The estimated reading time for this post is 6 minutes
Have you ever given a gift card to someone who never used the card? Did you feel as if your money was wasted? Have you ever lost or forgotten about a gift card then felt guilty that the giver wasted money?
One of biggest issues with gift cards is the money that’s wasted when they aren’t used. Gift cards can be lost, forgotten or thrown in the back of a sock drawer with the best intentions to use it later. Your hard-earned cash has been transformed into a useless card that benefits no one except, perhaps, the store’s bottom line.
Leif Baradoy, the founder and CEO of Kiind, launched his business with a radical idea: Let people send gift cards and pay for them only when the gift card is used. Kiind gift cards eliminate the problem of you throwing away your money on gift cards that aren’t ever used. Kiind only charges you when the gift cards are used, not when you send them.
I recently spoke with Baradoy about how Kiind has changed the concept of gift cards. Baradoy explained that this year over $10 billion in pre-paid gift cards will go unused and that Kiind can help to eliminate that waste. “Our logic is retailers get paid when cards get used. We’re really excited about the innovation that we’re bringing. The frustrations people have with prepaid gift cards, that problem is long overdue to be solved. We’re really on the forefront of creating more value and making it less risky to give someone a gift card.”
Kiind lets you choose gift cards from major retailers such as Gap, iTunes, Amazon, Home Depot, Nike and more. You can also use Kiind to send gift cards for some local businesses in certain cities. “We have over 2500 local businesses in some select Canadian cities and in San Francisco and Los Angeles. That includes everything from great restaurants to spas and salons,” said Baradoy.
Kiind can come in handy for those who have a tight budget at the holidays. Instead of paying for gift cards immediately, you can pay later, assuming your recipients don’t rush out and use their cards right away. Baradoy says that Kiind is designed for “generous people who want to show their appreciation but want to be prudent with their spending.”
This video is one of the best I’ve seen explaining how something works, not only for how well it explains Kiind, but for how delightfully entertaining and informative it is. Take a short break and check out this video:
Sending a Kiind Gift Card
Kiind makes it simple to send a gift card. Just head to the Kiind website, create an account, add the recipients’ email address, add your credit card information, choose a gift card, write a message and send it. You won’t be charged for the gift card until it’s used.
Baradoy explained, “Kiind is like an app store. You only need to plug in your credit card once. You can select one or multiple gifts to send, add the email addresses, compose a personal email, and hit send. Until the recipient says, ‘Yes, I’m ready to use the gift card,’ you will not be charged for the gift card purchase. Your credit card is pre-authorized for the amount of the gift to make sure that the card will be funded.”
You can also choose the date and time you want the gift card to be sent and when the card expires. “We allow the giver to set an expiry date on the gift card. So if the recipient hasn’t used the gift card within a certain period of time, that offer expires and the credit card is no longer on the hook for that amount,” said Bardaroy. The default expiry date is six months from the date the card is sent.
Kiind sends you a notice when the gift card is used and a reminder to the recipient if the card hasn’t been used before the expiry date.
Kiind gives you some options when you send your gift card that makes the service handy for individuals and businesses. You can easily add a logo and another image to your message to personalize the experience. You can send multiple gift cards at once if your gift list is long.
Kiind also gives you the option of letting the recipient donate the gift card to charity. “We have a number of different well-reputed charitable partners such as Red, Operation Homefront, The Conservation Fund, and a number of other national organizations where people can put the value of their gift cards. It makes the act of giving so genuine on our platform,” said Baradoy.
Redeeming a Kiind Gift Card
When you send a Kiind gift card, the recipient gets an email notice with your message along with the gift card. The recipient doesn’t need to create an account with Kiind or even own a smartphone. The recipient is notified via email with a note “Powered by Kiind” at the bottom.
If the gift is for an online store, the recipient can click through the email to use the card. If the gift is for a retail store, the recipient can print the card and bring it into the store or show the gift card on their smartphone in the store.
What Else You Need to Know
Kiind operates in the US and Canada and accepts Visa, Mastercard and American Express credit cards.
Kiind charges a small fee for each card. Baradoy explained, “We charge a per gift processing fee that ranges from $0.35 to $1.00, a one-time fee on each gift.We believe our platform provides a great deal of value to our users and we haven’t had anyone blink an eye about our small processing fee when we’re potentially saving them hundreds of thousands of dollars on unused gift cards.”
My Test
I tested Kiind by buying Amazon gift cards for several loved ones (shh…don’t tell them!). The process was easy: I created an account, entered my credit card information, added email addresses, selected the gift card and the amount, wrote a note, set the send and expiry dates, and hit the Send button. I was charged only for the service fee, not for the entire amount of the gift cards.
