- Key Insight: Discover how digital gift cards shift employee rewards toward immediacy, flexibility, and real-time utility.
- What's at Stake: Employee engagement and retention hinge on reward relevance and seamless redemption experiences.
- Forward Look: Expect wider tap-to-pay integration and reward programs optimized for instant digital redemption.
Source: Bullets generated by AI with editorial review
A growing appetite for online shopping, coupled with more practical applications for gift cards, is reshaping the employee reward and recognition program landscape.
Bill Warshauer, chief revenue officer of Tillo, sees a strong demand for digital gift cards that place greater value on rewards that feel immediate, flexible and genuinely useful in the moments that matter rather than a one-size-fits-all approach or delayed incentives.
"People are recognizing that the words 'gift card' don't mean that you have to give it away as a gift," he explained. "There is this high utility and value opportunity that you can bring forward into your own household and budgeting process."
Digital-payment adoption and tap-to-pay options on smartphones have skyrocketed across North America in terms of utilization, activation and enablement, he said, noting how the process has become nearly frictionless.
Improving the customer experience is about not having to open multiple emails and clicking on several URLs to see a barcode, which some may not even be able to save onto their smartphone. Similar frustration also can occur in fumbling to redeem a digital coupon in a retail store. Both fall short of the ease with which an Amazon order can be placed.
Tiller helps consumers access 4,000 digital gift card brands globally. Popular options include everything from supermarket and restaurant chains to department stores and movie theaters. They even can help ease the sting of high fuel prices at gas stations.
"What we really are looking at is how the mix of brands and choice that we bring forward is going to impact everyday lives because therein lies where the most value is going to be," Warshauer said.
Purchasing for self-use
As many as 70% of U.S. consumers purchased a gift card for self-use in the past 12 months, Warshauer reported, noting that the number rises to 79% among those 18 to 44 years old. Maintaining these little touches in the face of economic uncertainty can go a long way toward boosting employee morale, job satisfaction and retention. In a 2025 survey of 2,500 employees by the Achievers Workforce Institute (AWI), 75% of respondents said scrapping rewards like gift cards, swag or redeemable points would influence their decision to leave a company.
The trouble is that just 25% of employees feel appreciated and engaged at work, according to AWI. When employees feel appreciated, those researchers noted that they are 12 times more likely to find their work meaningful and 17 times more likely to envision a long-term career at their company.
"If you put the right carrot in front of someone, it's going to motivate them, and if it's not just about them, it's about their family," observed Michelle Beyo, CEO of Finavator, whose focus is on bridging the gap for fintechs and traditional banks. "In these times, I'd say that's going to change the game 10 times. The No. 1 noncash incentive is a gift card because it's the gift of choice."
In the prepaid gift card space, Beyo said there are "closed loop" options that include popular merchants like Amazon, Starbucks and Sephora, as well as grocery stores, restaurants, and more. "Open loop" options include Visa, Mastercard and Amex. These cards allow consumers to make purchases without exposing them to fraud, which could happen with core credit cards.
She explained that digital gift cards can be built into health and wellness programs, serving as a tool to help employees reach carrot-like incentives for walking a certain number of steps each day or other physical achievements.
Employee benefit programs and reward and incentive programs have evolved considerably over the years along with consumer expectations, according to Warshauer. Whereas the emphasis used to be on what he called "hard-good merchandise," Amazon changed the game on what people now value most. Employers are using digital platforms in a move away from offline rewards and incentives to boost employee engagement and drive desired behaviors, he said.
Beyo believes the pandemic was a catalyst for digital gift card usage, recalling how her mom embedded a credit card into her Samsung phone as a tap-to-pay option because she didn't want to touch the payment terminal.
"Whether it's the gifter or an employer, I think it's really important in today's society to find a way to feel that connection — like you gave them a memory, which is what loyalty and gift cards do really well," she said.
