Gift cards are a valuable way for Shopify stores to build customer loyalty, attract new visitors, and reward longtime clients. Unfortunately, there are always some people who figure out ways to abuse nice things — almost 50% of merchants have been hit by e-commerce fraud. If you don’t know how to exclude gift cards from discounts on Shopify, you can accidentally lose your profit margins and then some.
Do Shopify Discounts Apply To Gift Cards?
If you sell gift cards on your Shopify store, they can get included in storewide discounts. This problem is less likely to happen with discount codes, but checking the wrong box can cause mistakes. You may not realize what is going on until scammers have purchased dozens of gift cards or tricked you out of hundreds of dollars worth of products.
How Do Gift Card Mistakes Happen?
Many Shopify merchants use automatic discounts to run store offers, such as flash deals or seasonal sales. It only takes a few clicks to create BOGOs and Black Friday sales, even for dropshipping stores that offer thousands of products. This is incredibly convenient, and sales are one of the best tools for getting brand recognition for your store.
The problem? Shopify considers gift cards digital products, so it includes them any time a discount occurs on a related collection. For example, if you have a “Gifts for Mom” collection with jewelry, silk pajamas, luxurious beauty products, purses, and gift cards, any discounts will apply to the entire collection, gift cards included.
Why Are Discounted Gift Cards a Problem?
Selling gift cards at a discount is like letting people purchase money from you for half its value. If you offer a $50 or $100 gift card during a 70% off sale, suddenly the person can buy your most expensive products at a fraction of the price. You end up either losing money or having to mess with refunds, cancellations, and a damaged reputation.
How Can You Exclude Gift Cards From Discounts on Shopify?
Shopify doesn’t have an “exclude from discounts” setting when you create gift cards on the store, so you have to prevent abuse indirectly. You have several options.
1. Don’t Offer Gift Cards for Sale
You can avoid selling gift cards without losing out on the benefits of customer loyalty programs. This method is the most aggressive, but it’s also fast and easy.
Shopify offers two ways to create gift cards; the first is to make an actual gift card product for your store, with a name, description, image, and different denominations.
The other type of gift card is just a code for store credit that you send directly. For example, if you hold a competition, you can send the winner a $50 voucher to buy anything in your store.
This way means you don’t have to worry about gift card exploits. The only downside is that clients can’t buy a gift card for friends, family members, coworkers, grads, or other potential customers.
2. Choose Discount Categories Carefully
The new Shopify interface offers a lot of control over store sales and discounts. As long as you choose the right settings, your gift cards can stay at full price all year long. Here’s what to do, step by step:
- From your Shopify admin, go to the “Discount” tab and click on the “Create discount” button in the top right corner.
- Select “Automatic discount” in the box.
- Name your discount or store sale.
- You can choose the type of discount, including a percentage (30% off), a fixed amount ($20 off), or buy X get Y (BOGOs).
- Under the “Applies to” heading, choose either “Specific collections” or “Specific products.” DO NOT choose “All products” if you have gift cards for sale on your store — ever.
- If you choose “Specific collections,” browse or search for the collections you want to include. Be careful not to include any collections that contain your gift cards. This usually means never having a sale on your “Gifts” collections.
- If you don’t have that many products, you may want to select “Specific products” and just choose the items that are on sale.
This method is free and relatively simple. The only risk is accidentally including gift cards in collections that you regularly put on sale, like “For Her” or “Dad Stuff.”
3. Use Shopify Apps for Discounts, Sales, and Client Rewards
If you want to save time and avoid the risk of gift card mistakes, app integrations are the safest and easiest option. They let you create custom discounts, curated bundles, BOGOs, and tiered pricing easily.
For example, Automatic Discounts & Upsells supercharges custom rewards programs with gift items instead of gift cards. Your clients can choose from specific promotional items, order discounts, or other deals. You have full control over discount terms and exclusions.
Another awesome app for improved gifting is Bundle Builder. This app supports build-your-own-bundles with special pricing, letting customers create the perfect gift while protecting your store from exploits.
Discover Creative Ways To Exclude Gift Cards From Shopify Discounts
What’s amazing about Shopify app integrations is how much flexibility they give you for configuring store sales. Build curated bundles that offer great discounts but protect your profit margins. Create special offers just for your best customers. Learn more about excluding gift cards from Shopify discounts and discover a world of app possibilities today.