Customer service was speedy too. I tried to used my Discover credit card and received an error message on the Kiind website. I clicked on “Support” in the left menu and a pop up window appeared. I wrote to ask which credit cards were accepted and I received my answer within an hour.
Bottom Line
If you’re sending gift cards, check out Kiind, a personalize gift card that lets you pay later.
Your Thoughts
Do you like the idea of gift cards that let you pay later? Have you ever felt you wasted money on a gift card that wasn’t used? Did you watch that great Kiind video? Let us know in the Comments section below!
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Blog News
Many thanks to Silviu Constantinescu and Sylviane Nuccio for naming me and The Wonder of Tech in their end-of-the-year blog posts. I am honored to be chosen by fellow bloggers and suggest you check out their excellent blogs:
Exceptional Bloggers and their Wonderful Hearts, at Net Market Success, by Silviu Constantinescu
27 Bloggers I’m Thankful For, at SylvianeNuccio.com by Sylviane Nuccio
Hi Carolyn,
This IS awesome indeed 🙂
I loved the video, very entertaining indeed, and also the gentleman explaining everything was hilarious at times, making it all the more fun to learn along.
I’d never heard of Kiiind earlier, and I think the concept is very good, especially when you aren’t charged anything more than the service charges, unless the person at the other end receives your gift. So, it does save you your money (but not many would say no to a free gift too!) if it’s not used. I liked the concept of charity in this one as well, so if they don’t want to use your gift, they can pass it along to charity.
Perfect timing for this post, just as your other weekly posts this past month Carolyn. I DO hope you take a little break now, as you’ve already send your Kiind gift card, and knowing you, made timely arrangement for other things too. 🙂
Thanks for sharing all of this with us. Have a nice and relaxing weekend 🙂
Hi Harleena, Isn’t this great? I was so excited to share Kiind with Wonder of Tech readers as soon as I heard about this. Such a brilliant idea, it’s surprising that it hadn’t been invented sooner.
But Kiind not only lets you pay later, it’s also easy to use, which makes it a winner in my book.
I’m so glad you checked out Kiind’s cool video. I wish all videos were as entertaining and informative as that one. They really did a great job conveying their message while giving us a giggle!
A fellow blogger asked me today if I had read your blog post about taking a break. She said she thought you were writing about me in particularl, lol! You would be proud of me only publishing 3 times this week. I had to hold back though, there is so much great tech to share!
I will take a break this weekend and not publish until Monday, okay? 😉
Have a super weekend, Harleena!
Hi Carolyn
What an awesome idea!
In this day and age it is so hard to come up with the right gift and then to ensure that it really is used and appreciated.
With this idea, I can see it taking off for sure.
I was just in the process of sorting out a weekend away for my parents in Australia, and that was harder than it should be, but when dealing with a small business, these services are just not available. Should be all good in the end, and quite a surprise for them!
have a great xmas
ashley
Hi Ashley, I completely agree with you. This concept of paying for gift cards when they are used is simple but brilliant. I am very excited to use Kiind because it gives the recipients extra incentive to use the cards but I’m not wasting money if they don’t.
I hope your parents have a wonderful and fun trip! Happy holidays, Ashley. 🙂
I just wanted to personally say thank you for the in depth article on Kiind and how it works. I like that you have highlighted every aspect of Kiind and taken time to explore each one. This is fantastic.
I also say thank you on behalf of all of us at Kiind.
Hi Erika, Welcome to The Wonder of Tech! I was so excited to learn about Kiind and share it with Wonder of Tech readers. Your concept of charging givers only after a gift card is used is innovative and helpful. Your website and customer service are other reasons why I was excited to tell my readers about Kiind.
Thanks for stopping by and reaching out here at The Wonder of Tech, Ericka. Best wishes for much continued success with Kiind.
Now that’s very handy Carolyn and I really like that. I usually just give Visa cards because I know they can use those anywhere and I know they do get used.
I think though for a lot of people this is very convenient and like you said, you can do this transaction all online which we KNOW people just love today.
By the way, that was a very entertaining video I agree. Great explanation and enjoyable to watch, that’s a winner.
Thanks for this share Carolyn and Merry Christmas.
~Adrienne
Hi Adrienne, Yes, if you’re a fan of giving gift cards then you’ll be a fan of Kiind. I’m using it a lot now as it’s such an easy and convenient way to give a gift. I’ve used it for Amazon and iTunes, much handier than fighting crowds at the stores!
Merry Christmas to you too, Adrienne!
Wow this is really awesome and informative article, I wasn’t aware that our wasted money on gift cards can be saved. By using Kiind we can save lot of money if it’s not used at all.
I’ll surely try it!
