Miranda Hrustemović, Client Success Manager at Giftify, shares five innovative gift card solutions to increase foot traffic and sales within shopping centers.

In today’s competitive retail market, attracting visitors and driving sales are crucial for the success of every shopping center.

With Giftify’s extensive experience collaborating with over 400 prominent shopping centers worldwide, Miranda offers proven gift card strategies tailored to help marketing managers achieve measurable growth.

Let’s explore Miranda’s advice to uncover how gift cards can be powerful tools for shopping center marketing managers.

1. Use Gift Cards During the Holidays to Increase Sales by 38%

Holidays see an increase in consumer spending, making it beneficial for shopping centers and retailers to promote gift cards in order to increase sales.

Customers spend more than the gift card’s value, with about 65% of users splurging an average of 38% extra. This behavior is driven by the perception of receiving “free money” and the desire to utilize the gift card fully. Additionally, customers often make impulse purchases or opt for higher-priced items, viewing the gift card as an opportunity to indulge themselves.

Statistics show that gift card usage increases by 18% annually, with holiday seasons witnessing three times more purchases and redemptions than other times of the year.

2. Support Product Campaigns to Increase Sales by 30%

By collaborating with retailers, shopping centers can create engaging campaigns around product launches or exclusive events, offering gift cards as prizes or incentives.

These initiatives have been proven to increase foot traffic, boost in-store sales from 10 to 30%, and enhance customer engagement.

For example, Westend Shopping Center’s promotional “Christmas Gift Card” campaign offered customers additional value for purchasing gift cards during specific hours, incentivizing spending and encouraging repeat visits. This boosted immediate sales and fostered long-term customer loyalty and positive brand associations.

Shopping centers also benefit from this as they typically earn a percentage of the value of each gift card sold, ranging from 1% to 10% or more.

3. Use Gift Cards to Increase Loyalty

Shopping centers now leverage mobile apps to gamify the shopping experience, using gift cards as attractive prizes.

These apps allow customers to earn loyalty points through various activities such as purchases, visits to specific locations within the shopping center, participating in quizzes, or sharing promotions on social media platforms. These loyalty points can be redeemed for rewards, with gift cards being popular among customers.

The success between loyalty programs and gift cards is evident in the year-over-year increase in gift card sales, showcasing their undeniable impact on driving customer engagement and sales within shopping centers.

4. Use Gift Cards for Online Campaigns and Cross Promotion Partnerships

Online popup gift card campaigns and cross-promotion partnerships are powerful tools for driving foot traffic and boosting sales in stores and shopping centers.

For example, online pop-up offers on websites like “Enter our newsletter for a chance to WIN a 50€ shopping Gift Card” or “Follow us on Instagram and Facebook for a chance to win a 3€ gift card” have been observed to drive quality engagement when strategically deployed.

Additionally, cross-promotion partnerships, such as EasyJet distributing gift cards to shopping center destinations among randomly selected boarding ticket holders, illustrate innovative approaches to attracting customers

5. Use Gift Cards to Create an Omni-Channel Experience

By offering gift cards across various platforms and touchpoints, shopping centers can meet customers wherever they prefer to shop, whether it’s online, through vending machines, or at information desks.

In today’s digital age, offering customers the option of choosing between physical and digital cards is essential. However, not all shopping centers require all features, and we at Giftify provide tailor-made gift card strategies.

For example, in 2023, we recorded sales for one of our clients who exclusively utilized info-desk sales without any additional features. The data showed that they sold over 24K gift cards, totaling approx. €857K in value, with over €775K spent in merchants.

Create a Winning Gift Card Strategy 

By incorporating these five strategies and leveraging Giftify products, shopping center marketing managers can drive measurable growth, enhance customer engagement, and solidify their position as premier shopping destinations.

Giftify provides an in-house, user-friendly solution designed to streamline processes for shopping centers and retailers tailored to their specific needs.

If you are ready to create a winning gift card strategy, connect with Miranda Hrustemović and learn more about Giftify at www.giftify.me