Can gift cards be accepted across different Square accounts?

[Anthem]

I feel like I recall discussing a process, with Square a couple years ago, capable of allowing different Square Accounts to accept the same electronic gift card without being directly connected underneath one master account. Does anyone know if this is a possibility? 

In my business we have 4 locations, in our town. Each of them has seperate ownership and managment but all operate under the same brand. Three location are owned individually with one being jointly owned. We do not want to roll our seperate accounts underneath one master account but would like to joing the modern age of electronic gift cards and stop printing the paper versions we use now. 

We are not concerned with who collects the sale on the gift card. However, we would like them to be accepted at any of our locations. Anyone know of a way to pull this off?

[Helen · Accepted solution]

Hello @Anthem! If you have created four different locations under the same master account your customers can buy a plastic Gift Card/eGift Card from any of your locations, and redeem them any of your locactions.

If you have four separate Square accounts (each with a different email address) then Gift Cards/eGift Cards purchased from those account cannot be redeemed across these separate businesses. 

I will surface your request with the Gift Cards team, I can see how useful this would be for businesses like yours (and your customers!) with separate accounts. We'll post any updates on this request as soon as they're available! 

[Anthem]

Thanks. I do realize all four businesses could be established under one master account. This would enable these features for all our businesses. Problem is, in a franchise style arrangement each of the franchise owners run their own business and don't want other owners having access to their records. This limits a franchise style establishment from using some of the great tools available from Square. I'd relish the opportunity to organize our businesses under the Square umbrella with the oppotunity to utilize these tools currently only accessible to master account holders.

[Helen]

Oh I see, yep I appricate why a franchise is separate - but connected in lots of other ways, particularly from a customer's point of view. Thanks for this additional context, it's really useful for the team as they consider adding additional features. 

[RichieR]

My APP shows I need a zip code for a gift card.  What zip code do I use?  I never heard of zip codes being attached to a gify card.  

[Chad]

Hello @RichieR! 

It sounds like you selected manual credit card entry instead of manual gift card entry on your point of sale. The latter will only request the gift card number. 

[barrio916]

Is it possible to merge gift cards from one account to another?  I don't see this option or info anywhere.  Both of the accounts being Square accounts.

[Helen]

Yes @barrio96! If you have two separate Square accounts, and you purchased Square Gift Cards to use with one account, please call our CS team and they will help you to transfer your gift cards! 

[cverse317]

Helen,

Did anything ever come of your talks with your team about this?  I also have  the same interest in this feature, as Anthem does.

[isabelle]

Hey @cverse317-

Thanks for posting in the Seller Community.

Just to clarify, what would the feature be? Would it be being able to use one gift card at different stores/businesses? 

As of right now, if your current business has Square gift cards, and you start a new business, our Support Team can migrate the gift cards over to the new Square account/business. Here is a thread that goes over the process a bit more. 

I look forward to hearing from you! ✨

[Anthem]

It's been a long time since I've checked in on some ideas I've advocated for and wished were part of the Square platform. This one remains a mystery as a concept that should be available. Seems like a great opportunity to gain new sellers in the franchise world. It would enable franchise organizations to use marketing and loyalty across businesses independently owned. For our brand, we now have 6 locations. The only reason we don't use e-cards or swipe gift cards across all of them is that we need a way to connect them so gift cards can be used no matter which location a customer visits. 

Any chance something there is progress on this concept? 

[rabidnerd]

What about using a "Custom GAN" and the "Square Gift Cards API". 

In the docs there:

"Custom GANs can enable scenarios that aren't possible with Square-assigned GANs. For example, they can be used for gift card redemptions across multiple Square sellers and channels"

[MayaP]

Hey there @rabidnerd thanks for reaching out and I am happy to assist, can you provide the docs you are referring to? 

[rabidnerd]

Sorry, thought I included the reference. My bad...

Gift Cards API Overview (squareup.com)

Obviously it seems it would be a heavy lift for a run-of-the-mill square store to basically manage this, but it does appear "technically" possible?

[MayaP]

Can you also clarify exactly what you are trying to accomplish? I want to make sure I have a clear understanding to better assist. @rabidnerd 

[rabidnerd]

I'm not yet trying to actually accomplish it, but from the documentation I have seen, if you create a eGift Card with a custom, non-Square assigned number (custom GAN) via the API, that same card can be used at multiple Square accounts IF that same "GAN" (Giftcard Account Number) is configured via API to another account as well, with the effect of a multi-store giftcard.
This would seem to be because you can set up "third-party" things via the API, and therefore the logistics of buying at A and using at B and "settling" between the two appears to be beyond the APIs/Square abilities and would have to be handled/understood/dealt with on the backend of the "third-party" developer/app that both stores use or in the case of a Franchiser/Franchisee then "internally" off of square via reporting.

But that's just my reading of the API documentation.

I am actually perusing the API for other gift card solutions to my problems that are not related to this thread, but this thread came up in a search I was making and I figured maybe this API, which I think is relatively new, might enable at least some to potentially find a way to make something work.

[MayaP]

I am sorry I still do not understand what you are asking or needing to know about the Square API and gift cards @rabidnerd. Again, I would like to help but I am not clear what the ask here is. 

[FPChamber]

Trying to decipher if e-gift cards set up through Square are only able to be set up by for an individual businesses to use...or if an association can use Square e-gift cards can that be set up to be redeemable at multiple businesses.

[PreOrder_Apps]

The only way I can think to do this would be with a Custom API integration - or I have another idea that might be really easy using our Square-powered Mobile Apps. https://getpreorder.com/

Disclosure: We're an official Square Partner and our flagship Square solution is a customizable app called Pre-Order that can handle multiple locations. 

We also invented this, which we were thinking about changing to be a Universal Giftcard App for lots of businesses amid this COVID-19 crisis: https://ewalletforall.com/

And we also made this: https://wereopenapp.com/

We make things that solve problems : )

[nika]

Hey there @FPChamber!

Check out @Helen's Best Answer on this thread where she goes into detail about how both plastic gift cards and egift cards are used within Square. Hopefully her answer helps clarify!

[GoodGuysPizza]

I own a restaurant and am opening another different type of restaurant.  I would like to sell gift cards that would be good at either business.  I think setting up 2 accounts will be best for my businesses.  I would generally like to keep them separate.  I think the cards would be more valuable and sell better if they could be used at both though.