Working with Gift Certificates

Purpose: You can sell gift certificates like other items you offer to your customers. To process gift certificates:

1. Creating: Create a gift certificate as an item when Performing Initial Item Entry (MITM), flagging it as a gift certificate and a non-inventory item.

2. Selling: In order entry, add gift certificates to orders as you would any other item. You can also sell gift certificates on orders you process through the E-Commerce Interface.

Note: Emailing vs. printing: When you enter an order on which you sell a gift certificate, you can set the E-mail gift certificate flag at the Work with Order Ship to Properties Screen to generate an email, rather than printed, gift certificate. You can also pass this setting into CWSerenade for orders you receive through the web storefront. See the Gift Certificate E-Mail Program (H07) system control value for more information on how to set up your company to email gift certificates.

3. Billing: Generate pick slips for the orders in Streamlined Pick Slip Generation (WSPS). No pick slips print for gift certificates. Instead, the system bills the gift certificate immediately (although it is first subject to the same credit card authorization as any other item).

During billing, the system:

• assigns gift certificate numbers; see Assigning Gift Certificate Numbers.

• determines the gift certificate amount; see Assigning Gift Certificate Amount.

4. Printing or emailing: You must use the Process Gift Certificates Screen (MPGC) to create records of gift certificates in the Coupon Redemption table before customers can redeem the certificates. (Note: This table is used to track the redemption of both coupons and gift certificates.) If you use printed rather than handwritten or email gift certificates, you can print them at this time. The system also generates emails where appropriate.

Note: Reprinting: You can use the Reprint Gift Certificates Screen (MRGC) to reprint gift certificates, or to resend email gift certificate notifications.

5. Applying as payment: You can select from a list of both gift certificates and coupons when you enter a coupon/credit pay type in order entry. If you select a gift certificate to apply as payment, it must be fully or partially unredeemed; the system does not allow you to apply more than the total unredeemed balance.

Note: Reviewing unredeemed gift certificates: You can use the Print Unredeemed Gift Certificate Screen (PUGC) to print a list of unredeemed and partially redeemed gift certificates. You can also use the Work with Coupon Redemption Screen to review all of the coupons and gift certificates in the Coupon Redemption table.

6. Purging: See Purging Coupon Redemption Records (MPCP) for information on purging redeemed and expired coupon records from the Coupon Redemption table.

Email template: You can use the Working with Entities (WENT) menu option to create an entity-level email template, and the Working with E-Mail Notification Templates (WEMT) menu option to create a default company-level gift certificate template. The template specifies the text to print above and below the standard gift certificate information.

In this topic:

• Assigning Gift Certificate Numbers

• Assigning Gift Certificate Amount

• Process Gift Certificates Screen (MPGC)

For more information: See:

• Reprint Gift Certificates Screen (MRGC)

• Print Unredeemed Gift Certificate Screen (PUGC)

• Unredeemed Coupon Listing (PCPN)

Assigning Gift Certificate Numbers

Receiving a gift certificate number through the order API: Normally, the system assigns gift certificate numbers during pick slip generation, and creates the record in the Gift Certificate table at this point. However, an order you receive through the order API that includes purchase of a gift certificate should already specify a gift certificate number. In this situation, the gift certificate record is created at the same time that the order is created in CWSerenade, and no additional update to the gift certificate takes place when you generate pick slips.

Note: If you receive an order containing a gift certificate through the e-commerce interface (order API), and a number is not assigned, the system will never assign a number. You must delete the order detail line and enter a new one.

If the gift certificate number is already assigned: When you receive a pre-assigned number on a web or phone order, the system verifies that the number is not already assigned to a gift certificate on your system. If you receive a duplicate number, the system assigns a new one.

Random or sequential number assignment: The Create Random Gift Certificate/Coupon Numbers (H09) system control value controls whether the system assigns gift certificate and coupon numbers in sequential or “random” (non-sequential) order.

• Select this system control value if you want the system to assign “random,” or non-sequential, numbers to gift certificates and coupons. Assigning numbers non-sequentially may help you prevent fraud on a web storefront. For example, if a customer redeems gift certificate number 882, it does not mean that 883 or 884 will also be valid gift certificate numbers.

• Leave this field unselected if you want the system to assign gift certificate numbers sequentially, using the Gift Certificate # number assignment value.

Note: If you assign gift certificate numbers non-sequentially, it will not be practical to use the Reprint Gift Certificates Screen (MRGC) or the Delete Coupons Screen (MDCP), because each of these screens require that you enter the beginning and ending gift certificate/coupon number to reprint or delete.

Assigning Gift Certificate Amount

The Gift Certificate Pricing Method (I54) system control value determines the price the system uses as the amount to apply to the gift certificate. The system applies the amount to the gift certificate when the gift certificate item is processed through billing.

• If this system control value is set to OFFER, the gift certificate amount is the offer price. For example, you can purchase a $25.00 gift certificate for $22.00 and still apply $25.00 to the gift certificate. If the offer price is $0.00, the system uses the order line price.

• If this system control value is set to ORDER, the gift certificate amount is the order line price. For example, if the order line price is $25.00, the amount applied to the gift certificate is $25.00. If the order line price is $0.00, the system uses the offer price.

If both the offer price and order line price are $0.00, the gift certificate amount is $0.00.