Gift cards are a good investment for businesses both large and small. In 2015, gift cards were the most-requested holiday gift for the ninth year in a row. People love to give gift cards because they show more thoughtfulness than cash, while still letting the recipient choose the gift they want.
If you're just starting a gift card program or switching over from paper gift certificates, one of the biggest challenges is deciding on the right gift card design for your business. You want gift cards that stand out next to the register, while also giving a good first impression of your business to new customers.
21 Companies Crushing It With Custom Gift Cards
Every year, we help hundreds of companies create gift cards for their business in order sizes from 100 to 1 million. To inspire you when creating your own gift cards, we'd like to share examples of gift card designs from companies who absolutely crush it at gift card sales. (How do we know their gift cards sell? Because they're constantly ordering more!)
Take at look at some of our favorite custom gift card designs:
1. Foil Stamp Gift Cards for Lovable
Dare we say we "love" this classically-beautiful gift card from Indian innerwear manufacturer Lovable? With a white background, a foil-stamped logo and a stunning flower in the brand's colors, this plastic gift card makes a big impression.
2. Frosted Gift Cards for Jeffrey C. Dawes, MD
We love how Dr. Jeffrey C. Dawes uses his gift cards to bring new patients in the door by offering a complimentary service. By using a durable plastic card, he makes it possible for potential patients to keep his card in their wallet until they're ready to call. He also makes the card stand out with a classy frosted green bar across the middle.
3. Salon Gift Cards for Semion Barbershop
Semion Barbershop's custom gift cards are an excellent example of how a business can use variable printing to catch their customer's eye. We love how when customers see that each card has a different message, they're encouraged to spend time looking at the gift cards (a big deal since gift cards are often an impulse purchase!)
4. Crossfit Oahu Gym Gift Cards
A one-year membership to Crossfit Oahu is a perfect gift for anyone setting a New Year's resolution to get in better shape. We like how this gift card comes with a bow and a face value number on the front, as well as a writable strip on the back with an expiration date to incentivize the recipient to go to the gym!
5. Spa Gift Cards for Capture Salon Studio
With their eye-catching color and unique shape, Capture Salon Studio's custom gift cards are sure to get noticed when guests are checking out after their salon visit. We love how these spa gift cards are cut to look like a present to inspire patrons to give the gift of beauty.
6. Writable Gift Cards for Topstone Bibles & Books
Whether someone wants to gift one book or many, Topstone Bibles and Books is prepared with these classic-looking gift cards. The barcode enables it to be used with the bookstore's POS system, and the writable back makes it possible for gift givers to put any amount they choose on the card.
7. Customized Gift Cards & Gift Card Backers for 3 Daughters Brewery
Bright blue gift card backers and rustic plastic gift cards make a stunning gift card package from 3 Daughters Brewing. Evoking the wood barrels used to add flavor and aromatics to craft beer, these brewery gift cards are sure to make an impression on recipients.
8. Custom Shaped Gift Cards for Beaver Island
A small brewery that crafts world-class beer, Beaver Island Brewing Company came to us for unique brewery gift cards. We love how giving someone a Beaver Island gift card is just like buying them a glass of their award-winning beer. Plus, with the barcode on the back, the Beaver Island gift cards can easily be scanned at festivals and craft beer events with a mobile POS system.
9. Personalized Gift Card Holder for Best 4K9
We love how holistic pet store Best 4K9's gift cards adds a personal touch with a photo of Cash, a dog that the owners rescued from a construction site. Cash's happy, quirky pose on the gift cards is sure to catch the heartstrings of visitors - especially if they meet him while shopping! As a small business, Best 4K9 also benefits from how the barcode gift cards can be reloaded and used again for new customers.
10. Magnetic Stripe Gift Cards for Cary Ale House
Cary Ale House makes it easy for customers to give the gift of craft beer, craft food and craft fun with their custom restaurant gift cards. These magnetic stripe cards can be loaded with any dollar amount a customer wishes and swiped on the restaurant's existing POS system.
