How To Make Your Own Printable Gift Certificate

You've decided to make your own gift certificate to offer in your business. Congratulations! You are joining a growing trend: last year, more than 23 billions of dollars worth of gift cards have been sold in the United States.

How can you make your own gift certificate? First, keep in mind that quality will play a very big role in convincing customers to buy it. So you should feel at ease with design if you want to do it yourself. Alternatively, you may want to check http://www.giftcertificatefactory.com for ready-to-print professionally designed templates, or if you are willing to spend more money, you could hire a designer to do it. In that case, budget for a few hundred dollars to have the gift certificate customized to your business.

Information to put in a gift certificate

You should at least write the following information on the gift certificate:

- name of your company
- recipient's name
- gift certificate value (dollars) or service provided
- a serial number identifying the gift certificate

You can have the following optional information:

- logo of your business
- details of your business (address, website)
- giver's name (likely, the person who will buy the gift certificate)
- signature
- any other information you find relevant to a gift certificate

What is the ideal format for a gift certificate?

You can have your own format of course, but the most common format is 8" X 4" (inches). You can use standard 8" X 11" (inches) paper or custom paper. Make sure you use paper of good quality, as it will make a big difference in how your customers will perceive it. Remember, this is a gift, so it has to look neat. You need to make the customer buying the gift certificate proud of buying it. Similarly, use a good printer or if you don't have one, use the services of a professional printer. It will cost you a few dollars but it will certainly be worth it. Go check in the yellow pages or online to see which local shops offer professional printing and shop around.

How to design your gift certificate

- you can browse for pictures matching your business (if you make a spa gift certificate, look for "spa pictures" online), or you can use ready-made templates in your software of choice. We will sum up the main steps of how to make your own gift certificate using microsoft word:

- go to the microsoft word online download center
- choose "browse templates"
- select "gift certificates" then "filter template" and finally "Word".
- you have now a selection of gift certificate templates. Choose the design and layout that suit your business best.
- download it and add the necessary information

Additional considerations when making your own gift certificate

You will need to keep track of gift certificates to make sure people can't fraud, which would be very costly to your business. To get the most out of your gift certificates, you might consider to read our article on how to sell more gift certificates

By: tom villepin

Article Directory: http://www.articledashboard.com

Gift Certificate Factory provides printable gift certificates that you can print and sell to your customers. You can also find additional resources about how to sell gift certificates and gift certificate articles for small businesses.