Ten visits sold up front and never a lost card again: the digital punch card
Your customer pays for the visits up front and puts the card in Apple or Google Wallet. At every class you scan the QR code and one visit comes off. You both look at the same count.
Why the paper punch card costs you money
The card goes missing
The cardboard slip is in another coat or still on the kitchen table. Your customer stands at the counter with no proof, and you have to choose: give the visit away or start an argument.
Arguments about the count
Was that the sixth visit or the seventh? One faint stamp or one forgotten mark turns every visit into a negotiation. Those two minutes cost you more than the visit brings in.
You cannot see who drops off
A customer with four visits left who has not come in for six weeks goes unnoticed. Paper never tells you who you are about to lose, so you never send that one message.
How a digital punch card works
Three steps, and your customer downloads nothing.
Your customer pays up front and scans
Your customer pays for the ten visit card at the counter. Then they scan the QR code sitting on your counter and fill in their name and phone number.
The card sits in their wallet
The card lands in Apple Wallet or Google Wallet, right next to their bank card. It says it in plain text: 6 of 10 visits left.
Every class takes one visit off
At the class you scan their card and the count drops by one. On the last visit they get a message on their phone, with the next card attached to it.
Which businesses a punch card works for
Businesses that sell per visit and have customers who come back often.
Gyms and yoga studios
Ten classes on one card. Someone who comes twice a week is through it in five weeks and buys the next one.
See this industryMassage salons
Five one hour massages on a card. Customers mostly book every two weeks, so the card runs for ten weeks.
See this industryTanning salons
Ten sessions up front. In spring a customer often comes twice a week, so you watch the card empty out in five weeks.
See this industryWellness and sauna
Ten entries on a card. Count on one visit a week, and a card is a good two months of business.
See this industryPedicures
Five treatments on a card. A customer comes back every six weeks, so that card covers half a year of visits.
See this industryHair salons
Six cuts on a card. At one cut every six weeks your customer is tied to you for nine months.
See this industryPaper, spreadsheet or digital
The same ten visits, three ways to keep track of them.
| What it comes down to | Paper card | Spreadsheet or notebook | Digital in the wallet |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cost | Printing costs per batch, again and again | Free, but it costs you time every visit | Fixed amount per month, no printing |
| Getting lost | Forgotten or lost, and you sort it out | Only you know the count, your customer does not | Sits in the wallet, the phone always comes along |
| Fraud | A stamp is quickly copied | Anyone with the file can add visits | Every visit is on a name, with a time |
| Reminders | Not possible, you wait until they show up | Call or text yourself, customer by customer | Automatic message on the last visit |
| Insight | None, you know nothing until they come | Only if you keep updating it yourself | You see who drops off and what is still open |
| Setting up | Design, print, wait | Half an hour fiddling with columns | Five minutes, then the QR is on the counter |
How many visits, which price, how long valid
Ten visits is the standard
Ten visits feels like a real card and fills up fast enough to build a habit. For expensive services take five. Hardly anyone wants to pay up front ten times for a massage or personal training at fifty euros a session.
Price it 10 to 20 percent under single visits
If a single class costs 15 euros, sell the ten visit card for 130 euros. Your customer saves 20 euros and you get the money up front. Go lower and you are selling a discount instead of loyalty.
Valid for double what they need
Work out how long a customer takes over the card at normal use and double it. At ten visits and one class a week, six months is fair. Shorter feels like being chased, and unlimited means cards that sit around for years.
Frequently asked questions
How does a digital punch card work?
Your customer pays for a number of visits up front and gets a card in Apple Wallet or Google Wallet. It shows how many visits are left. At every visit you scan their card and one visit comes off, and the card on their phone updates itself. On the last visit they get a message with the next card attached.
How do I make a punch card myself?
In five minutes. You create an account, choose the number of visits and put your own name and colours on the card. Then you get a QR code to print and lay on the counter. The first customer who scans has their card on their phone two minutes later. You need no designer and no technical knowledge.
How long should a punch card stay valid?
Double what a customer needs at normal use. If they come once a week and you sell ten visits, six months is a fair term. Too short and your customer feels chased. Valid forever and your cards stay open for years, while you have no idea who is still coming.
Can a customer share their punch card?
That is your call. Every card is on a name and every visit is logged with a time and a team member, so you see it straight away when two people use the same card. Want to allow sharing inside a family, then put that in your terms. Do not want it, then ask for the name on the card when in doubt.
Does it work without my customer installing an app?
Yes. The card goes into Apple Wallet or Google Wallet, and those are already on every phone. Your customer scans a QR code and taps add once. No app, no password, no account. If someone has no smartphone, you look them up in the dashboard and take the visit off there.
What does a digital punch card cost?
Testing is free with three phones and no credit card. When you go live you pick a plan of 54, 104 or 249 euros per month excluding VAT, and every plan starts with 14 days free. Pay yearly and you pay for ten months instead of twelve. You cancel yourself, whenever you want.
Put your punch card on the counter today
Make your card, print the QR code and let your first customer scan it this afternoon. Testing is free with three phones.