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Gift Card denied
Someone sent me a gift card and I evidently did not click on the notification to redeem it. Now it has been denied. What gives? Do I have to go back and ask someone to give me money again? That's absurd and embarrassing. Fix this probelm!
In fact (and I'm sure there are legal issues which are the cause of this but it needs to be said) the gift card thing is an awful way to accept donations. Expiring gifts? Bizarre. Who would ever intentionally deny one?
Anyway. How can I get my gift card reactivated?
In fact (and I'm sure there are legal issues which are the cause of this but it needs to be said) the gift card thing is an awful way to accept donations. Expiring gifts? Bizarre. Who would ever intentionally deny one?
Anyway. How can I get my gift card reactivated?
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Inappropriate?@sherburne527 Thank you for posting your issue. For regulatory and security reasons, all gift cards must be accepted or rejected by the recipient. If an electronic gift card is not accepted within 30 days, the gift is automatically rejected and the funds are placed back in the original funding source or on the credit card that purchased the gift. Physical gift cards, however, do not expire. Our apologies for the inconvenience, but this is something that we will not be able to change at this time.1 Comment
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This solves the problem
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I don't really believe this answer, but regardless of whether it is true or not, this response, and other gift card topics, have convinced me that I will NEVER use the gift card feature of SmartyPig unless there are major improvements. "The gift of savings" is touted as one of the major benefits of SmartyPig, but as far as I can tell, it is SmartyPig's biggest issue.
Having said that, I must confess that I enjoy the rest of your services ... just wanted to share my feelings on this issue. -
Inappropriate?@evan & @sherburne527,
We've made a number of improvements to the gift card process. Many of them have been implemented from feedback and suggestions from GetSat. As for accepting and denying gifts, Tiffany is correct. If a user inadvertently denies a gift card, we have no way of reactivating. And electronic gifts expire after 30 days. All of which is disclosed and governed closely under the watchful eye of our FDIC-insured banking partner and state regulators. SmartyPig is the only site which allows friends and family to contribute to another individual's interest-bearing savings goal. And because of this, we have very specific regulations we must follow. However, there may be additional steps we can put in place to prevent inadvertently denying a gift. Such as a confirmation screen which might be helpful.
I would welcome the opportunity to discuss further with either of you. My work number is 515-256-2086. Call me anytime. Thanks again for the honest feedback.
- Mike Ferrari2 Comments Add a comment
This solves the problem
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I realize now that I was unfair in my reply, sorry. I keep thinking of the gift cards as cash which must be applied towards savings (conceptually true, perhaps, but I understand how there would be regulatory hurdles).
So ... I'll try to be more helpful with this reply...
In concept I really do like the idea of a gift card, but there are some things that keep me from wanting to use them:
1. There seem to be too many things that can keep a gift card from being used (perhaps opening an account denied, 30 day limit, etc) ... it would be nice if every other method failed, that they could be redeemed for cash. I.e. as the gift giver, I like to know that the receiver will ultimately get $x. (I'm guessing that this one is difficult/impossible ... but blue sky, I'd like that option)
2. 30 days is too short, most people are not in a hurry to redeem gift cards. I think the average expectation is that they need to be used in 6 months to a year. 30 days just seems very short, especially since the physical ones don't expire. -
Thanks for the replies. Here are a few thoughts for improvements:
1) this is a BIGGIE. If a gift card is accidentally ignored SmartyPig REALLY needs to send a reminder email. "Hey, don't forget to redeem your gift card" type thing. This is a must. Again, having seen a gift card expire, it is depressing. That money is gone, as I will not go begging for someone to resubmit.
2) Fix the notification screen and the way Gift Cards are displayed. Like many SmartyPiggers, I'm guessing I have a huge list of notifications which are hard to decipher at a glance. How about a gift card icon? A red bar that says "Gift Card waiting for acceptance!" or something. Make it more obvious. It just gets lost in the clutter. or,
3) have a button right up front that says "Approve all outstanding gift cards" Then you can check a checklist to approve them individually before hitting an ACCEPT button.
Just some simple GUI design improvements and notification issues would fix this issue.
Thanks. -
Inappropriate?@Evan & @sherburne527,
This is really great feedback.
@Evan, I'm going to discuss your suggestions with our banking partner next week. I am hopeful they will be receptive to extending our 30 day window. No guarantees but I will certainly keep you posted.
@sherbourne527, Great GUI ideas! I really like the idea of a "reminder" for gift cards waiting to be acted upon. And am thinking we wait to see how @Evan's idea above flushes out before we tackle this one. And somehow highlighting a gift card notification is an exceptional idea.
Thanks again folks. Will update you all here with updates.
- Mike
I’m thankful for the great suggestions
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Inappropriate?@Evan & @sherburne527,
Just a quick update to this issue.
We have increased the expiration from 30 to 90 days and we are looking to build some additional enhancements to the site within the next couple of months that would allow us to potentially do away with expiration time periods entirely as it relates to electronic gift cards. At that time we will also look to integrate a reminder email that would be triggered every 30 days.
Will keep you all posted of our progress.
Thanks!
I’m keeping you all in the loop!
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