Gift Vouchers (REC+)
Gift Vouchers (GV) are a major new addition available in REC+ and work by issuing a GV either manually or as a GV product which is purchased through the store, then redeemed by the GV recipient as a coupon when they purchase the product(s) of their choice. Unredeemed values can be used in subsequent purchases.
Aside from using GV's as straightforward gifts, they could also be issued as part of promotional events and giveaways, or even as store credits. However please remember that GV's are effectively a form of money and anyone with the code can redeem them without restriction.
Gift vouchers work off the coupon system and there are two methods you can use to create gift vouchers:
Manual GV
This method is great for promos or store credits or simply as a one-off way to issue a monetary value to someone.
To create a manual GV, set up a coupon with the Type set to Gift Voucher with the required monetary value and send the coupon code that you generate to the recipient via email.
Automatic GV
This is a fully automated process allowing the GV to be purchased on the website, the generated coupon code is email'd to the buyer who gives it to the recipient and this can be redeemed by the recipient on the checkout page in the Apply Coupon section (you can change this text to mention GV's). Additional emails are sent to the recipient after each purchase they make if there is still an outstanding value to be redeemed.
To set this up:
Go into Purchase Events
Add Event and enter a name (e.g. Gift Voucher Promo, Gift Voucher Present)
Set the Event field to Gift Voucher
Set the number of days it will last in the Expire After field (if blank it defaults to 5 years from purchase of the GV)
Notes: The expiry date will automatically be displayed in the email the user receives when they buy the GV, but we recommend you add some text about it on the Gift Voucher product page. You could set up multiple GV's for different purposes with different expiry lengths to prompt faster usage.
In Product Manager, set up a new product page for the GV (which is where the actual Gift Voucher is purchased on your store) and set the following:
Set the price to reflect the value of the Gift Voucher and the tax rate.
Exclude this product from Google feed - ticked to exclude from Google Ads
Is this a digital product? - ticked to hide delivery methods
Set Free Delivery For This Product field to Product And Options
Purchase Event field to Gift Voucher
Enter the category for this product - you may wish to have a dedicated Gifts category.
Tip: When you edit a product these fields are on the Prices & Delivery tab.
Save the product, users can now buy it from your store
Upon purchase, the buyer receives an email showing the GV value and redemption code (note: the coupon code is automatically generated on-the-fly for each purchase and can be viewed in Coupon Manager). This page can be modified for content and design on the system page: email_gift_voucher_new, and the subject of the email is set in Site Definitions: EMAIL_GIFT_VOUCHER_SUBJECT_NEW
The buyer can now print the GV and send it to the recipient, for example in a Christmas card. Alternatively, the store owner could offer to print and send it to the delivery address used in the checkout process for free; in this case you would add this to your product page description. Alternatively, if you want to charge to print & post it, you could set up another GV with the same value but called for example "£25 Gift Voucher (Print&Post)" which has a weight set so a delivery and handling charge can be calculated during checkout. The printed version could also be added as an associated product to the email-only version.
The GV recipient visits the site and makes a purchase as normal (perhaps using the recent guest checkout feature) and redeems the GV code on the checkout page in the coupon code section. You can change the text in the Coupon section on the Checkout page to mention gift vouchers using the 2 Site Definitions: APPLY_COUPON & ASK_ABOUT_COUPON.
If the GV covers the full cost of the order, then no extra payment needs to be taken and so the system will default to using the Payment Processor: Zero Cost Order which you may wish to edit with your required display content in Payment Processor Manager (NB This payment processor's status is set to OFF, and we advise not to change any settings for it).
An additional email is then sent to the GV recipient after successful checkout informing them of any amount still remaining on their Gift Voucher. Note: If they have used the full value of the GV then this email is not sent. The email content is set in the system page: email_gift_voucher_remaining and the email subject line is set in Site Definitions: EMAIL_GIFT_VOUCHER_SUBJECT_REMAINING. Note: This email is sent whether the GV was generated using the manual or automatic methods.
Note: The field "purchase-event-id" has also been added to product import & exports.