It’s no secret that a digital Visa gift card or other prepaid reward is a global, flexible, appealing option for your research, marketing, and employee programs. But it has a lot of uses beyond simple incentives for survey respondents and webinar attendees.
Here are three ways you could be incorporating a digital Visa gift card as a reward but may not have considered before.
According to research-based job site Zippia, 88% of employers say that employee referral programs are the best source of candidates, and the cost of hiring a referred employee is $1,000 less than those from any other source. Offering your current team members bonuses for their referrals has become even more important and popular during the “Great Resignation,” as companies struggle to fill open positions and retain a full staff. Such bonuses are often added to a referrer’s paycheck, but using a digital Visa gift card or other prepaid card instead does have its advantages.
The biggest benefit is the experience for the recipient. When the bonus is added to the paycheck, the employee sees a small bump in their typical paycheck, with tax already deducted — if they even notice the increase or remember to look for it. By sending the bonus as a digital reward, you get the opportunity to show your appreciation in a dedicated reward email with a customized message. By creating this specific experience, your recipient will not only associate that goodwill with your company, they also are more likely to submit more referrals in the future.
Using virtual prepaid rewards may seem like an oxymoron at a live, in-person event, but think about the advantages over physical swag. In a world where conferences and trade shows are still reeling from the effects of and ongoing concerns about COVID-19, a digital Visa gift card or other digital reward is contactless. It can be delivered just as quickly, not to mention it’s more eco-friendly than all the branded swag that ends up in landfills.
There are lots of different ways of distributing digital rewards at a live event. If you’re set on having something physical to hand out, consider generating digital reward links in advance and putting them into a QR code generator. Then, you can print the QR codes onto postcards to give to your booth visitors or session attendees, with extra room to highlight your branding and value props.
It’s never an easy situation when your customer service or account management teams must deal with a customer who has had a bad experience with your brand. But unfortunately, it happens to every vendor or service provider at some point. Often, the first option given to “make it up to them” is a discount for your own products and services. By offering a discount, though, you don’t acknowledge their frustration and the fact that they’re considering finding another brand. You obviously don’t want them to do that, so a discount may seem like the best course of action.
But if an unhappy customer thinks you’re ignoring or undervaluing their concerns, even a great discount may not be enough to keep their business. With a digital Visa gift card or other prepaid reward for appeasement, you’re saying to the customer that you respect their concerns and their right to choose where they spend their money, but you truly value their business and want to correct the situation. Whatever appeasement offer you make, be sure that it’s accompanied by a heartfelt and respectful talk track.
Virtual prepaid rewards, including Visas and Mastercards, have some nuances to keep in mind. Here are three things to keep in mind before choosing them for your program.
Hannah is a reformed journalist who has more than 15 years of experience and now focuses on content marketing for innovative tech companies.
Hannah is a reformed journalist who has more than 15 years of experience and now focuses on content marketing for innovative tech companies.
