A rebate program is a mutually beneficial agreement between customers and sellers. In exchange for purchasing a specific product, customers receive a voucher or refund. The seller can make their consumers happy, building loyalty and brand awareness, while in turn, the customers save money on the products they love.
Unfortunately, rebates have a poor reputation due to the complicated nature of responding to the demand, leading to customers who never receive their refund when sellers can’t hold up their end of the deal. Digital tools like Giftbit’s gift card API offer a simple solution to this problem: instant, online rewards for your rebate program.
The “old way” entails having customers fill out a rebate form after purchasing their product, send it in with proof of purchase, and receive their refund after weeks of waiting. Whether sellers have good intentions or not, they struggle to follow up due to the difficulty of tracking customer rebates. Often, the data lies in dense, incomplete spreadsheets.
Many sellers rely on a third-party business to process their rebates, loosening their connection with the customer and adding extra cost to their rebate program. These “clearing-houses” handle the forms, validation, and payment to the customer, sometimes taking months to complete. Some studies have found that less than 50% of consumers mail in rebates because the process was too much work.
The inability to follow through on the bargain leads to a breakdown of trust with consumers. If you want to take full advantage of what rebates can do for your business, you need a solution to make the convoluted process easier for you and your customers.
While some companies might view a rebate program that discourages consumers from claiming their refund as a benefit, modern sellers know that authenticity is the key to gaining loyal customers, leading to a long-lived, profitable business.
Successful rebate programs lead to:
With a gift card API, large-scale rebate programs have access to an easy-to-use tool for buying and distributing online rewards to any number of customers automatically. This on-demand solution provides flexibility of budget and eliminates the need to maintain physical stock.