Let people buy when they are actually shopping
Christmas gift vouchers are one of the few things customers pay for months before they use them, which helps a hotel or spa through the quieter weeks of the year. They are also easy to lose if the only way to buy is to phone during office hours. Much last-minute gift buying happens on phones, in the evening and at weekends.
An online voucher shop removes that limit. The buyer chooses a value or an experience, pays, and the voucher arrives by email. Nobody on your team has to take card details or post anything. See how this works for hotels and for spas and wellness businesses.
Sell experiences, not only amounts
A €100 voucher is simple. “Dinner, bed and breakfast for two” or “A spa afternoon with a 60-minute massage” is often easier to give, because the buyer knows what the recipient will get. A useful Christmas range for a hotel or spa might include:
Two or three fixed values, such as €50, €100 and €200, for people who do not know what to choose. Two or three signature experiences, such as an overnight stay, afternoon tea or a treatment package. One lower-priced option for stocking fillers and Kris Kindle budgets.
Keep the range short, and make sure each experience states what is included and how it is booked. The voucher terms checklist covers the wording.
Make the voucher feel like a present
The voucher is part of the gift. It should carry your own name and brand, show clearly what it covers, and let the buyer add a personal message. With Bronora the buyer can send the voucher to themselves or straight to the recipient, and choose a future delivery time, such as Christmas morning.
Make corporate orders easy
December is also when businesses buy staff gifts. Revenue’s Small Benefit Exemption lets an employer give an employee non-cash benefits worth up to €1,500 a year, across no more than five benefits, without tax. A voucher for a hotel stay or spa treatment can fit well. Check the current rules before promoting this, as the limits can change in each Budget.
Bronora lets a business buyer pay once and assign vouchers to as many as 50 named recipients, each delivered separately. See corporate gift voucher orders for the details.
Plan for redemption in January
Every voucher sold in December is a booking in January, February or later. Before the rush, decide how staff will check that a voucher is valid and has not already been used, and how a partly used monetary voucher keeps its remaining balance. Where the Irish gift voucher rules apply, a voucher with an expiry date must generally remain valid for at least five years. The voucher expiry guide explains the rules.
Each Bronora voucher has its own code. Staff can check it and record a redemption, and the balance on a monetary voucher stays available for next time.
Know what it will cost
Voucher platforms charge in different ways: monthly subscriptions, per-sale percentages, setup fees or a mix. Work out what you would pay at the volume you expect in December and in a quiet month. Bronora has no monthly fee and charges 3% of the amount paid when a voucher sells. Stripe processing is charged separately to your own Stripe account. Use the pricing calculator to check a sale.
Get set up before the rush
The best time to put Christmas vouchers online is before customers start looking, which in practice means early November. Publishing depends on completing your business details, Stripe verification and a test of the buying and redemption flow, so leave time for each. If you are also planning a November campaign, the Black Friday plan covers the same preparation.