Smartphone Apps = Convenient Thank Yous

Anyone who has come to rely on their smartphone for day-to-day activities and convenience (and there are a lot of us out there) is undoubtedly familiar with just how pervasive apps, those specific mini programs that are easily downloaded and quickly become indispensable have become to us.

It’s hard to believe that just a few years ago, these little electronic tools were just a thing of the future, not even a glimmer in the eye of the programmers.

Today, of course, we take advantage of every opportunity that’s before us to make our lives more enjoyable, convenient and valuable.

Such is the case with gift cards.

At one point in the not-too-distant past, gift cards were simply the physical representation of value, something you handed over for redemption at the designated store or restaurant.

Today, while the physical gift card is still part of life—to many of us, there’s still something comforting about the “presentation” of that card—another option, the digital one, is gaining its own following.

With the integration of the smartphone app into a business increasingly represented by the sending of an electronic gift card, senders and recipients have found another level of convenience and immediacy to enable those “thank you” opportunities before them.

Whether it’s an e-card from Starbucks or iTunes, Apple’s digital marketplace for music, movies and TV shows, we’re making it ever easier to help connect retailers with their customers.

The result is a new sense of freedom and flexibility in how a simple “thank you” or other personal expression of appreciation finds its way into someone’s heart…or their smartphone.