Run a gift card offer with a promo code

A gift card promo code lowers the price a buyer pays, never the value on the card. Use it for a Christmas offer, like 10% off gift cards bought this week.

Price down, value kept

For example, with a 10% code a $100 card costs the buyer $90 and is worth $100 when spent. The card records the code and what it took off. A code that would make a card free is refused.

How to set up a gift card promo code

1. 01
   Open Promo codes

   In your admin, open Grow, then Promo codes.

2. 02
   Make the code

   Under Create a code, set the Code, Type and Value. Add Max uses and Expires to keep the offer short.

3. 03
   Tick Can be used on gift cards

   Then press Create code. For a code you already have, press Allow on gift cards in the list.

Switching a code on or off for gift cards needs Manage the business.

What buyers see

While you have a live code on gift cards, your gift card page shows a Promo code field. An applied code shows what the buyer pays and what the card is worth. A code that has expired, is used up or isn't for gift cards is refused with a clear message.

Your code's Expires date and Max uses still apply. A use is held while the buyer pays, and counted once the payment goes through. If they don't pay, the checkout closes after 30 minutes and the use comes back after that. The Promo codes list shows uses held at checkout and the gift cards each code sold.

Give, resend or replace a gift card

To give a card away, use Issue a gift card under Catalog, Gift cards, which needs Manage the business. Tick Email it to them, which starts unticked. The recipient gets the same email as a paid card. Your note stays on the card's record and is never emailed.

Each card's page shows its History, from payment to emails, redemptions and voids. Under Do something with this card:

• Resend email sends it again to the recipient on file, up to three times a day.
• Reissue with a new code voids the old code and moves what is left to a new one. It is emailed to the recipient if there is an address on file.

Neither works for a card that is void, used up or expired. Resend needs Adjust loyalty and gift cards, and Reissue needs Manage the business too. With Export data, Download CSV on the Gift cards page includes the promo code and discount.

Questions owners ask

Can clients use my booking promo codes on gift cards?

Only the codes you switch on. Can be used on gift cards is off for every code until you tick it.

If I refund a gift card, does the code get its use back?

No. The use stays counted, just as a refunded booking's code stays used.

Where to start

Make one code for gift cards, give it Max uses and an end date, and put it in your next newsletter. Our post Gift cards: a quiet cash-flow engine for small studios has more ideas, and our help article Promo codes and discounts covers codes for bookings.