Physical Gift Cards

Physical gift cards are pre-printed cards sold in-store or included in orders. GiftCard Hero lets you import the codes printed on your cards, load them into Shopify as active gift cards, and track their usage.

How physical cards work

Physical gift cards come from a card manufacturer with a unique code printed or embossed on each card. The workflow is:

1. Order cards from your manufacturer (they provide a file with the codes)
2. Import codes into GiftCard Hero
3. Load balances — each code becomes an active Shopify gift card with a set balance
4. Sell cards in-store via POS or online
5. Track usage — redemptions appear in your analytics alongside eGift cards

Importing codes

Preparing your code file

GiftCard Hero accepts a CSV file with one code per row. The file should have a column for the gift card code. If your manufacturer provides a different format, you can remap columns during the import.

Example CSV:

code
ABCD-1234-EFGH-5678
IJKL-9012-MNOP-3456
QRST-7890-UVWX-1234

Running the import

1. Go to eGift Cards → Physical Cards tab
2. Click Import Codes
3. Upload your CSV file
4. Map the code column if needed
5. Set the initial balance for all imported cards
6. Set an optional expiry date
7. Click Import

GiftCard Hero creates a Shopify gift card for each code. This may take a few minutes if you're importing thousands of codes.

Import limits

A single import batch supports up to 10,000 codes. For larger batches, split your file and run multiple imports.

Managing physical card inventory

The Physical Cards tab shows:

• Total codes imported
• Cards sold (codes that have been activated at checkout)
• Cards with remaining balance
• Fully redeemed cards

Activating cards

Physical cards can be pre-loaded (the code is active with a balance as soon as it's imported) or activated on sale (the balance is loaded when the card is sold at checkout or POS).

• Pre-loaded: customers buy the card and the code on it already has value. Common for cards in display stands.
• Activated on sale: the card is worthless until it's scanned at the register. More secure for high-value cards.

Configure this in Physical Cards → Settings before importing.

Selling physical cards

At POS

When a customer buys a physical gift card at your POS terminal, your staff can:

1. Scan or type the code from the back of the card
2. Confirm the balance was loaded correctly
3. Hand the card to the customer

See POS Integration for the full POS flow.

Online

You can list physical gift cards as a product in your Shopify store. When purchased, the customer receives an email with the pre-assigned code from your inventory.

Tracking physical card redemptions

All redemptions (whether in POS or online) appear in GiftCard Hero's analytics and in Shopify Admin under the gift card's transaction history. You can see:

• Which cards have been sold and activated
• Current remaining balances
• Which store location processed each transaction (for multi-location stores)

Common scenarios

Card codes are being rejected at checkout

Check: 1. Was the import completed successfully? Look for any errors in the import history. 2. Is the card's balance greater than $0? 3. Has the card expired? 4. Is the code formatted correctly? Shopify codes are case-insensitive but must match the imported format.

A customer lost their physical card

Physical card codes cannot be replaced automatically — the code is the card. If a customer loses their card, you can:

1. Look up the code in your records
2. Check the remaining balance in GiftCard Hero
3. Manually issue a new eGift card for the remaining balance as a goodwill gesture
4. Disable the old code to prevent misuse

See also: Managing Physical Gift Card Inventory for a full operational guide.