Gift Cards Are Going Digital

(Courtesy of IIR’s Prepaid Expo blog)

Friday, February 11, 2011

The Digital Age has arrived. Consumers by the tens of millions are now interacting, transacting and experiencing digitally unlike ever before.

Facebook now has well over 500 million users; eBooks are more popular than printed ones; 80% of U.S. adults regularly use the Internet for more than four hours a day; and smartphone penetration is at nearly 40% of the U.S. population.

What does this mean for gift cards?

 
• Consumers want and will be able to buy their cards anywhere, anytime, from the most convenient and cost-effective channel.

 

• Personalization is moving to a whole new level, which will enable more gifting opportunities. In the digital world, the ability for consumers to express themselves increases dramatically.

 

Retailers are quickly realizing this opportunity. (cont.)

Editor’s note: David Stone will chair a session focused on innovations in prepaid with executives from The Home Depot, The Gap, Nokia Mobile Financial Services and Rev Worldwide at IIR’s Prepaid Expo USA March 6-9 in Orlando, FL – the world’s largest gathering of prepaid industry professionals in both closed- and open-loop markets.
For more information or to register, please visit www.iirusa.com/prepaid.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
David Douglas Stone is co-founder and CEO of CashStar, the digital gifting and incentives company. He has more than 20 years of executive management experience in Fortune 500 and emerging growth technology companies with a strong emphasis on innovative payment systems and loyalty solutions.