Badge can effectively increase gift card redemption rates and in-store foot traffic through issuing digital gift cards with powerful native wallet functionality.
Key Badge Features for Gift Cards
Customizing the design of a gift card, so your end users can track their redeemable balance and easily redeem it through your preferred methods (QR code, Barcode, or PIN number).
Updating the design of a gift card if any data needs to be changed or you simply want to change up the look and feel.
Providing a unique Pass Download Link for each gift card (used to easily install the gift card), which can be added to any website or email campaign
Increasing redemption rates by
Making gift cards “top of mind” with push notification reminders
Increase foot traffic to merchant stores with geolocation-based push notifications.
Key User Journeys
Before getting into the Badge Platform, it may be helpful for you to have a view of the following end user journeys—when digital gift cards are added to your ecosystem.
A. Gift Card Purchasing (Individually Issued Gift Cards)
When a gift card is purchased by an end user, a digital one is made available for the end user to install it. The gift card can be used by a purchaser or gift recipient. A single end user may hold multiple digital gift cards in their wallet at once. Badge handles the grouping of these digital gift cards within Apple Wallet and Google Wallet, so they are easy to find.
Step | 1. Purchase gift Card | 2. Install gift card | 3. Receive notifications | 4. Redeem |
What is your end user doing? | Purchasing a gift card from your / your merchant partner's website. | Installing a gift card by clicking on a Pass Download Link (unique per gift card). This can be done by the purchaser or gift recipient. | Opening a push notification and therefore, their gift card (geomarketing, balance change, or reminder to redeem) | Redeeming the gift card by having it scanned (QR code, Barcode) in-store or entering a PIN online. |
Badge product touchpoints | Badge can automatically issue a pass when a gift card is purchased (using userPassUpsert API endpoint) or a custom integration. | Badge provides a unique Pass Download Link (per gift card), which can be used in your product touchpoints. | Badge handles sending push notifications to the Apple Wallet app or Google Wallet app. Ad hoc push notifications can be sent using the Badge campaign tool. | Badge can display any data required for redemption on the pass based on your pass template edits. Using geolocation, the pass can appear on the phone's lock screen. |
Your product touchpoints | Your gift card purchasing flow | Your gift card purchase completion page, purchase confirmation email | Any specific event in the customer journey that you want to trigger a push notification | Your system, which will communicate relevant data to the Badge Platform via webhook or API. |
B. Gift Card Claiming
When a already has a physical gift card (or even a non-wallet pass digital gift card), they can convert it to a digital gift card that can be installed on Apple Wallet and Google Wallet.
Step | 1. Claiming gift card | 2. Install gift card | 3. Receive notifications | 4. Redeem |
What is your end user doing? | Completing a gift card authentication form to prove they are the owner of an existing gift card. | Installing a gift card by clicking on a Pass Download Link (unique per gift card). | Opening a push notification and therefore, their gift card (geomarketing, balance change, or reminder to redeem) | Redeeming the gift card by having it scanned (QR code, Barcode) in-store or entering a PIN online. |
Badge product touchpoints | Badge can automatically issue a pass when a gift card is claimed (using userPassUpsert API endpoint) or a custom integration. | Badge provides a unique Pass Download Link (per gift card), which can be used in your product touchpoints. | Badge handles sending push notifications to the Apple Wallet app or Google Wallet app. Ad hoc push notifications can be sent using the Badge campaign tool. | Badge can display any data required for redemption on the pass based on your pass template edits. Using geolocation, the pass can appear on the phone's lock screen |
Your product touchpoints | Your gift card authentication flow or a custom one provided by Badge | Your gift card authentication flow completion page or a custom one provided by Badge | Any specific event in the customer journey that you want to trigger a push notification | Your system, which will communicate relevant data to the Badge Platform via webhook or API. |
C. Gift Card Purchasing (Membership Card)
This is an alternative way of managing digital gift cards where the end user installs a single pass (or membership card) for a store and the redeemable balance is updated when the end user purchases or receives a gift card. This is recommended for stores where loyalty is a major focus and the membership card can come with other perks.
Step | 1. Download membership card | 2. Claim gift card Balance | 3. Receive notifications | 4. Redeem |
What is your end user doing? | Installs a store membership card. | Claiming their gift card balance after they purchase it themselves or after it is gifted to them. | Opening a push notification and therefore, their card (geomarketing, balance change, or reminder to redeem) | Redeeming the gift card by having it scanned (QR code, Barcode) in-store or entering a PIN online. |
Badge product touchpoints | Badge can automatically issue a pass (and unique pass download link) when an end user signs up for one (using userPassUpsert API endpoint) or a custom integration. | If the end user has an identifier that matches that of a membership card in Badge, the gift card balance is updated (also using userPassUpsert or a custom integration). | Badge handles sending push notifications to the Apple Wallet app or Google Wallet app. Ad hoc push notifications can be sent using the Badge campaign tool. | Badge can display any data required for redemption on the pass based on your pass template edits. Using geolocation, the pass can appear on the phone's lock screen |
Your product touchpoints | Your membership sign up flow, which can include an email invitation and a form on the store's website. | Your gift card purchase and gifting flows, and any related email / SMS communications. | Any specific event in the customer journey that you want to trigger a push notification | Your system, which will communicate relevant data to the Badge Platform via webhook or API. |
D. In-Google Wallet Gift Card Discovery
While it is common for digital gift card installation to happen during the gift card check out flow or when a gift card purchase confirmation is received, there are times when an Android-using end user already has purchased a gift card and looks for the digital version within the Google Wallet app. The Google Wallet app allows end users to search for eligible stores within Gift Card or Loyalty Card sections. This is completely optional.
