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Wednesday Workshop Wrap-Up: Gift Certificates in Your Shop
Story by EtsyStore, julieincharge
Published on December 17, 2007 in How-To 		Photo by

sojourncuriosities

This article was originally published on December 17, 2007. We've updated the content to be current as of September 8, 2008 for the upcoming holiday selling season. Check out Holiday How-To: Offering Services for more great tips on providing those special extra touches for your holiday shoppers.

In this week's Wednesday workshop, we discussed and brainstormed ideas for selling gift certificates in your own shop. A great big thank you goes out to thankyouenjoy for taking such detailed notes on the workshop. Enjoy!

First and foremost, you must check local laws governing gift certificates. This is clearly stated in Etsy's DOs & DON'Ts, as detailed below:

  • Because gift certificates are governed by local law, it is the seller's responsibility to determine if they are in compliance. If you list a gift certificate on Etsy, you are responsible for this compliance.
  • You must include this sentence in the item listing: "This Gift Certificate is valid only in my Etsy shop and is only redeemable here."

If you are a U.S. seller, check out The Consumer's Union for a brief overview gift certificate laws. This website and this article are not legal advice. Please consult the laws of your state and/or country for more accurate, detailed and up-to-date information. Please consult an attorney for specific questions.

When offering gift certificates in your shop, be sure to create a physical gift certificate that you can mail to the buyer/recipient. This could be a traditional, formal paper certificate, notecard, Moo card or something the recipient might want to hang onto a little longer, like a sticker, coaster, patch or badge.

Be sure to include pertinent information on your actual gift certificate and in your item listing in your shop, even if it seems obvious to you:

  • the name of your shop
  • the words "gift certificate"
  • the amount the gift certificate is worth  
  • a unique secret code, which the redeemer of the gift certificate will be instructed to type into the "message to seller" section of the checkout process (do not include this in your item listing!)
  • clear instructions on how to redeem the gift certificate (example: "Go to my Etsy shop and select the items you would like to buy with this fine gift certificate. Click the green Checkout button. In the "message to buyer" section, please type in the code. I will send you a convo to confirm your order. Thanks!")

Be organized and keep track of the code of every gift certificate that is purchased and redeemed in your shop. When the gift certificate is redeemed, you may need to send a revised Paypal invoice to the buyer if there is a remaining balance that needs to be paid on the sale.

Please see more how-tos about selling.

Tags gift card, gift certificates, gifts, Holiday How-Tos, How-To, HOW-TO, Online Workshops, presents, round up, Seller Handbook, selling, workshop, Your Shop 101
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71 comments     Login to add your own!

Dec. 17, 2007 at 4:33 p.m. curlyfrysc

Thank you! I appreciate "The Consumer's Union" link, too!

Dec. 18, 2007 at 3:23 p.m. sweetbeans

Thanks for the redux!

Dec. 19, 2007 at 3:59 a.m. awdesignsuk

I decided to add gift certificates to my shop this Christmas & will now keep them there all year. Thank you for confirming that I am doing the right thing & that I have also added the correct information in my listings by including them here.
They are a good idea for all shops to offer.

Dec. 19, 2007 at 7:30 a.m. fairiesnest

This is wonderful! I was just thinking of offering one and trying to figure out the logistics.

Dec. 22, 2007 at 1:15 p.m. RaeGun

Great info. Thanks.

April 24, 2008 at 8:40 p.m. DuBuhDuDesigns

I have been asked to do one this evening and I'm curious as to how we do this without being charged Etsy ad PayPal fees twice (0nce whe bought and then again when redeemed) Does anyone know?

Sept. 1, 2008 at 1:52 a.m. jaimiebdesigns

don't list- just have it in your poilicies? or in your announcement area- then you could just have your cust. directly put the $$ in paypal- then you just send it to them? that would be my guess.

Sept. 9, 2008 at 2:17 a.m. beadles

ok...perhaps a stupid question, but when a buyer redeems this coupon...

Let's say they come to my store, find something that costs $30 and the coupon is for $15. They enter a code in the "Message to Seller" box but this $15 is not automatically deducted, right? I would assume if they were paying immediately with Paypal, they would pay the $30 and then I would refund $15?

Just trying to figure out the electronics of it before I can put it up.

Thanks!

Sept. 10, 2008 at 11:38 a.m. Mizdragonfly

Canadian Consumer Protection(Ontario): http://www.gov.on.ca/MGS/en/ConsProt/...

Sept. 12, 2008 at 12:12 a.m. BeadinBabe

thank you!! I think I will add some gift certificates to my site :-)

Sept. 16, 2008 at 12:43 p.m. britishcreamtea

Thank you! This gives me some ideas ;)

Sept. 21, 2008 at 8:32 a.m. fa2756

I was also wondering just like beadies about when the customer redeems their gift certificate how does that work?
Does anyone know?

