate gift cards! You'll find the 'Average User Rating' for any gift card just below the Gift Card Score on each gift card's webpage. Here is an example of the iTunes eGift Card:

User Ratings vs. Gift Card Score

Each Gift Card Score is generated based on attributes of a gift card's terms, policies and disclosures. In other words, it's a great metric for gauging the consumer friendliness of a gift card. On the other hand, Gift Card Score is not currently great for finding which gift card is most popular or offers the most customer satisfaction after the sale.

User Rankings on ScripSmart will help consumers easily identify which gift cards are most popular and alert them to which gift cards which may have a poor track record for satisfying customers. We'd like to think of ScripSmart User Ratings as "the word on the street".

KISS

Like all things on ScripSmart, the new User Ratings are simple:

1. ScipSmart Users may rate each gift card once. (If you don't have an ScripSmart Account, sign up now!)

2. Individual reviews and the corresponding ratings will be displayed for others benefit.

3. Ratings utilize a star system: 1 star is the minimum representing a poor review and 5 stars represents the best possible rating. Half stars may not be given during the user's review, but are presented for each gift card's average user rating. 

4. Each user has an opportunity to justify their rating of a gift card with specifics as to why they believe the gift card is a good or poor choice for other consumers.

In the end, ScripSmart's User Ratings and Reviews will provide key information to consumers regarding gift card programs and will be just one more tool in helping you find the best gift cards.

If you have any feedback on the ScripSmart, please share your thoughts and send us a note!

Sam Seltzer's Gift Cards Are Still Worth Something

Earlier this year, we wrote about a Florida restaurant chain, Sam Seltzer's, abruptly closing it's doors leaving gift card holders with nowhere to redeem their gifts.

The manner in which the Sam Seltzer's Steakhouse bankruptcy was handled was among the lowest of quality. Not only did customers have no warning the doors were set to close, but the company was selling gift cards up until the last day. In an instant, an estimated $262,000 worth of gift cards became worthless.

That is usually where the story ends: a company goes under and gift cards become worthless.

Harold Seltzer's Steakhouse

Harold Seltzer, served as a key member in the creation of the Sam Seltzer's Steakhouse brand. In fact, it's named after his grandfather, Sam. In 2004 Harold sold his interest in Sam Seltzer's Steakhouse chain in a bitter dispute with family.

It easy to understand Harold's disdain for the way the Sam Seltzer's Steakhouse brand ended. Harold had nothing to do with how the company handled gift card holders and gauging by his response, it's too bad he wasn't in charge of the company at the time.

Harold is so upset, he has decided to make it up to those who were stiffed by the previous owner's of Sam Seltzer's by opening Harold Seltzer's Steakhouse and offer one free prime rib dinner for each Sam Seltzer's gift card presented.

According to the St. Petersburg Times, the Port Richey and St. Petersburg locations will reopen in late October and there is a one card per table limit.

Stepping Above And Beyond

Harold Seltzer is in no way obligated to repay such a debt. However, we believe this is a great move. By accepting the gift cards, Harold is luring back once loyal customers of the popular Sam Seltzer's Steakhouse. I'd love to see Harold's Seltzer's Steakhouse succeed. When I'm in the area, I'll be sure to stop in and buy a steak to support Harold's good intentions.