A new policy will be in effect January 1, 2008 and retroactive to all companies in the program since inception, for booksellers that leave the program for any reason.

High consumer demand:

• Giftex reported in the April issue of Stores that of 300 consumers surveyed, 78.6% intend to buy gift cards in 2007, up from 64.9% in 2006. There is an anticipated increase of 36% gift cards sales for the 2007 holiday season.

• The second-most-popular gift for 2006, favored by 60% of shoppers, was gift cards. (Clothing came in first at 73%.)  Source: ConsumerReports.org, Holiday Shopping Poll, October 2006.

• The National Retail Federation predicted that consumers would purchase a total of $24.8 billion in gift cards in 2006—a $6.3 billion increase over 2005. Consumers actually spent $27.8 billion. 
  

• The average consumer spent $164.81 on gift cards, up from the $146.29 that was expected. Men spent the most with an average of $176.84. Source: National Retail Federation, January 23, 2007.
  

Increase bookstore sales:

• Most retail outlets show at least a 20% increase in sales when offering gift cards.
  
  
• It's easy to increase customer impulse buys by displaying inactive cards all around the bookstore (no need to hide gift cards under the front desk.)

Better security:

• Cards are invalid until activated by an authorized bookseller.
  
  
• Cards can be deactivated in the event of theft or fraud.

Accurate accounting:

• Ability to track all sales and redemptions on a daily basis via a variety of reports.
  
  
• Booksellers will need the ability to maintain proper records as required by most states. ABA strongly urges booksellers to familiarize themselves with their local and state laws. Booksellers should be aware of tightened regulations regarding the use of money spent by consumers on gift cards and gift certificates. Many states have become very aggressive in enforcing unclaimed property laws (money paid by consumers for a gift certificate, but unused for merchandise.)
  
  
• No more cash back or store credits (unspent balance remains on the card.)

Please refer to Bookselling This Week for news stories regarding the gift card industry and related topics.

It is true that the Book Sense Gift Card program has higher costs associated with it, but we do not believe that the two programs should be compared solely on cost. It is important to keep in mind the consumer demand for gift cards. Consumers, (we believe that all such issues should be looked at through the eyes of the consumer) want gift cards, expect gift cards, understand gift cards, and have adopted them as the accepted form of gift certificate at an astounding rate.

All statistics show that gift card sales are at least 15%-20% higher then gift certificate sales. There are stores reporting 30%-50% increases as well. Why is this so? Gift cards, if properly promoted, are displayed all over the store, not kept under the counter like gift certificates. This exposure alone will dramatically affect sales.

On October 28, 2004, Book Sense announced via Bookselling This Week, a plan to discontinue the Book Sense Paper Gift Certificate program. Details and updated information are described below.

Notice to booksellers with Book Sense: Due to overall increased consumer demand for electronic gift cards and the continued growing popularity of Book Sense Gift Cards in particular, the American Booksellers Association has announced the discontinuation of the Book Sense Paper Gift Certificate Program.

To ensure a smooth ending for the program, please note the following:

1. Book Sense stopped selling Book Sense Paper Gift Certificates to stores as of December 31, 2004. The Book Sense Letter of Agreement has been amended to remove participation in the Gift Certificate Program as a requirement. Stores will not be required to participate in the Gift Card Program.
2. Effective June 1, 2005, bookstores should have stopped selling Book Sense paper gift certificates. Any Book Sense paper gift certificate sold and dated after June 1, 2005, will not be valid and will not be considered for reimbursement.
3. In keeping with the wording on the face of the certificate, "Redeemable at any store with Book Sense nationwide," all bookstores with Book Sense should continue to accept valid Book Sense gift certificates even if they have never sold one. This policy was set in order to protect consumers. Booksellers should check to see that the certificates was not sold after June 1,2005 and that the certificate is valid as per other criteria set forth by Book Sense and by local/state laws where applicable. Reimbursement instructions are provided under the heading How to Redeem a Book Sense Gift Certificate elsewhere in this document.
   Book Sense will continue to provide reimbursement for all valid Book Sense gift certificates in accordance with established reimbursement guidelines for as long as necessary.
4. Book Sense paid 10 cents for each unsold Book Sense paper gift certificate returned to ABA via a traceable manner (e.g., UPS) by June 15, 2005.

