Digital high street for Ballinrobe step closer with launch of new gift card
BALLINROBE is one step closer to creating a digital town centre after becoming the first Irish town to introduce new digital gifting technology from Scottish payments provider Miconex, through the popular Lakes Gift Card.
The Lakes Gift Card is now available as an e-card which can be sent to the recipient’s phone instantly as either a text or email. Using a Love Local app, recipients of the e-card can then add the balance to their digital wallet, and make their purchase using Apple Pay or Google Pay either online or in-store.
The Lakes Gift Card launched in November 2020 and can be spent with over 100 businesses in Ballinrobe, Cong and Clonbur. Over €254,000 of Lakes Gift Cards have been sold to date, with 90% of that figure already redeemed with local businesses.
Physical versions of the gift card, which can be sent to the recipient by post, or picked up in person with a balance added using Load This Card, are still available.
Ballinrobe’s introduction of its new digital gift card is the latest initiative to support businesses and position the town for the future by enhancing digital connectedness.
A 2021 Gift Card and Voucher Association report found that over 38% of respondents converted to digital gift cards during the pandemic. In store gift card redemption declined from 69.6% in 2019 to 54.7% in 2020. Some 21.6% spent their gift card using their mobile in 2020, up from 11.4% in 2019.
Ballinrobe Community Development Council (CDC) and Ballinrobe Enterprise Organisation (BEO) are behind the Lakes Gift Card.
Chairperson of Ballinrobe CDC Pat Donnellan said: “The Lakes Gift Card has been a great success for our area and we are very excited about the launch of the digital e-card version.
“Talking to people of different age groups and they are already using digital wallets like Apple Pay and Google Pay. The introduction of the e-card is about meeting customer needs for the future. When the opportunity came up to use this new technology, it was a no-brainer for us, as it adds an extra dimension to the Lakes Gift Card.
“Many younger people in the Lakes area have received a Lakes Gift Card as a gift from family, or through work, but to use the physical card they have to remember to take it with them. With the e-card, they have the gift card balance with them on their phones, ready to use when they want it.
“Sales are important but redemptions are too because that is when the benefit reaches the business. Digital wallets will increase those spontaneous redemptions, especially with the Love Local app. This is data that we can then take to employers, showing how their rewards and incentives are welcomed and appreciated by staff.”
He continued: “One year into our gift card programme and the new digital e-card will help us to build new awareness, keeping the Lakes Gift Card fresh in people’s minds. A lot of people who were previously working in Dublin are now working from home, and living more locally. These tech savvy individuals are conscious about the need to shop local but it can’t be an obligation for them, we also have to make it convenient for them and as easy as shopping online. Our new digital Lakes Gift Card is a tool to make shop local work.”
A survey by AIB suggests that Irish customers’ use of digital wallets such as Apple Pay and Google Pay increased by 41% and 45% respectively in 2020. AIB also found that Apple Pay and Google Pay account for 37% of all instore transactions by under 25s, with spend up by 24% and 35% respectively. Customers aged 45 and over are spending 31% more using their digital wallets.
Miconex, who operate four local gift Town & City Gift Card programmes in Ireland and over 70 in the UK and Ireland overall, has worked alongside EML Payments Limited (ASX: EML) on the introduction of the payment technology for Ireland.
Colin Munro, managing director of Miconex, said: “The pandemic has exacerbated the challenges faced by Irish towns and cities. Encouraging consumers back to high streets, and making the high street attractive to consumers of all ages is a key focus for places.
“The statistics are clear. By 2022, mobile payments will eclipse both cash and credit card as the preferred way to pay. And it is younger people who are leading this drive, with 48% of 18-34 year olds using digital wallets.
“Interestingly, the GCVA also found that it was the younger cohort, 25-44 year olds, who were most likely to view gift cards as a mutually beneficial means of funding local establishments. Towns and cities want smart solutions to future proofing their high streets, and that’s what digital gift cards offer.”