Gift Card Weekend Site Draws 1 Million-Plus Consumer Visitors (Jan. 7, 2013)
Jan. 7, 2013
Publicity and news stories touting Gift Card Weekend on Jan. 4-6 drove more than 1 million unique visitors to its Website, suggesting a dramatic uptick in consumer interest in the second annual event, according to Kansas City, Mo.-based Gift Card Impressions, which created the concept. The event’s success has prompted Gift Card Impressions to introduce two additional gift card promotional events this year: Gift Card Week, planned to take place around July 4, and Gift Card Month, which is not yet scheduled, according to Liz Trimble, the company’s vice president of online. Consumer traffic to the Gift Card Weekend Website reached 1.4 million total visits, up from 100,000 last year, Trimble says, noting that plans are in place to repeat the event next year.
In the days immediately before the event, Brett Glass, Gift Card Impressions president and CEO, conducted a series of live TV interviews that aired in 25 U.S. markets, touting special deals from 17 participating merchants for consumers who clicked on the Website for special offers and paid for purchases using gift cards during the three-day promotion.
“It’s a myth that retailers want gift cards to remain in the drawer,” Glass told TV audiences, urging consumers to visit the site to enter their names and ZIP codes to find deals from various participating merchants. Dozens of newspapers and general Websites also publicized the event.
Darden Restaurants Inc. dangled bonus deals during the weekend for consumers paying with gift cards at its Red Lobster, Olive Garden and Longhorn Steakhouse locations; other participating merchants included Bath & Body Works, Marriott International, Bass Pro Shops and SpaFinder, along with several other national restaurant chains. Typical deals included offers for a free gift, appetizer or dessert with a gift card purchase. The Retail Gift Card Association, InComm and Ceridian Stored Value Solutions also helped to sponsor the event.
