How to Send Gift Cards

Sending Gift Cards is a powerful feature that allows businesses to issue gift cards directly to any customer — without requiring a purchase or payment. This article explains how to send gift cards directly to a recipient from Captivation Hub.

What is Sending Gift Cards?

Sending a gift card creates a one-time, prepaid credit and delivers it to a chosen recipient via email, SMS, PDF, or QR code, without requiring the contact to purchase it. This is ideal for make-goods, loyalty gestures, VIP perks, and internal tests. Redemption happens on supported checkouts where gift cards are accepted. The Send flow works exclusively in Live Mode, ensuring only real, fully functional gift cards are delivered.

Key Benefits

• One-to-one issuing: Send a gift card to a single recipient instantly or on a schedule.
• No checkout required: Issue prepaid value without charging the recipient.
• Flexible delivery: Deliver via Email, SMS, PDF, or QR depending on your contact data and use case.
• Frictionless redemption: Recipients can redeem on supported checkouts with their code or link.
• Operational visibility: Track orders, code, amount, and status under Gift Card Orders.
• Great for service recovery: Compensate for support issues quickly and professionally.

Use Cases for Sending Gift Cards

• Loyalty & Rewards: Reward customers for milestones, referrals, or premium plan renewals.
• Customer Support Compensation: Issue a gift card instead of a manual credit or refund.
• Promotions: Run giveaways, holiday gifting, influencer campaigns, or targeted perks.
• Internal Testing: QA teams or admins can test redemption flows.
• Bulk Manual Distribution: Gift VIP customers or event attendees a prepaid balance.

Prerequisites

Before sending a gift card, ensure:

• A Gift Card Product exists and is Active (not Deactivated or Archived).
• The customer receiving the card has either an email address or a phone number (for SMS delivery).

How to Send a Gift Card

Step 1: Navigate to Gift Cards

Go to Payments → Gift Cards. Select an existing Gift Card from the All Gift Cards list, then click the Send button on the card you want to send.

Step 2: Choose a Customer / Contact

Select an existing customer/contact from your list, or add a new contact before sending. Click Continue.

Step 3: Add a Personal Message

Enter a custom greeting, special instructions, or a note of appreciation. You can also choose from pre-populated messages or use Write with AI to generate one. Click Continue.

Step 4: Select a Denomination

Choose one of the preset denominations configured for the product.

Step 5: Choose Delivery Method

Select how the gift card will be delivered. Only methods supported by the customer's available contact information (email/phone) will be enabled:

• Email — Full visual gift card with artwork, expiry, balance, and redemption link. Recommended for most cases.
• SMS — Clean message with the gift card link. Artwork not included.
• PDF via Email — Downloadable printable PDF. Great for in-store gifting or events.
• QR Code via Email — Scannable QR that opens the gift card. Useful for in-person gifting.

Step 6: Choose Delivery Date

You can deliver immediately or schedule for a future date. Note: if the gift card has an expiry date, the delivery date must fall between today and that expiry date.

• Presets: Deliver immediately, tomorrow, or in one week.
• Future Date: Schedule for any date within the allowed range.

Step 7: Review & Send

Review the automatically generated email or SMS preview — including Gift Card Amount, Custom Message, Expiry Date, Redemption Instructions, and Artwork — then click Send Gift Card.

What the Recipient Receives

Email delivery sends a full visual gift card with all details. SMS delivery sends a clean link-based message.

What Happens After a Gift Card Is Sent

Once sent, the gift card appears under Payments → Gift Cards → Gift Card Orders. Each order contains:

• Recipient details and delivery method
• Delivery timestamp and denomination
• Expiry and remaining balance
• Status: Scheduled, Active, or Inactive
• Hidden gift card code (visible inside the order details page)

Key Behaviors & Limitations

• Send flow works only in Live Mode.
• You can send 1 gift card to 1 customer at a time.
• No payment is collected in the Send flow.
• Sent gift cards do not appear in Payments → Orders (no transaction occurred).
• Gift Cards issued via Send are fully redeemable — both fully and partially.
• You must have the customer's email or phone number for delivery.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Can I send gift cards in Test Mode?
A: Not yet. The Send flow supports Live Mode only. Test Mode support is coming in a future release.

Q: Why can't I send a gift card to some customers?
A: The customer must have a valid email or phone number. Without either, no delivery method is available.

Q: Can I send multiple gift cards at once?
A: Currently no. You can send one gift card to one customer per Send flow. Bulk sending is planned for future versions.

Q: Are sent gift cards redeemable everywhere?
A: Yes, on every checkout that supports Gift Card redemption, including Funnels, Forms, Invoices, Stores, Payment Links, and Calendars.

Q: What happens to a scheduled gift card before the delivery time?
A: Until the scheduled delivery time, the gift card is in a Scheduled state but is still active and valid for use.

Q: Can I edit the email/SMS template before sending?
A: Templates are system-generated and currently not editable. Customization will be available in a future update.

Q: Do sent gift cards appear under Orders in Payments?
A: No. Only purchased gift cards appear under Payments → Orders. Sent cards appear exclusively under Gift Card Orders.

Q: Can I send a gift card anonymously?
A: Not yet. The recipient always sees the sender's business information as configured in email/SMS templates.