What do consumers want from digital e-gift cards and e-vouchers, and as a retailer how can we ensure we are meeting those needs?
“What consumers want is a product that’s quick and easy to use,” says Andrew Johnson, director general at the UK Gift Card & Voucher Association (UK GCVA), but he stresses the importance of clarifying what ‘consumer’ means in this instance. In the case of e-vouchers, it’s the man in the street and a potential corporate purchaser.
Johnson says the business-to-business (B2B) market for e-gifts is growing rapidly, with half of all e-vouchers and cards now being sold into this market. As such, retailers that don’t operate in this sector are losing a significant number of sales. But whether corporate or not, whoever the purchaser, it’s important to get across a sense of excitement and fun when it comes to receiving such a gift. Retailers should encourage their customers to include more than just a single line of text when giving an e-voucher as a gift.
“Retailers can offer a number of options when it comes to the design of e-vouchers, ranging from a space to include a personal message, to different off-the-peg designs and more tailored solutions that include photos and video clips,” says Johnson.
He adds that retailers can also help to meet consumers’ needs by making sure that e-vouchers can be delivered quickly and simply by SMS or via email.
“E-gift cards and e-vouchers offer a secure environment for making payments, as well as the ability to shop either in-store or online, and so retailers should be making make these benefits clear for their customers,” he says.
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