Overview

Running a special offer with digital gift cards is one of the most effective ways to drive prepaid revenue and capture new patient spend. These limited-time promotions turn gifting moments like Mother’s Day, Black Friday, or the holidays into powerful revenue events that run on autopilot. When crafting these promotions, remember to consider local regulatory guidelines to ensure compliance, particularly when structuring offers involving gift cards.

Setting up these promotions is simple: create a special offer, apply it to your digital gift cards, and schedule it to align with your marketing calendar.

Why This Matters

Gift card promos lock in revenue upfront, attract new buyers (even non-patients), and typically produce higher redemption spend as patients typically spend 20–40% more than the gift card value when redeeming. With templates, scheduling, and built-in reporting, these campaigns run with minimal staff effort and keep paying off beyond the promotional window. It is also crucial to align these promotions with compliance standards. For example, 'Buy X, Get Y' promotions must avoid scenarios where the reward (Y) is another gift card due to regulatory limitations.

Regulatory Considerations and Guidelines

Gift card promotions must adhere to regulations that restrict certain structures like 'Buy X, Get Y', where the reward (Y) cannot be another gift card. Instead, consider offering in-office credits or discounted pricing as compliant alternatives. These guidelines ensure that your promotions remain effective while meeting legal expectations.

Step-by-Step Guide:

1) Open Special Offers

Log in to your Admin Portal.
Go to MedCommerce Engine → Special Offers (left sidebar).
Click the green lightning bolt to open Quick Actions (top-right) and select Create new offer, or click ‘Create a new special offer’ on the bottom right.

2) Choose Redemption Method & Location

Select In-app – use this when the deal should apply during checkout in your app. Gift cards can only be discounted through in-app offers.
Locations – choose all locations or select specific locations where the offer should be valid.

In-office vs In-app Toggle: configure gift card promotions differently depending on their availability. When the in-app toggle is turned to in-office, promotions apply exclusively in-office. When the in-app toggle is on, the gift cards are displayed and are purchasable in-app for broader engagement. Special offers for Gift Cards can only be created if the In-app Toggle is turned on.

3) Offer Messaging & Imagery

Enter an attention grabbing title for this offer and the preview text.
- Examples: Black Friday Sale! Get 20% of a $100 Gift Card.
Image – upload the image used to accompany this offer when viewed in your app
- Tip: If you’re running a seasonal gift card, create a site wide promo, create a Custom Shop Category and match this image to your gift card artwork.

4) Offer Details

Choose the discount type. These savings will apply at the cart level.

Amount Off – e.g., Buy a $120 gift card for $100.
Percentage Off – e.g., 10% off gift card purchase.
Free Service - e.g., Buy a $500 gift card, get a free Hydrafacial

5) Select What’s Included

To select Gift Cards as the service type, choose the specific card amounts you want the promotion to apply to (for example, $100 gift card and/or $250 gift card).
When active, clients will see which gift card values are discounted when purchasing in the app and on your web page.
- To exclude gift cards from broader special promotions, navigate to the Special Offers settings in the Admin Panel and specify that gift cards should be excluded. This ensures they are unaffected by discounts applied to other products.

6) Offer Usage

Select whether the offer should be Multi-Use or Single-Use:
- Multi-Use – patients can use the code for multiple checkouts during the promotional period.
- Single-Use – each patient can use the code only once during the promotional period.

7) Add a Promo Code & Offer Window

Promo Code – Enter a custom code that patients can apply during checkout (for example, GLOW20).
Offer Window – Set the start and end dates for when the promotion will be active.

When creating gift card promotions, use the availability toggle (at the top of the Create offer page) and make sure "In-App" is selected to determine the correct availability. For example, enable the in-app toggle to make a $200 gift card promotion available for purchase in your app.

8) Add Offer Details (Optional)

Offer Details – Add a short message explaining what the promotion includes or any special instructions.
- Example: Celebrate our anniversary with us! Get 20% off gift cards to lock in savings for your next treatment. Valid for all gift card purchases over $100.
Disclaimer Message – Include any notes or fine print that should appear with the offer.
- Example: Cannot be combined with other discounts.

9) Promote Your Offer

Announce via text – Click ‘Create a text message’ to send a campaign alert to your patient list.
- Example: Give the gift of self-care! Get 20% off a $100 Gift Card — this week only.
- Schedule the text to go out on the offer start date for best engagement.
Feature it in your app – Add the gift card promo to a Custom Shop Category so patients can easily find them while browsing.

Best Practices

Schedule early - load designs, amounts, and offer dates 1–2 weeks before the holiday.
Create a text announcement schedule – When running a gift card promotion or special offer, plan a series of text messages to announce, remind, and close out the campaign. A simple 3-part cadence (launch, mid-promo reminder, and final-hours push) keeps engagement high and maximizes results.
Keep the message consistent – Use the same offer wording and image across your social posts, emails, and in-office signage for a cohesive campaign experience.
Test and refine your campaigns – Try different offer types, titles, and images to see what resonates most with your patient base. A/B testing even small changes can help you identify what drives the highest engagement and sales.
Monitor performance – watch sales, average gift card amount, and number sold. Tweak messaging or add in additional texts mid-campaign if needed.
Leverage RepeatMD’s Done-For-You Promotions – Take advantage of our year-round promotional calendar to boost in-app sales during key seasons. Each holiday campaign is fully managed by the RepeatMD team, complete with setup, creative assets, and marketing materials (emails, texts, and social posts). Simply opt in through your dashboard, customize your offer, and watch the sales come in. Learn more here.

(*Optional) Test promotions privately – Before launching, set promotions to Private and adjust the start date for testing. This allows you to verify settings without impacting live campaigns.