Sept. 23, 2008 at 3:54 a.m. curlyfrysc

How do you tag a gift certificate?

Sept. 28, 2008 at 9:15 a.m. MonasMane

very helpful article, I was so confused on how to construct a gift cetificate here on etsy.

Oct. 14, 2008 at 2:36 a.m. TwilightKnits

So just to clarify when it says "No expiration for 2 years" does that mean that I have to honor the gift certificate for 2 years? Thats a loooong time!

Nov. 5, 2008 at 2:46 p.m. daileyguidance

This is very helpful information!

Nov. 9, 2008 at 10:54 p.m. thesundayproject

very interesting, but can anyone answer beadles question about the logistics of the whole thing? I would hate to offer gift certificates and then come across as unprofessional when the recipient tries to make their purchase.

Nov. 13, 2008 at 12:42 a.m. HeathensHearth

I'd imagine you'd have to have something written telling them that in using a gift certificate, they would need to wait for a revised invoice and not check out through paypal immediately.

Then they would put the code in the notes to seller, and you can send them a corrected invoice deducting the amount of the gift certificate and have them complete the transaction through paypal directly.

Nov. 14, 2008 at 10:11 a.m. SecoPearl

Does anyone have any specific thoughts on the whole code thing... is there a process which outlines creating codes that are counterfeit proof?

Nov. 22, 2008 at 12:09 p.m. temno

Hi! Wonderful explanation!
Only i think there's a mispelling, when you say "type it in message to buyer", that should be "message to seller", no?

Thanks a lot :D

Nov. 29, 2008 at 10:02 a.m. lissilulu

just added my first gift certificates this year and going to add "This Gift Certificate is valid only in my Etsy shop and is only redeemable here.".
Thanks!

Nov. 29, 2008 at 7:04 p.m. amysfunkyfibers

Thank you!

Nov. 30, 2008 at 6:30 p.m. meraldesigns

great idea, gift certificates......

Dec. 5, 2008 at 9:23 a.m. HippyKlippyKlopShop

Great help, thanks!!!
It is very appreciated ♥
hugs, ~hippy

Dec. 7, 2008 at 11:32 p.m. GoatsDesigns

Thanks for the info :)

Dec. 12, 2008 at 4:15 a.m. ButtonsByLouLou

Definately answers some of my questions. Thanks.

Dec. 13, 2008 at 10:48 a.m. MGMart

I just listed two gift certificate, but not clear how the buyer will redem the certificate, without paying two time Etsy and PayPal fees. Can someone help me?

Dec. 19, 2008 at 8:43 a.m. lindab142

I listed a gift certificate too. If you purchase any item in my shop, you are entered into a drawing to win it.

Dec. 19, 2008 at 9:29 a.m. KreatedbyKelly

Very cool! I am going to add gift certificates!!

Dec. 19, 2008 at 11:17 a.m. mydeepbluec

Thanks for the info ! I have a Gift Certificate in My Shop..will post to the thread on the Forum
Thanks !

Dec. 19, 2008 at 1:41 p.m. laurabrownart

ooh, so helpful! thanks.

Dec. 19, 2008 at 2:31 p.m. kittygrrlz

great info! i've posted to the forum thread because i do offer gift certificates.

Dec. 19, 2008 at 2:43 p.m. AutumnLeavesJewelry

cool! looking forward to getting a few in various amounts foro my shop when I reopen. GOOD REMINDER, don't put the code in the listing! :p
I wonder what Virginia's laws are about this

Dec. 19, 2008 at 2:51 p.m. tenthstreet

I'm adding a gift certificate too!

Dec. 19, 2008 at 3:26 p.m. Soov

Very helpful instructions. I revised mine after reading the tips!

Dec. 19, 2008 at 7:31 p.m. Studio618

So the key is to ask certificate holder to wait for adjusted invoice?

Dec. 19, 2008 at 9:23 p.m. Craftabulous

i have the same question as {SecoPearl} "Does anyone have any specific thoughts on the whole code thing... is there a process which outlines creating codes that are counterfeit proof?"

like is there a way to learn how do master that!

Dec. 19, 2008 at 9:24 p.m. Craftabulous

and also another question when some one say's that "Certificate valid fr six months after purchase" that means if not used after that time then it's gone! so the money they paid is not worth anything then..

thanks

Dec. 19, 2008 at 10:50 p.m. bluefingerstudios

Great topic, but the articles are very vague. None of the questions here are being answered. Etsy has said what they want from sellers, but no help as to how the whole thing works with fees etc.?

