Gift cards are popular gift items that can also be used as a marketing incentive or as a loyalty program. The gift card option within EBMS allows the user to activate, load, and sell a gift card. The payment or credit from the sale of the gift card is recorded and managed within EBMS but requires a gift card processor to manage the card balance.
The following steps are for US based merchant accounts only. Review Velox Integration for information on Canadian gift card options.
The following options are required to process gift cards within EBMS:
The payment card processing module must be added to EBMS - Review the Payment Card Overview section for more details.
A compatible gift card merchant processor - The following gift card processors have been approved for EBMS:
First Data ValueLink
GiveX
A card swipe device - This device is used to load value into a gift card or to redeem the card at point of sale. The credit card payment device card swipe, such as a Verifone MX device, can not be used to activate a gift card. An additional card swipe, such as a keyboard card swipe, must be used if the sales person wants to be able to swipe the card while activating it. Cards can be loaded and redeemed manually without a swipe device by typing in the gift card number. The VeriFone Mx device can be used by the customer to redeem a gift card.
Gift cards with a bar code or a magnetic stripe - These cards must be compatible with the swipe device and the gift card merchant provider.
An inventory item(s) must be created with a Gift Card classification before gift cards can be loaded or redeemed. Review the Creating a Gift Card Inventory Code section for more details.
Gift cards are activated and the value is loaded from the point of sale dialog within EBMS. Value can be added or subtracted from a gift card after the card is activated. Review the Selling or Loading Cards for more details on activating or adding value to a card.
Review the Paying Using Gift Cards section for more instructions in redeeming a gift card.
Tools to view gift card balances or to adjust gift card values are also included. Review the Viewing Gift Card Balances section for more details.
A gift card's value can be increased or decreased at any time. A card can be deactivated or voided. A customer credit can be added to a gift card as well. Review the Voiding, Crediting, or Changing the Value of Gift Cards section for more details.