Your First Campaign

Follow this step-by-step guide to launch your first successful gift card campaign in under 30 minutes.

Before You Begin

Make sure you have completed:

• ✅ Account setup
• ✅ Payment processor connection
• ✅ Restaurant profile configured
• ✅ At least 3 high-quality photos uploaded

Tip

This guide walks through creating a “Grand Opening” gift card campaign. You can adapt it for any occasion!

Campaign Setup

1. Navigate to Campaigns

   From your dashboard, click Campaigns → Create New Campaign

2. Choose Campaign Type

   Select Gift Card Campaign from the available options:

   Gift Card Campaign

   Perfect for driving immediate revenue and attracting new customers

   Loyalty Program

   Build long-term relationships (covered in another guide)

3. Configure Basic Settings

   Fill in the campaign details:

   Campaign Name: "Grand Opening Special"
   Internal ID: "GRAND-OPENING-2025"
   Start Date: Today
   End Date: 30 days from now
   Budget: $1,000 (optional)

4. Set Gift Card Values

   Choose your denominations and bonus structure:

   Amount	Customer Pays	Customer Gets	Bonus
   Small	$25	$25	0%
   Medium	$50	$60	20%
   Large	$100	$130	30%

   Note

   Research shows 3 tiers with 20-30% bonus on higher amounts drives the best results.

5. Design Your Gift Cards

   Quick Setup
   1. Choose a template
   2. Upload your logo
   3. Select brand colors
   4. Add restaurant photo
   5. Preview and approve
   Custom Design
   1. Upload custom background (1920x1080px)
   2. Position logo and text
   3. Customize fonts and colors
   4. Add seasonal elements
   5. Test on mobile preview

6. Configure Delivery Options

   Enable delivery methods:

   • ✅ Email - Instant delivery with custom template
   • ✅ SMS - Text message with redemption code
   • ✅ Digital Wallet - Apple/Google Wallet passes
   • ✅ Print at Home - PDF download option

7. Set Up Redemption Rules

   Define how gift cards can be used:

   {
     "validity": "12 months",
     "minPurchase": 0,
     "maxPerTransaction": "unlimited",
     "combinable": true,
     "locations": "all",
     "blackoutDates": [],
     "transferable": true
   }

8. Create Marketing Messages

   Email Subject Lines:

   • ”🎉 Grand Opening: Get 30% Extra Value on Gift Cards!”
   • “Limited Time: Buy $100, Get $130 at [Restaurant Name]”
   • “The Perfect Gift + Bonus Value Inside”

   Social Media Posts:

   We're celebrating our grand opening! 🎉
   
   For the next 30 days:
   • Buy $50, get $60
   • Buy $100, get $130
   
   Perfect for date nights, family dinners, or gifts!
   
   Get yours: [link]
   #GrandOpening #GiftCards #LocalEats

9. Enable Tracking

   Set up analytics to monitor performance:

   • Conversion tracking pixel
   • UTM parameters for links
   • Goal values in analytics
   • Revenue attribution

10. Review and Launch

    Final checklist:

    • Pricing confirmed
    • Design approved
    • Test purchase completed
    • Staff briefed
    • Social posts scheduled

    Click Launch Campaign to go live!

Promotion Strategy

Week 1: Launch Blast

Email Announcement

Send to entire mailing list with exclusive “first 48 hours” bonus

Social Media

Post on all channels with eye-catching graphics

In-Store

Table tents, posters, and staff mentions

Website Banner

Homepage hero section with countdown timer

Week 2-3: Momentum Building

• Influencer Outreach: Gift cards to local food bloggers
• Customer Stories: Share testimonials and photos
• Flash Sales: 24-hour bonus boosts
• Partner Cross-Promotion: Nearby businesses

Week 4: Final Push

• Urgency Messaging: “Last chance” emails
• Increased Bonus: Extra 5% for final 48 hours
• Social Countdown: Daily countdown posts
• SMS Blast: Text to opted-in customers

Monitoring Performance

Real-Time Dashboard

Track key metrics from your campaign dashboard:

📊 Campaign: Grand Opening Special
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
Sales Today:        $1,250
Total Sales:        $8,750
Cards Sold:         145
Avg. Value:         $60.34
Conversion Rate:    12.5%
Days Remaining:     7
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
Top Performer:      $100 cards (45%)
Best Channel:       Email (60%)
Peak Time:          Lunch (12-2pm)

Daily Actions

5 mins/day

1. Check metrics - Sales, conversion rate, top products
2. Respond to questions - Customer service queries
3. Post update - Social media engagement
4. Adjust if needed - Tweak messaging or offers

Common Scenarios

Low Initial Sales?

Quick Fixes:

• Increase bonus percentage
• Add limited-time urgency
• Simplify purchase process
• Boost social media ads

High Demand?

Scale Successfully:

• Increase staff coverage
• Pre-write FAQ responses
• Set up auto-responders
• Consider extending campaign

Technical Issues?

Troubleshooting:

• Test purchase flow
• Check payment processing
• Verify email delivery
• Contact support immediately

Success Tips

Pro Tips from Successful Restaurants

1. Best time to launch: Tuesday-Thursday morning
2. Optimal email time: 11am or 6pm local time
3. Social media peak: Lunch and dinner hours
4. SMS sweet spot: 10am-12pm, never after 8pm

What Makes Campaigns Succeed

✅ Clear value proposition - Bonus is obvious and compelling ✅ Simple purchase process - 3 clicks or less to buy ✅ Multiple touchpoints - Email + SMS + Social + In-store ✅ Urgency without pressure - Limited time, not pushy ✅ Beautiful design - Professional, on-brand visuals ✅ Perfect timing - Launch when customers are thinking about dining

Campaign Templates

Download Ready-to-Use Templates

Holiday Campaign

Perfect for Christmas, Valentine’s, Mother’s Day

Download Template →

Grand Opening

Launch your restaurant with maximum impact

Download Template →

Slow Season

Boost revenue during quiet periods

Download Template →

Customer Win-Back

Re-engage dormant customers

Download Template →

Results to Expect

Based on typical first campaigns:

Metric	Poor	Average	Great
Cards Sold	10-25	50-100	150+
Revenue	$500	$2,500	$7,500+
Conversion	2%	8%	15%+
ROI	2:1	5:1	10:1+

Note

Results vary based on your audience size, offer attractiveness, and promotion effort. Start with realistic goals and optimize from there.

After Your Campaign

Immediate Actions

1. Thank participants - Email all purchasers
2. Analyze results - What worked best?
3. Plan redemptions - Prepare for increased traffic
4. Schedule follow-up - Next campaign in 30-45 days

Long-Term Strategy

• Build on success - Use learnings for next campaign
• Segment buyers - Create VIP customer list
• Track redemptions - Monitor usage patterns
• Gather feedback - Survey gift card users

Need Help?

Watch Tutorial

Video walkthrough of campaign creation

Watch Now →

Book Success Call

Free 15-minute strategy session

Schedule Call →

Join Community

Learn from other restaurants

Join Discord →

Read Case Studies

See how others succeeded

View Stories →

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🎉 Congratulations! You now have everything you need to launch a successful gift card campaign. Remember, your first campaign is about learning what works for your restaurant. Start simple, measure everything, and improve with each campaign.

Ready to launch? Create Your Campaign →