New Gift Card Options Aim to Help Small Businesses Through COVID-19

If you’re looking for new tools to add to your small business’ coronavirus strategy, Instagram and Kabbage have added options that entrepreneurs may want to consider.

Instagram Launches Gift Card, Delivery Stickers

Starting today in the US and Canada, Instagram is giving businesses the option of adding stickers to their profiles or Stories that allow users to buy gift cards and order food deliveries.

When users tap on these stickers, they are then directed to the business’s website, where they can order gift cards or food delivery. Instagram aims to roll these functions out to a global audience over the next few weeks. Also on tap for the near future is a fundraising option, which will open in Facebook (Instagram’s parent company).

“Spread the word by resharing the stickers in your Stories,” Instagram said in an announcement about the new feature. “For many businesses right now, every sale helps. We’ll continue to work on features that make it easier to support the small businesses you care about.”

Kabbage Allows Gift Card Sales Outside Social

Selling gift cards can help businesses bring in cash now for consumers to use later, ostensibly when foot traffic resumes. Although some companies may not have a way to create and sell gift cards, small business lender Kabbage created a service last month that lets any business sell gift certificates.

To use the service, entrepreneurs should create a free account on Kabbage Payments, and the site will then generate a unique URL that businesses can share with consumers. You’ll then be able to sell gift certificates ranging in value from $15 to $500. The earnings will be deposited into your account for use now.

Kabbage joined forces with Facebook to promote gift certificates for small businesses. When consumers search Facebook for businesses in the area, your firm will come up in the results, with the gift certificate option noted in the results.

“The impact of COVID-19 on small businesses requires the support of a nation,” said Kabbage CEO Rob Frohwein in a statement about the feature. “Many businesses are closing and others are seeing reduced demand. The site is a means for the millions of small businesses that employ more than half of all employees in America to continue making sales and to feel your commitment to their long-term success.”