As the Los Angeles Times recently put it, gift cards aren’t just for the big boys anymore. Small businesses are reaping the benefits as well.

However, according to the Times article, only about 8 to 10% of small and mid-size merchants have used them.

For the 90% of small businesses who haven’t gone this route, here’s three simple reasons why implementing a gift card program can help your business grow.

It Increases Spending

According to industry research, consumers are likely to spend more than the initial value of the gift card they received, and a majority of merchants who implement gift card programs report an increase in their sales.

To top that off, gift card users are more likely to buy full-priced items over sale items, and are less likely to bring items back for exchanges or refunds.

It Builds Brand Recognition

The benefits here are twofold.

First, someone has vouched for your business by giving your gift card to someone else—probably to a friend or family member. We all understand the power word-of-mouth can be to creating trust and awareness, and a branded gift card does this overtly and in a very tangible way.

Just as importantly, a gift card serves as a reminder, like an advertisement that burns inside a wallet or purse. Depending on the value of the card, an individual may keep it with them for days or weeks at a time. Think about the last time you needed something that you already had a gift card for—whether it’s dinner or for a free oil change. It’s a win for both you and your customers.

It Generates Repeat Business

Your gift cards users are not only more likely to spend more money at your establishment, but they’re also more likely to visit your business on more than one occasion.

Who wouldn’t want to increase repeat business?

Here’s a bonus reason—they’re cost effective

Sure, the above reasons sound great, but what will it cost you, right? Believe it or not, gift cards are incredibly affordable, which is why they’re becoming increasingly popular among small business owners.

And even better—we can help you. If you’re a US-based business, and you’re interested in learning more, shoot us an email at community@newtektechnologyservices.com (and be sure to ask us how you get can get your first 100 gift cards free).

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We’ve become an increasingly self-reliant society. Ten years ago, instead of installing new flooring ourselves, we would have called in the professionals to do it for us. This is not to say that everyone opts to go with the DIY route (when it comes to manual labor I certainly don’t), but the point is, it’s become a viable option in just about every area of our lives.

One company exemplifies this “DIY” movement. We’re all familiar with the incredibly popular Home Depot tagline, “You can do it. We can help.” Brilliant. In the wake of their success, many other companies have adopted the DIY concept, empowering their customers to get their own hands a bit dirty, with the expertise and backing of the providing company – a safety net of sorts.

So you still don’t have a website? Why not?

That same level of autonomy and empowerment is spilling into the online marketplace, which is why it’s surprising that 60% of small businesses still don’t have a website. This figure is according to a recent 2009 study conducted by Discover® Small Business Watch.SM

While I’m sure there are a million different reasons why businesses are NOT online (too busy, focused on building traffic to their brick-and-mortar stores, etc.), with the emergence of DIY website builders, the reasons keeping business owners from taking their business online are diminishing. So without further ado…

Three reasons why you should give a DIY website builder a go:

1. It’s time already!
   Perhaps you have a successful brick-and-mortar business and you’ve grown entirely by word of mouth. If you have, congratulations! WOM marketing is one of the best types of marketing and speaks volumes about the quality of your business. Take that success and apply it online. You’re poised to hit an untapped pool of customers who (shockingly) have not yet heard of your company or establishment. The time for modesty has passed, friends. If your customers and critics are saying nice things about you, tell the world. After all, your mother can only do so much…
2. Get your goods online
   Whether you’re an independent artist, a mom-and-pop shop, freelance consultant or a multi-location small business owner, your products and services have a very limited reach if only available in-store or through networking events if you’re a professional services freelancer. DIY builders make it easy to get your products online quickly. If you’ve got products to seel, you can have them up and available to a much wider base within minutes. Once your bottom line starts to soar, you’ll be glad you made the push for Ecommerce.
3. Chance to be artistic – no graphic design education required
   No one knows your business better than you, so who better to reflect that visually? With a multitude of different design schemes to select from, (we offer more than 700) you can bring your vision to life, and let the builder carry out all of the necessary back-end coding and programming. So, really, by using a website builder you can get a personally designed site up and running quickly and skip out on four years of classroom time (not to mention the painful remnants of student loans that still haunt many of us.) Best of all, with most builders, while you get to play with the look and feel and overall design of your site, you’ll still have access to a team of professionals available 24/7/365 to assist you

So there you have it: Three excellent reasons to give a DIY Website Builder a try (even better if you can try it out for free.) Honorable mentions include:

• The ability to change your content on a whim rather than having to coordinate with a designer and wait for the next website publish window
• A chance to really peel back the curtain and  connect with your customers by adding a company blog that embodies your unique corporate culture
• Websites are an easy place to point customers looking for more information, and a handy addition to any business card

Now then. What are you waiting for? It’s 2010. By now you’ve run out of reasons to let another year slip by without establishing a strong web presence. To borrow from a well-known brand that set the stage for the DIY movement, “You can do it. We can help.”

And if DIY isn’t your style, stay tuned. The next blog will discuss why a custom design may be a better choice for you…