Step | 1. Search for a digital gift Card | 2. Complete form | 3. Install gift card |
What is your end user doing? | Going to the gift card section of Google Wallet to search for an eligible store. | After selecting a store, the end user is directed to a form, in which they enter their gift card information (e.g., PIN) to get their digital gift card. | Installing a gift card by clicking on a Pass Download Link (unique per gift card) |
Badge product touchpoints | Badge handles making your digital gift card eligible for discovery. | userPassUpsert API endpoint or a custom integration is used to display the gift card's unique Pass Download Link after successful form completion. | Badge can display any data required for redemption on the pass based on your pass template edits. Using geolocation, the pass can appear on the phone's lock screen |
Your product touchpoints | N/A | A simple web form with fields required to retrieve a digital gift card (the URL must be provided to Badge). | Your system, which will communicate relevant data to the Badge Platform using userPassUpsert or a custom integration |
Key Workflows in the Badge Platform
1. Creating a Pass Template for Gift Cards
Before issuing passes for gift cards, you have to create a pass template. The Badge API and integrations will require you to pass a Pass Template ID If you are dealing with multiple partner merchants (stores), you may decide to use a pass template for multiple partner merchants or use an individual pass template for each partner merchant. This decision primarily depends on if you want the layout or types of data to change from one partner merchant to another. A typical pass template for a gift card looks like this:
Example | Suggested Elements |
 | The following can be set in the Pass Template Editor. Use Custom Attributes when a field is unique per cardholder. Custom Attributes will be updated by your connected data source.
|
In addition to the suggest elements above, you can use the Pass Template Editor to add any relevant information or links on the back of the pass. And just like the front of the pass, you can use Custom Attributes for more dynamic content.
2. Making Use of Native Wallet Features
Please note that none of the following are required for gift cards, but they may enhance the experience for your end users.
Expiration
When a pass is expired, the barcode will be grayed out and the pass moves to the "expired" section of Apple Wallet or Google Wallet. Set an expiration date for gift cards by going to the Features Tab of the Pass Template Editor. Since the expiration date is likely going to be different per pass, use a ⚡️ Custom Attribute for the date field. And when using a ⚡️ Custom Attribute, make sure that it is included when you Connect Your Data.
Geolocation
Geolocation allows you to trigger a pass to appear on an end user's phone lockscreen with contextual messaging when they are near one of the specified locations added to Geolocation in the Features Tab of the Pass Template Editor. You can add up to ten different locations with corresponding messaging to each pass template.
In the gift card use case, we suggest adding the locations of physical stores near an end user. This will encourage end users who are nearby to make unplanned visits and make it easier for them to redeem while in person, since the pass appears on their phone lockscreens.
Geolocation is currently available for iOS users only.
Groups
All passes issued by you will be grouped in your users' mobile wallets by default—meaning they will displayed within the same swipe-able row for easy access. In the case that an end user has multiple gift cards issued to them and wants to install all of them at once, you can provide a Multiple Pass Download Link. You can include a Multiple Pass Download Link in your website or email campaigns by using the passGroups endpoint or a custom integration.
3. Connecting Your Data
When using Custom Attributes, it's crucial to connect your data source to ensure that each issued gift card has the correct data. When testing, you can use CSV Import to assign different values for each Custom Attribute you have added in your pass template.
For high volume, real-time issuing and updating of passes, use the Badge API. Specifically, you will want to use the userPassUpsert endpoint to:
Issue a pass when a gift card is purchased with the correct information (the Suggested Elements in Creating a Pass Template for Gift Cards)
And retrieve a Pass Download Link for display in your
Gift card purchase confirmation page
Emails that contain gift card information
Update a pass when a change is made (e.g., balance change when a gift card is redeemed)
If you're an enterprise client, you are eligible for a custom integration that handles the steps listed above. Contact your Account Manager or Badge Support for more information.
4. Creating Strong Install CTAs
For your product touchpoints (as seen in Key User Journeys), make sure that include the Add to Apple Wallet and Google Wallet buttons, and have the Pass Download Link linked for both buttons. Please note the official design guidelines:
When an end user clicks opens this link, Badge will provide the best options for adding their digital gift card to their mobile wallet—displaying a QR code on desktop and buttons for mobile.
5. Sending Push Notifications
Push notification campaigns are effective in reminding end users about their gift cards and engaging end users with new offers. Push notification opt-in rates are extremely high with mobile wallet passes because they are opt-in by default when end users install them.
When a pass template is published, you are free to send push notification campaigns to end users who have a pass (associated with the published pass template) installed. When creating a campaign using the Badge interface, you can:
Target all users or a segment of users by ⚡️ Custom Attributes
Remember, it's up to you to add ⚡️ Custom Attributes to a pass template and ensure that they are populated by Connecting Your Data
Send it immediately or schedule it at a future time
📣 New: You can now programmatically send push notifications using the passSendPushNotification API endpoint.
A Few Last Words On Gift Cards
Remember, these are guidelines on how you can use Badge to create and manage your digital gift cards. You are free to use our No Code Pass Editor, Marketing Automation, and API in whatever ways suit your needs. Get creative with it!
The beauty of the digital gift card is that you can also dynamically change its content and continue to send push notification campaigns to it. Unlike a plastic card or static email, there's life beyond the gift card's redemption...