11. Business Gift Cards with Logo for Commonground Golf Course
We love how Commonground Golf Course has customized their business gift cards with their logo and an actual photo of their Par 3 golf 18-hole golf course. With a magnetic stripe, the cards can be loaded with custom gift amounts so recipients can purchase tee times, in their retail shop or even use to sign up for clinics.
12. Multiple Gift Card Designs for Green Barn Garden Center
These retail gift cards are designed to catch the eye with photos of beautiful flowers. We love how Green Barn Garden Center has taken advantage of variable printing to create gift card designs that entice customers to pick the gift card that best fits the recipient's personality.
13. Barcode Gift Cards for Jill Alexander
Featuring photos of independent clothing designer Jill Alexander's collection, these barcode gift cards can be purchased in-store with a gift card holder and used to make purchases at retail stores or online. We also like how these retail gift cards take advantage of face value numbers to highlight available clothing sizes.
14. Face Value Gift Cards for Security Solutions
Gift cards are not just great presents, they can also be used for marketing. We love how Security Solutions has created a marketing promotion with a face value gift card that offers customers a significant discount on their home security installation.
15. Restaurant Gift Cards for Ole River Flora-Bama Bar & Grill
Sitting directly on the Florida-Alabama state line, the down-to-earth Ole River Bar and Grill features a spacious deck and some of the best raw oysters, shrimp, wings, and more in America. Their wood-grained restaurant gift cards look just like their famous outdoor deck, and are ready to be swiped on any restaurant POS system.
16. Retail Gift Card Holders for Pink Laundry Boutique
Full of feminine chic, these custom gift cards mimic the floral theme boutique clothing store Pink Laundry uses on their website, photo shoots and even shopping bags. With a magnetic stripe, the closed loop gift cards can be swiped directly on Pink Laundry's retail POS system.
17. Foil Gift Cards for Pippin Hill Farm & Vineyards
With a magnetic stripe on their gift cards, Pippin Hill Farm & Vineyard gives recipients the option of using their gift to select a favorite bottle, sign-up for a wine tasting event or cooking class or even to join their wine club. We also love how the gold foil accents leave an upscale impression.
18. Black Gift Cards for Tangled Up Hair Salon
As classic as a little black dress, these salon gift cards are sure to look chic next to the register. Featuring magnetic stripes, these black gift cards can be swiped like a credit card with the Tangled Up's existing POS system. Since salon gift cards are often an impulse purchase after a good experience, we love how Tangled Up has created gift cards that will stand out on the counter.
19. Wicked Parrot Tattoo Gift Cards and Gift Card Display Stand
We love how Wicked Parrot Tattoo & Fashion Boutique is taking advantage of an acrylic gift card display stand to put their gift cards front and center by the register. This gift card display stand gives Wicked Parrot the ability to swap display backgrounds seasonally or when they have promotions.
20. Customized Gift Cards for Vaporworld
Designed to match the vape store's branding and logo, these customized gift cards are designed to work with the POS systems at any Vapor World retail location. With the barcode on the back, Vapor World is also able to reload cards, making it possible for customers to add more funds, or for the company to economically reuse cards once they've been turned in.
21. Retail Gift Cards for Whiskey Grade Motorgear
A store for riders, adventurers, builders, creatives and dreamers, Whiskey Grade sells high-quality, authentic apparel and riding gear. We love how those retail gift cards are personalized for Whiskey Grade's store in Cleveland, Ohio.
Need Custom Gift Cards for Your Business?
Whether you're looking for 50 gift cards or a couple million, we can help you create custom gift cards for your business. Our gift card experts can advise you on how to make a gift card program work with your existing POS system, create a custom design for your cards, or work with your team to bring existing gift card designs to life. Schedule a consultation today with one of our experts to learn how we can help you with your gift card program.
