Using Print-On-Demand Gift Cards to Personalize the Customer Experience

When Firebirds Wood Fired Grill, a national collection of polished casual restaurants, wanted to provide their customers with additional gift card purchasing options, they turned to CPS Cards to help them execute their plan.

Firebirds Wood Fired Grill wanted to boost gift card sales by offering online ordering on their website. Along with providing guests the ability to select the card design of their choice, the restaurant also wanted them to be able to include a personalized message and then have the cards mailed directly to the recipient. To accomplish this, they added an e-commerce component to their website, however, they needed a gift card vendor that could provide fulfillment on the fly. Their requirements were as follows:

• Gift cards printed on-demand, as they are ordered
• Multiple gift card designs that could be switched out with special holiday-themed cards on an as-needed basis
• A quick turnaround; cards shipped directly to the recipient with multiple shipping options
• A personalized message to the gift recipient printed on the card carrier
• Easy integration of the fulfillment program with card processor

With the holiday season approaching, the restaurant chain needed a solution within a quick time frame so that they could benefit from the busy gift card selling season.

The CPS Cards Solution

Working through a third-party partner, the restaurant contacted CPS Cards for assistance. A recognized leader in the field with more than 15 years of experience helping clients successfully complete challenging card fulfillment projects, CPS began the process by examining the restaurant’s requirements, and offered the following solution:

• Implement a secure data feed from the restaurant’s card processor to CPS before 12:00PM daily
• Acquire card data that includes recipient name, address, personalized messaging for inside the card carrier, account number to be assigned, mailing address and preferred shipping method.
• Print cards and carriers, with barcode on carrier to ensure accurate matching
• Barcode scan to generate mailing label, create data file and indicate that the card had been completed
• Shipment of card within 1-2 business days
• A nightly electronic transfer to the card processor to activate the account numbers of the cards that shipped that day.

The Results

Working closely with Firebirds’ card processor, CPS was able to implement the program in just a few weeks. In the first two months of the program, Firebirds sold over 5,000 gift cards. With the CPS print-on-demand fulfillment program, the restaurant does not have to stockpile gift cards that could be wasted if not used, or place rush orders for the higher volume designs. It has also given them the ability to add new card designs to capitalize on upcoming holidays or remove designs that are outdated. By offer online gift card ordering, the restaurant provides current guests, and new guests, yet another reason to visit their 35+ locations across the country. Those guests will likely spend 20% over the value of the card and may turn into repeat customers. And, by including a personalized message, the gift giver can express their sentiments and feel good about sending a gift card via the mail to their friends and loved ones.