Dec. 19, 2008 at 10:55 p.m. designsbycher

I think when creating the code, it should somehow relate to the person who bought the gift certificate, since counterfeiters would have no way of knowing that.
You choose the length of time it's good for (most, incuding mine) are good for 12 months...some for 6 months. It then behooves the recipient to redeem it within that time frame ;)

Dec. 20, 2008 at 12:41 a.m. Craftabulous

but what if they don't redeem them in that time frame what happens?

Dec. 21, 2008 at 2:02 a.m. soap

Some states don't allow expiration dates on GC.

Dec. 21, 2008 at 3:36 a.m. happybananas

Hey everyone, I know there are questions about adjusting the price for a GC.

There's an article regarding adjusting a paypal invoice here:
http://www.etsy.com/storque/how-to/cu...

Hope that helps!

-Sam

Jan. 4, 2009 at 10:15 p.m. sisobaba

How about adding Gift Certificate to payment methods, then there would be a field to fill in the number or code that we assigned for that recipient. No refunds or finagelling necessary. As long as you keep track of who has what amounts left, its very unlikely that it could be fudged.

Jan. 27, 2009 at 4:12 p.m. gabeadz

Great Information! Thanks

Jan. 31, 2009 at 4:20 p.m. QuercusSilver

Darned handy

Feb. 18, 2009 at 9:34 a.m. steel

It's too bad there isn't away to avoid being charged double fees though. (Etsy will take a cut of the sale of the actual gift certificate, then take a cut again of the items you sell with the gift certificate, even though you're not making any more money.)

Feb. 18, 2009 at 9:35 a.m. steel

And by "avoid" I obviously don't mean try to avoid it- I mean it'd be cool if Etsy had a way to keep track of this for your billing. :)

Feb. 26, 2009 at 2:43 p.m. Jewelrydesigner

Thank you very helpful/

March 13, 2009 at 12:31 p.m. jcjewelrydesign

Thank you so much for posting this! This is very helpful~

March 13, 2009 at 1:30 p.m. lovepetals

Thanks for this article. I was thinking about posting a gift certificate but was not sure how. I will definately give this a go!

March 25, 2009 at 2:24 p.m. bellasparty

Thanks. That's a great idea!

April 5, 2009 at 8:10 p.m. joyoustreasures

Awesome! I was wondering how you do this!

April 19, 2009 at 1:30 p.m. geologie

Gift certificates are a great marketing tool, thanks for the heads up about local gift certificate laws.

June 9, 2009 at 4:01 p.m. myfriendamy

Great information. Thanks!!

June 13, 2009 at 2:23 p.m. lucyleonard

This is really helpful. Thank you!

June 16, 2009 at 9:57 a.m. WCMercantile

Great information, Thank you!!

June 19, 2009 at 2:30 p.m. solagratiadesigns

Thanks! as a newbie, I used much info from you for my certificates...Thanks a bunch!

July 1, 2009 at 10:35 a.m. lovepetals

I will definately be adding gift certificates to my site. I was wondering about the logistics. Now I know! Thanks for the wonderful advice.

Sept. 1, 2009 at 7:58 p.m. ePLUSc

Thanks for the info, I appreciate the consumers union info as well, what a great help!

Sept. 8, 2009 at 10:52 p.m. BellaCoolaDesigns

Great Info. I cant wait to give them out to my friends!

Sept. 24, 2009 at 11:52 a.m. nomadcraftsetc

This is something I have been contimplating for a while now, Mabye I will try it.

Sept. 30, 2009 at 4:46 p.m. windylou

I just found this how-to. Thanks!

Oct. 2, 2009 at 10:41 a.m. Squier

Fantastic Idea ... I'm adding a gift certificate to my shop today!

Oct. 7, 2009 at 3:18 p.m. LABELit

definitely helpful...i have to revise mine!

Oct. 13, 2009 at 2:15 a.m. Marleyjanedotcom

Thanks for the tip on the legal info. I may not have thought of that.

Oct. 13, 2009 at 8 p.m. studioalamode

In Illinois, by law, if you sell a gift certificate it is valid forever, until redeemed. You may desire to put a limit on it, but it isn't legal. There are other states with similar laws, that's why it is important to follow etsy's advice and check your state law.

Oct. 23, 2009 at 3:01 p.m. AllAmerican4You

This is great. I do offer gift certs on my website but didnt think of doing it on Etsy until reading this. Will have to get working on that!

Nov. 17, 2009 at 10:51 p.m. inbloomdesigns

Great info! I was thinking about adding gift certificates to my shop, and think I will do so now :O)

Nov. 19, 2009 at 12:39 p.m. simplystitching

Thanks for the good information and all the comments! I wanted to do this and Hasenpfeffer directed me to this blog.
I am going to add a gift certificate now!

Nov. 19, 2009 at 11:37 p.m. MLeighDurgin

Great info. :)

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