Revenue

Updated Oct 2026

How to sell gift cards without losing money

A gift card is cash today for a service later. That is a good trade for a small business, but only if the card is tracked, the terms are clear, and the money is treated as something you owe rather than something you earned.

A gift card is a small loan

When someone pays $80 for a card, you have $80 in the bank and an $80 obligation on the books. Spent on stock, a good gift-card season can make the following February feel broken unless the liability is tracked separately.

None of that is a reason to avoid gift cards. It is a reason to sell them in a tool that keeps a balance per card, not in a notebook. The second reason is simpler: a client who is told "there's about $30 left" and then hears a different number at the desk does not come back.

Decide the rules before you print anything

Most gift-card arguments come from a rule nobody wrote down. Settle these first, then print the answers on the card and the purchase page.

On expiry, be careful. In many places gift cards may not expire within a set period, and the rules vary enough that a sentence copied from another country can be illegal where you trade. Check your local consumer law before you print a date, and if you are unsure, sell cards without one.

The wording that prevents the argument

Short beats legalistic, but the card must answer the questions people actually ask. Something like this works for most small businesses:

"This card can be used for any treatment or product at [Business]. Use it in part or in full; any remaining balance stays on the card. It cannot be exchanged for cash. If you lose it, contact us with your receipt and we will reissue it. Valid for [X] months from the date of purchase, in line with local consumer law. Appointments are still subject to our normal cancellation policy."

That last sentence is the one people forget. A gift card pays for a service, not for the right to cancel it two hours ahead. Keep your usual deposit and cancellation terms in force, and say so on the card.

Selling them without a new system

You need three things: a way to take payment, a way to issue a card with a unique code, and a way to check a balance in under a minute. If your booking tool already does all three, use it; if not, a payment processor with a gift-card feature is usually cheaper than adding a second subscription.

• Square. Sells physical and digital gift cards through its payment tools, with balances tracked in the same dashboard as sales. The practical advantage is that the card and the payment live in one place. Check current pricing.
• Fresha. Offers gift cards alongside its booking calendar in supported markets, which suits businesses already running the calendar there. Availability and fees vary by country. Check current plans.
• Booksy. Includes gift cards in some plans alongside booking and payments, useful if you want one login for the front desk. Confirm what your plan includes before you promise it to a client. Check current pricing.

Sell them where people already are: a link in your booking confirmation, a card on the counter, and one post before the winter holidays and one before Mother's Day. Avoid discounting the cards themselves — a 20% discount on a $100 card means every redemption is a 20% discount on a treatment you still have to deliver.

Turn the redemption into a client

The person walking in with a card is often not your client yet, which makes them the most valuable part of the transaction. Take a name, a mobile number and an email at redemption — with permission — and record it against the booking, not on the card.

Then do the small things: book the next appointment before they leave, mention the rebooking reminder, and note in the record who bought the card. That note is how you sell the same buyer a card next year.