2. why cards?
®
The “Gift Card” Market
• Americans buying gift
cards: 75%
• Avg. spent per person:
$125-150
• Annual Market Size:
$20-24B
How many are local?
Property of Buy it Local, LLC | confidential information not for distribution 2
3. why cards?
®
Cards for local stores & cards for spending within
local areas only represents approx. 5% (est.)
lo cal
x . 5%
Ap pro
Here’s real leakage out of local markets
Property of Buy it Local, LLC | confidential information not for distribution 3
4. why cards?
®
The Importance:
Lost Sales Income for Local Retailers
• High% of local or
smaller retailers are
adversely impacted.
• As national card trends
grow, local retail gets
farther behind in
sales opportunities.
• Leakage of buying
power is becoming
increasingly critical
to the tax base
across the U.S.
Property of Buy it Local, LLC | confidential information not for distribution 4
5. economic future
®
the state of our nation
•Spending Has Outstripped GDP
•Public Debt Exceeds 13.7Trillion
Property of Buy it Local, LLC | confidential information not for distribution 5
6. national problems
®
the state of our nation
•
It’s imperative for local/regional
/state communities to have a plan
to capture any & all
available consumer
dollars & taxes
NOW to negotiate the growing
budget crunch and contraction in
consumer spending.
Property of Buy it Local, LLC | confidential information not for distribution 6
7. results
®
2009 Holiday Spending Trend
Buy it*Downtown vs. National
18%
17%
16%
U.S. Adj.for Returns+
14%
% Change 2008-2009
12%
10% U.S.*
8%
6%
Buy it*Downtown
4% 1% 1.60%
2% +Source: MasterCard
*Source: ShopperTrak
0% New York Times, Dec.30,2009
U.S. Adj.for Returns+ U.S.* Buy it*Downtown
● Buy it*Downtown showed 963 -1,600% increase above national averages
Source: Internal Data, Buy it*Dow ntow n, January 4, 2010
•Buy it*® community card programs have shown they
can increase spending to local merchants through their
program many times the national average .
7
Property of Buy it Local, LLC | confidential information not for distribution
8. Local Card Program results
Counters Negative Economy
®
1,124% increase
1.0%
0.7% May - Dec.
0.5% National personal
0.5% consumption
expenditures
National Consumer
0.0% Spending Trendline
-0.1%
-0.2% Buy it Downtown-
-0.5% -0.4% Chattanooga
Redemptions
-1.0% -0.8% Sources: Dept.of
Commerce,
-1.1% -1.0%
Bureau of
Economic
Analysis,
-1.5% 2.2.2009; Buy
it*Downtown
Internal Data,
May.’08‐Dec.’08
•While national consumer spending trends downward,
Buy it*® community card programs have shown they can
drive new spending to local merchants .
8
Property of Buy it Local, LLC | confidential information not for distribution
9. ®
Buy it*®Cards is a
buy local program that’s
more than talk-
it locks in dollars for your
merchants and community
& creates measurable
results…
even in recession.
Property of Buy it Local, LLC | confidential information not for distribution 9
10. how it works
®
COMMUNITY CARD SYSTEMS
Property of Buy it Local, LLC | confidential information not for distribution
WORK JUST LIKE A GIFT CARD OR PREPAID CARD
electronic tracking across merchants
auto funds transfer for merchant settlement
online account balances for enrollees
online admin reports 10
Making it easier to patronize local merchants with contemporary consumer retail tools
11. target target
champions
®
card buyers
•City, Regional or State Elected •Corporate/Businesses
Officials -Employee Rewards
•Economic Development
-Customer Incentives
Programs (local, regional, state)
•Defined (Retail) Corridors -Gifting
•Tourism / Convention Agencies •Tourists
•Chambers of Commerce •Schools
•Private, Multi-tenant Retail •Colleges
Developers
●Corporate Community
•Hospitals
•Private Colleges/Schools •Doctors Offices
●Merchant Associations •Realtors
●Private Foundations •Developers
•Revitalization Programs
•Defined geographies,
•Professional
neighborhoods •Groups-reunions, tours
●Urban/Downtown Areas •Conventions
•Community Based Programs/ •Individuals
Organizations
Ideal for volume sales!
Property of Buy it Local, LLC | confidential information not for distribution 11
12. how it works
®
Easy-to-Use!
Property of Buy it Local, LLC | confidential information not for distribution
• no activation required
• card registration encouraged for added
protection if lost or stolen
• reloadable – at any sales location or online
• online card balance & statements*
• one card, useable at multi-locations
• no fees or penalties if used at least once
every 12 months**
• any denomination $10-$500
*registered cardholder benefits 12
**cards not used at least once in 12 months don’t help our economy! Inactivity fees of $5/month against unused balances
will be charged until you use the card again
13. why buy cards?