This schedule was established to allow bookstores ample time before June 1, 2005, consumer sale cutoff date to either switch to the Book Sense Gift Card Program or to develop a store-specific paper gift certificate. Booksellers are encouraged to sign-up for the Book Sense Gift Card program; however, booksellers are not required to adopt Book Sense Gift Cards in order to remain a Book Sense participant in the overall marketing campaign.

A gift card is similar to a credit card in that it uses similar technology. The magnetic strip, the readable number, and the bar code contain information about the card. When a card is swiped, scanned, or when the number is entered into a touch pad (or keyboard), a call is made to the Givex database that then allows the authorized bookseller to either add value, subtract value, check a balance, etc.

Givex, the Book Sense partner in gift card processing, provides a variety of methods to choose from including a secure Book Sense branded Web site (Web based transactions or WebPOS), a terminal (Internet communication or direct dial), and/or the telephone (IVR). The WebPOS.givex.com, portal.givex.com and IVR as a back-up system are all included as part of the program. Booksellers will not have to commit to any particular method and training is available from Givex by telephone. All manuals are posted here (BookWeb password required). Demos of the WebPOS are also available; please email jill@booksense.com to schedule a telephone appointment.

Anthology, BookLog, Computac/Square One/[I]Merchant, IBID, and WordStock are certified to process Book Sense Gift Cards:

• For more information on requirements and costs for Anthology (integrated credit card processing module), contact Jim Bean at 800/392-1726 or via e-mail at jim@anthology.com.
  
  
• For more information on requirements and costs for BookLog (Credit Card Verification Interface and PC Charge, Version 5.7), contact technical support at 800/977-8212, ext. 260, or at tech@booklog.com.
  
  
• For more information on requirements and costs for Computac/Square One (release level 13.x and PC Charge), and [I]Merchant contact Mike Hartman at 603/298-5721 or via e-mail at squareone@computac.com.
  
  
• For more information on requirements and costs for IBID (verision 14), contact IBID Technical Support at 800/443-8897, ext. 1 or via e-mail Mike Feldman at mike@ibid.com.
  
  
• For more information on requirements and costs for WordStock (version 4.20C) click here or contact WordStock sales at 800/753-WORD or sales@wordstock.com.

If your vendor is not listed here, please contact them directly to inquire about integration timelines or email aba@givex.com.

Yes, upon sign-up stores will received materials to help promote gift cards. Please refer to this link on BookWeb.org for additional materials and information

Check out the design center to see the current choices.

Minimum order for each generic card design without a logo is 100. After the minimum is met, additional cards can be ordered in quantities of 50 per design. The minimum order for cards with a logo is 250, additional cards can be ordered in quantities of 50 per design. There is a minimum of 1,000 cards for a custom design.

We recommend that you re-order when you reach 100 cards (or 50 if you have ordered generic cards). Card production close to major holidays gets extremely busy, so please plan ahead.

Cards and matching presenters can be re-ordered online at booksenseorders.givex.com. Use the specific user ID and password provided by Givex in your Welcome email to access this secure site. Payment for the re-order will be through ACH. Click here for a pdf of helpful instructions. (Bookweb password protected.)

In keeping with tightened local and state regulations regarding the use of money spent by consumers on gift cards and gift certificates, Book Sense Gift Cards do not have expiration dates nor do they carry inactivity or other related fees. The following wording (updated for clarity on some card print runs) appears on the back of all Book Sense gift cards:

Present this gift card at time of purchase or use online through participating BookSense.com stores. This gift card is valid in the selling store as well as in all participating bookstores with Book Sense. To locate a bookstore call 1-888-BookSense or visit www.BookSense.com. Not redeemable for cash. Not replaceable if lost or stolen, unless original sales receipt is presented or otherwise required by law. No value until purchased.

We strongly suggest posting your bookstore's policy near the point of sale and speak with your bookkeeper about gift card liability and unclaimed funds.

Cards can be sold for any amount but not for more than $250. Multiple cards should be activated for customers who want to spend more than $250. We advise that you post your store's policy in a conspicuous place.

Yes, please contact BookSense.com customer service for details, call 800/637-0037, option #2 or email staff@booksense.com.

Yes; but, if the card is redeemed for the full amount in a different bookstore; the selling store is still obligated to transfer the full amount to the redeeming bookstore.