Thanks for sharing wonderful article!
Hi Samir, I’m so glad you’re excited about Kiind. It makes so much sense! I just bought another Kiind card last night, such an easy and convenient way to give a thoughtful gift.
Hi Carolyn – I was getting all excited about this, then saw it only operates in the US and Canada – what a shame! Maybe the’ll extend the service one day – it’s certainly a really neat idea. And I agree – the video’s excellent 🙂
Hi Susan, Yes, I agree, Kiind should be worldwide! They’re still a young company though so perhaps Australia will be an area for expansion for them.
Hi Carolyn,
This is cool,
Really world is going into tech, Everything has become computerized now this too. Thats really great. Its really a great idea of sharing, Thanks for the post.
Hi Dilip, Welcome to The Wonder of Tech! Yes, sometimes tech can make life a lot easier and Kiind is one of those times. Thanks for sharing your thoughts with us.
Hi Carolyn,
Wow… Definitely, I love the idea and was thinking of how much time we can save 🙂 Yeah, online shopping is saving our time but their website is very user friendly. No gibberish, not complicated! Just created an account up there. Excellent and a timely find!:)
Ha ha… I agree with you about the video! The video is very informative and entertaining indeed 🙂 Didn’t even feel like a product related video at all.
It’s yet limited for US and Canada, but I hope they will extend it to operate globally. I know, I need a long wait up here 😉 Anyway, still I can send gifts to those who live in those countries, right? Now this may come in handy for me when I wanna send gifts for someone in those countries. Did you find it’s better than Facebook gifts?
One last question 😀 lol… Did you hear about any mobile apps of theirs Carolyn? 🙂 Having an app would be awesome. Isn’t it?
Sorry for the loads of questions though 😉 But I know you love ’em.
You have a lovely week there and Merry Christmas for you and your family Carolyn 🙂
Cheers…
Hi Mayura, Yes, you’re right, Kiind is so simple to use they don’t need a video. But what a wonderful way to demonstrate their unique concept with a video that give a giggle!
Yes, I was very excited to learn about Kiind and I would have written about them any time of year, but the holiday season is especially timely.
No, Kiind doesn’t have a mobile app yet, but you can access their website via your browser on your mobile device.
Great question about whether someone from outside the US and Canada can send a Kiind gift card to someone in those countries. I will have to ask Kiind about that!
Thanks so much for your kind wishes. A very Merry day to you too!
Agree! 😉 It’s just simple enough to use, but video is definitely convincing for those who never been to the site, nah? They have done an excellent job!
Mmm… I thought it was possible as the gifts are still circulating in US or Canada dear 🙂 May be not, eh? Yeah, gotta ask the right person and hope the answer will be “YES”.
Now, I got more than enough food to digest today Carolyn 😉 Gotta go! That’s why I love X’mas though I don’t celebrate it 😀
Have FUN!
Cheers…
Hi Mayura, Well, you got your answer straight from the CEO of Kiind, Mayura, isn’t that great? Now you know you can send anyone in the US or Canada a Kiind gift card, Mayura.
Thanks for your helpful question, Mayura!
Hi Carolyn,
Owh YEAH! Great indeed dear 🙂
That’s very “Kiind” of him 😉 Thanks for directing the question for right person too.
I thought it may possible but again thoughts popping up with “What if?”. If it wasn’t supported, either I had to close the account or have an idle online account 😉
Thanks again for getting the answer to my question dear 🙂
Cheers…
Yes, Mayura, very cool. During our interview I asked Leif those questions (though not the one about someone outside the US/Canada purchasing a gift card) and he said that Kiind pre-approves the credit card when the giver purchases the Kiind gift card and checks monthly that the credit card is still active and in good standing until the gift card is used. Givers also get a reminder close the the expiration date of the credit card. So no worries there, Mayura!
Mayura,
With Kiind, you can send a gift card to someone in Canada or the USA, even if you don’t live in Canada or the USA. We’re working on adding more countries.
Best,
Leif
Hi Leif, Welcome to The Wonder of Tech! Thank you very much for stopping by to answer Mayura’s question. I’m thinking that his question and your response will be helpful to many other Wonder of Tech readers as well.
Hi Leif,
Great! Thanks for the good news 🙂 Then I can make use of Kiind when gifting friends and relatives. Yeah, counting on more countries too.
Cheers…
Hello Carolyn,
Never heard of Kiind, but during these holiday season I’m using online shopping gift card to send it to loved ones. Using Kiind could surely save lot of money I guess.
Thanks for sharing
Hi Itender, yes, Kiind is a very efficient way to send gift cards. You can even schedule them to be sent months ahead of time and not worry about paying for them until much later.