®
– Visibly demonstrate your commitment
to your merchants & local economy
– Be counted
Your transactions only count towards our community goal if you use a
community card so it can be tracked
– Give great gifts, while helping community too
– Support/contribute to community economic
development efforts- without spending more
Simply switch what you would normally give for gifts or rewards that you had
budgeted & achieve 2 results with your purchase!
– Help build your retail planning database
Using your card as often as possible will help us track retail patterns which
are helpful in understanding our merchant support and expansion efforts.
– Help protect your local tax base
Purchases out of area lead to lower tax collections = higher tax rates
– Higher economic impact
By stopping consumer leakage from our market, we can actually grow our
economy with less new investment 13
Property of Buy it Local, LLC | confidential information not for distribution
14. why buy cards?
®
– It’s an awesome gift- with lots of choice!
People love them!
– There’s something for everyone.
– It’s easy!
It’s the hip way
to buy local.
14
Property of Buy it Local, LLC | confidential information not for distribution
15. ® You can make a
difference
on small businesses
& your local economy,
just by how you spend
your money-
maximize your impact
by buying & spending
community cards
Property of Buy it Local, LLC | confidential information not for distribution 15
16. other benefits of our community card program:
more than cards
®
… a call to action for campaigns
16
Property of Buy it Local, LLC | confidential information not for distribution
17. other benefits of our community card program:
more than cards
®
…perfect complement for Special Events
17
Property of Buy it Local, LLC | confidential information not for distribution
18. other benefits of our community card program:
more than cards
®
… tools for promotion & engaging community
Wi n n e r
epstakes th
Sw e
Decemb er 24
•Card programs are more than a product
•Cards are a vehicle to connect, build
excitement AND steer dollars to your
merchants!
18
Property of Buy it Local, LLC | confidential information not for distribution
19. more than cards
®
… tons of occasions & uses
•your card designs
•Unlimited card styles
● …the possibilities are endless!
“Thank you for Visiting x City” cards … ALL
“Shop x City” cards
“Thank You” customer cards
designed to
“Welcome to xCity” cards drive $ to
“Come Explore xCity” cards your local
“Night-on-the-Town” cards businesses
“Student Advantage” cards
19
Property of Buy it Local, LLC | confidential information not for distribution
20. Triple Visibility
®
Every Card Has Visibility / Impacts at Least 3 Persons:
1 2
d
XYZ Local Gift Car
Buyer 3 Receiver
(cardholder)
1 or More Merchants
•Card programs can increase the number involved & affected
by you‐ reinforces brand of sponsors too!
20
Property of Buy it Local, LLC | confidential information not for distribution
21. Broaden Support
®
Card Programs Connect & Engage ACROSS the Community
Corporate Community
(card buyers)
Consumers/
Government General
(tax beneficiaries) Public
(card buyers &
cardholders)
Realtors/
Developers Merchants/
(card buyers & Local
merchant
incentives)
Retailers
(redeeming/
Community sales locations)
Groups/
Schools/Others
(card buyers & cardholders)
21
Property of Buy it Local, LLC | confidential information not for distribution
22. potential uses
® Shopping / Gift / Community Prepaid Cards
Gift/prepaid cards for defined geography (holiday, special
occasions, etc)- retail and corporate | Tourism & Visitor
Cards | Attractions | Special purpose cards
Employee Performance Rewards
Reaching/exceeding targets | Attendance | Community
service | Other
Health Improvements
Weight management goals | Exercise participation
Smoking cessation | Health education participation
Vaccinations/shots | Annual physicals | Other exams /
routine checkups | Below Average Sick Days | Other
Property of Buy it Local, LLC | confidential information not for distribution 22
23. potential uses
®
Green Friendly & Environmental Stewardship
Recycling participation | Weatherization | Energy efficient
purchasing | Green friendly building construction | More!
Government or Citizenship Rewards
Timely or early tax payments | Reduced natural resource
consumption (i.e. water) | Charitable service or
contributions | Parking rewards
Schools / Colleges
Parental Involvement Rewards | Student Performance
Incentives | Off Campus Student Life Cards | Meal Plans
23
24. merchant benefits
®
– Competitive Alternative to National Cards
$24B industry/year
– Capture & Steer Consumer Dollars to You
– Brings NEW Business
survey of card buyers show 90+% bought other gift card type options before
– Extends Holiday Buying Season
– Better Positioned to Capture
Group/Corporate Business
multi-merchant advantage, few merchants can achieve on own
– Marketing & Promotion with Participation
web directory, card listings; potential blast emails, campaigns, more
24
Property of Buy it Local, LLC | confidential information not for distribution
25. merchant benefits
®
– Stone Soup & Market Differentiation
creates more than sum of parts, creates a totally unique offering
– Consumers Like Them
cards are sexy & convenient, people love them & love having choice!