For a complete breakdown of the costs and fees associated with the Book Sense Gift Card program, click here.

All ACH transfers for the Book Sense Gift Card program are processed once a month. Booksellers should expect a notice emailed at the end of each month, or within the first few days of the month, for all costs and net credits/debits for the previous month's activity depending on the bookstore's level of activity. Booksellers can expect to see the following transfers hitting their bank accounts on the third Friday of each month:

• $20 monthly fee (no further notice is given for this fee after the initial program sign-up notice)
• Cost for card and presenter orders
• Shipping for card and presenter orders
• Training sessions
• Swipes and other equipment
• Bookstore-to-Bookstore settlements (notice given via the compensation report)
• Increments (billed quarterly)

All transfers will appear on your bank statement as Givex USA. Prior to September 2005, transfers were processed on a bi-monthly basis--on the first business day of the month and on the third Friday of each month. The change to one monthly ACH transfer effectively gives booksellers two additional weeks to pay program costs and fees.

Prior to August 2006, Compensation reports were only emailed when bookstore-to-bookstore activity resulted in a net credit or debit to the bookstore's account. In an effort to provide all booksellers with relevant information, all locations will now receive a monthly Compensation Report. The Compensation Report is generated by Givex and lists bookstore-to-bookstore activity (meaning that "Store A" either redeemed "Store B’s" gift card and/or "Store B" redeemed "Store A’s" gift card) during a specific month. Previously, when Givex would generate a report that contained no bookstore-to-bookstore activity, the report would be discarded and only reports with activity would be emailed to the locations involved in the transactions. Under our new system, all locations will receive this report whether or not there has been activity. Therefore, it is possible that booksellers will receive Compensation Reports that may contain the phrase, "There is no data for this query." Do not be alarmed, it merely indicates that all cards sold by "Store A" during the month were redeemed in "Store A" or are still unredeemed. If the report lists bookstore-to-bookstore activity, the net amount (a debit or a credit) will be transferred to or from the checking account on file on the third Friday of the month for the date listed on the report.

Only authorized ABA staff and Givex have access to compensation reports. Booksellers are encouraged to run reports provided on portal.givex.com to track gift card activity and to reconcile accounts. You'll find it easy to manage your program by regularly running the Transactions Report and the Historical Balance Report (and referring to the Compensation Reports when provided) for any period you wish to reconcile. Refer to the manual for portal.givex.com for more information on reports.

In addition to the credits or debits from the Compensation Report, Givex will continue to withdraw the $20 per location monthly program fee in addition to other amounts that may be due for gift cards, service fees, presenters, increments, shipping, equipment, or other program fees. The $20 monthly program fee is indicated on the initial invoice when joining the program; all subsequent monthly fees are simply withdrawn without any other written notice.

Questions should be emailed to aba@givex.com or contact Jill Perlstein at 800/637-0037, ext 6642.

We recognize the importance of protecting the privacy of all information provided by our customers. Your banking information will be kept strictly confidential in secure location at Givex.

• Your bookstore must be a regular member of the ABA and have a valid Book Sense Marketing Program Letter of Agreement on file.
  
  
• To view the complete instructions for signing up and to download Book Sense Gift Card Program Participation Agreement, the Gift Card ACH Agreement, and the Gift Card Program Order Form, click here.

Each bookstore location must complete an individual card order form; however, a store may choose to set-up one ACH account for all locations and have all cards shipped to one location to save on order processing and shipping charges. Please contact Jill Perlstein with any questions at 800/637-0037, ext. 6642.

The Book Sense generic card designs ship in 1-2 days. Booksellers that desire a logo or type treatment added to a generic card should plan for 2-5 working days for production. Please refer to the Customizing a Generic Gift Card PDF for more details.

Booksellers who wish to create a custom card should plan on a minimum of 6-8 weeks once a design has been approved. Please refer to the Custom Book Sense Gift Card Guidelines PDF for more details. Click here to view all of the Book Sense gift card designs in the marketplace.

Note: We suggest that stores that wish to create custom cards should consider purchasing a minimum order of generic cards to merchandise around your bookstore while waiting for your custom cards.

Contact: Jill Perlstein at 800/637-0037 or 914/591-2665, ext. 6642 or via e-mail at jill@booksense.com or Linda Ford, ext. 6644; e-mail lindaf@booksense.com.

updated 12/19/07