Gift Certificates

Many properties sell and accept Gift Certificates as a normal course of business. To set up a Gift Certificate system in BookingCenter, we recommend the following setup.

Preparing a Gift Certificate System:

• First, go to your MyPMS and go to Setup | Parameters | Inventory Items. Create and an inventory item called "Gift Certificate Sold" the total cost of the Gift Certificate can be written at the time it's sold.
• Then, create a new Receipt Type. Go to Setup | Parameters | Receipt Types called "Gift Certificate Redeemed". NOTE: DO NOT "Publish to Internet" in your Members Area as you usually DON'T want folks paying for an online booking with a Gift Certificate, as there is no way to monitor its appropriate use online.

Managing Gift Certificates On a Daily Basis
When you get a person who wants to BUY a Gift Certificate, sell them one in the House Accounts Screen (Front Desk | House Accounts). Make sure you place the Gift Certificate number in the Description field so that you have a note attached in BookingCenter that shows which Gift Certificate number you sold, to whom, and on what date.

When a customer wants to pay for their bookings - or other sale items such as a beverage, shirt, mug - with a Gift Certificate, simply choose the Payment type: "Gift Certificate Redeemed" when issuing a receipt and place the number for the redeeming Gift Certificate in the description field, and voila! You have a record of when you redeemed the Gift Certificate.

It's good practice to update your spreadsheet of Gift Certificates when you sell and redeem them. Reports can help you balance your Gift Certificate program. There are two ways to do this in MyPMS:

1. To find out when you sold a Gift Certificate, choose Reports |Accounting | Transactions and choose the date range desired and the Transaction Type ("Gift Certificate Sold") and a list of all the Gift Certificates you SOLD will appear with specific Sale reference information.
2. To find out when and to whom you redeemed a Gift Certificate, choose Reports |Accounting | Transactions and choose the date range desired and the Transaction Type ("Gift Certificate Redeemed") and choose the date range desired. A list of all the Gift Certificates you REDEEMED will appear with the note containing the Gift Certificate number.

Make a list of the Gift Certificates you sell - using the numbering system you like. In one column, write the Gift Certificate number; in another the Date Sold; in another the Quantity (in $$); in another the Date Redeemed. Many of our properties use a spreadsheet (MS Excel or Lotus 1-2-3) to list the Gift Certificate they are selling and the date at which they were redeemed.