– Electronic Tracking
get your reports online
– Merchants Can Sell Cards,
Drive Traffic to Location
– Easy Operation
mom & pops to cinemas, groceries, boutiques & restaurants-it’s easy for everyone
– Local Retail Statistics
builds database of local consumer patterns for future retail planning
& understanding of your marketplace
25
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26. more results *
®
• Merchant ROI Avg.: 711%
• High Performing ROI: 2,900-4,900%
• Avg. Spending Beyond Card Face Value: 40%
• Avg. Card Sales Growth: 75-135% annually
• Avg. Value Card Sold: $40.00
• Avg. Redemption: $ 17.53
*your own card program results may vary depending on the composition of your merchant network,
geography and sales efforts; the profile above is based on current program averages and does not
guarantee exact results
Property of Buy it Local, LLC | confidential information not for distribution 26
27. more than cards
®
one-of-a-kind reporting and tracking system
…the results are measurable!
The buy it*® proprietary, web based management system
is the only turnkey card program available specifically
designed for economic development & planning use.
27
Property of Buy it Local, LLC | confidential information not for distribution
28. about buy it*®
®
• specializes in custom, private electronic card networks
• buy it*® is the leading turnkey card program specifically
designed for communities & economic development
Property of Buy it Local, LLC | confidential information not for distribution 28
29. “Community”
buy it*® creates
®
Card Systems
Card systems for local
spending to help
grow local economies
Property of Buy it Local, LLC | confidential information not for distribution 29
30. about us
®
who are the creators of Buy it*®
Buy it*® community card programs leverage consumer technologies
and national transaction processing platforms to create customized,
local transaction networks to steer and track spending for economic
development purposes. Buy it*® community economic tools are
created by Buy it Local, LLC.
Buy it Local developed and implemented the flagship community card
program for downtown Chattanooga, Tennessee known as “Buy
it*downtown®” which began operation in 2007.
Buy it Local Company expertise includes:
economic development, banking, technology, strategic planning, finance, retail
Property of Buy it Local, LLC | confidential information not for distribution 30
31. building on success
®
expanding a model that already works
Beta Site Program: Buy it*Downtown® (Chattanooga)
•Buy it*downtown® currently operates the community card program
for downtown Chattanooga.
•Buy it*downtown® started in partnership with the Lyndhurst and
Benwood Foundations in 2007 to benefit downtown merchants.
•Even though the program exists for a limited geographic footprint and
was started during the economic recession, it has experienced triple
digit growth and successfully created over $1M in economic impact in
a short time.
•Blue Cross Blue Shield Tennessee is an active participant in the
downtown community card program. Using Buy it*downtown® cards
as their exclusive holiday gift and one of two approved management
rewards option. BCBST has channeled budgeted corporate employee
expenses to directly benefit some 80 local merchants, instead of using
online and other vendors.
It’s this type of choice that can have a real stimulus effect on
businesses. Buy it Local has tools to make it happen.
Property of Buy it Local, LLC | confidential information not for distribution 31
32. operating performance
®
Buy it*® is the best of both worlds:
robust, national architecture
+ local market customization
Buy it*Transaction Network:
0% Down Time
Transaction Platform Volume/Yr:
4Million
EFT Platform Volume/Yr:
$1B
32
Property of Buy it Local, LLC | confidential information not for distribution
33. locations
®
Transaction Network Platform: Massachusetts & Colorado
Data Centers/Hosting: Colorado & California
EFT Processing Platform: Tennessee
Customer Service: Tennessee
Technical Support: Tennessee
Payment Processing: Tennessee
Decision Support Programming: Tennessee
Systems Integration: Tennessee
Sales: Tennessee
Buy it*®Headquarters: Chattanooga, TN
Property of Buy it Local, LLC | confidential information not for distribution 33
34. contact us
®
to learn more
website: www.buyitcards.com
email: admin@buyitcards.com
phone: (888)88 -buy it
(423)643-0715
Buy it*®Cards is a product and service of Buy it Local, LLC.
We would love to work with you to benefit your economy,
businesses and community.
Property of Buy it Local, LLC | confidential information not for distribution 34