The demand for gift cards has been high for the past several years. And why wouldn’t it?
Gift cards are a perfect gift, like eBay cards by PrizeHog. You lose the hassle of having to ‘choose’ a gift for someone, along with losing the risk of that person not liking your gift or not finding any utility from it. It’s like giving them money without the rudeness or stigma attached to providing a rupee amount. It’s easy and convenient for both the giver and the receiver.
Fortunately, gift cards can be brought for a lower amount than their value. Here are some ways you can save on the purchase of gift cards!
1. Use Your Reward Points To Purchase Gift Cards
If you are a regular customer of a particular shop or restaurant and are subscribed to their rewards program, you can use your reward points to purchase a gift card from that outlet.
It’s a great way to save since you’re not spending from your pocket to buy a gift card for someone else.
2. Look For Gift Card Discounts During Sale
Many outlets offer a discount on their gift cards during the sale to push out the existing stock and make shelf space for new ones. These offers include selling the gift cards for less than the store value of the cards.
Outlets offer incentives for buying their gift cards in bulk. Examples: “Spend ₹1,000 on gift cards and get 10% cashback” or “Spend ₹500 on gift cards and get a ₹50 gift card for free.” You can also get free imvu gift cards here.
These offers are great, especially if you’re thinking of gifting the same cards to multiple people or being a frequent customer at that store and would like to use that additional store value for yourself.
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3. Buy Merchant-Branded Gift Cards
Despite the advantages of giving Visa or MasterCard a gift card (as they are accepted almost anywhere), there are purchasing fees attached to buying their tickets.
This purchasing fee doesn’t apply to merchant-branded gift cards, where a ₹500 card costs ₹500 only. However, Visa, MasterCard, and American Express gift cards hold a purchase fee, which can be roughly ₹300 to ₹500 depending on where you buy it and the card amount you buy.
Amazon gift cards are the next best option since Amazon provides millions of products in almost every category, providing the gift card receiver a vast range from which to choose.
4. Look For Gift Cards From Other Retailers With The Same Parent Company.
Some stores offer their parent companies gift cards that you can use at any store owned by the parent company. This gives your gift receiver a broader choice, especially if the chosen parent company has a good range of stores and products offered.
5. Stick To Legitimate Sources
Many online C2C (customer-to-customer) sites consist of people looking to sell their gift cards for a lesser price than its store value since they don’t have any use.
However, using these sites to buy discounted cards runs a considerable risk of fraud, as there is no way for you to know if a card is fake, used up, or stolen.
Avoid buying a gift card from an unknown individual, and instead, shop from places that offer buyer protection.
6. Use Websites DEdicated For Gift Card Exchange
Gift card exchange sites have an adequate inventory of local gift cards and vouchers that you can buy for much less than its store value, ranging from clothing, restaurants, electronics, etc.
7. Safety: Check For Signs Of Tampering.
Make sure that the gift card you buy doesn’t show any sign of tampering (such as the packaging is ripped or the PIN being scratched and is visible) since a swindler may have written down the gift card code and could use it online once the card gets activated at the register.
Finally, be sure to use the gift card! Almost $3 billion worth of gift cards goes unused every year, which is a shame given how much a person can save on his/her purchases by using a gift card – be it for themselves or as a gift for someone else.
