Configuring Gift Cards to be Issued and Used for Transactions

• About Gift Cards
  • Unloaded Gift Cards to be Issued at a MealSuite POS Station
  • Loaded Gift Cards (Purchaesd Outside of MealSuite ) to be Given to Residents
• Creating a Gift Card Profile
• Creating a Gift Card Load Product for the POS (for Unloaded Gift Cards)
  • Create a Gift Card Category
  • Creating the Gift Card Load Product
  • Add the Gift Card Load Product to the POS Grid
• Adding a Loaded Gift Card that will be Pre-Issued
• Tracking Gift Card Balances
• Running the Gift Card Balance Report

About Gift Cards

Unloaded Gift Cards to be Issued at a MealSuite POS Station

Unloaded gift cards can be purchased from MealSuite for your facility. To do so, please reach out to your MealSuite account executive. Unloaded gift cards can also be purchased outside of MealSuite.

To allow unloaded gift cards to be issued at a POS station, the following prerequisite configuration steps are required: 

• A gift card profile needs to be configured (per steps below).
• A gift card load product needs to be configured (per steps below). 

Loaded Gift Cards (Purchased Outside of MealSuite) to be Given to Residents

If a facility purchases loaded gift cards outside of MealSuite to give to their residents, then these gift cards first need to be manually entered into the system via the Touch Admin software (per steps below) so that records exist in the system for the gift cards to be used for transactions. For a loaded gift card that will be issued to a resident, a gift card profile needs to be configured (per steps below) but not a gift card load product. 

For prepaid gift cards from a credit card company (VISA, Mastercard, etc.), no pre-configuration steps are necessary in the Touch Admin software because the gift card will be processed as a credit card. 

Creating a Gift Card Profile

A gift card profile contains your organization’s accounting system parameters (business line, department, and liability GL account). When a gift card is issued to a customer at a POS location, the transaction will be applied against the account system parameters of the profile. 

Note: Accounting system parameters are set up your MealSuite implementation specialist or MealSuite Support (if you are MealSuite staff, click here for the internal documentation on setting up accounting system parameters). However, if your facility does not have or want account system parameters set up, then "dummy" account system parameters will be created by your implementation specialist to allow the gift card profile to be created. 

In addition, if the gift card profile is created at a parent facility account, then there is the option to select the child facilities that will use the parent's gift card profile when a gift card is issued by that facility. If so, then it is not necessary for a child facility account to create their own gift card profile. 

To create a gift card profile, complete the following steps:

1. In Touch Admin, select POS Settings > Gift Cards. The Gift Card Profile screen appears.
2. In the Gift Card Profiles section, click the Add a Gift Card Profile button.
3. Enter or select the following:
   • Name - enter the name of the gift card profile. If the profile is being created at a parent-level facility, it is recommended to enter a name that indicates such.
   • Business line, Department and Liability GL Account - select the accounting system parameters of the profile. 
   • Authorized Secondary Facilities - if your facility is a parent facility with existing child facilities, then from here there is the option to select the child facilities that will use the parent's gift card profile when a gift card is issued by that child facility. 
4. Click the Save button to apply your changes
   • You are returned to the main screen where the newly-added gift card profile is listed in the Gift Card Profiles section.

Creating a Gift Card Load Product for the POS (for Unloaded Gift Cards)

To configure unloaded gift cards to be issued at a POS station, a "gift card load" product needs to be created. The gift card load product can be configured with a fixed amount or configured with a variable setting that allows an amount to be inputted by the POS operator when issuing the gift card. 

• Create a Gift Card Category
• Creating the Gift Card Load Product
• Add the Gift Card Load Product to the POS Grid

Create a Gift Card Category

Before creating a gift card load product, create an appropriate category to assign the gift card load product to (e.g. a “Gift Card” category). Apply the category to non-food products and associate it with an appropriate asset GL account. See Creating Non-Menu Categories in POS for Products and Services.

Creating the Gift Card Load Product

Once you have a category to assign the gift card load product to, complete the following steps to create the gift card load product:

1. In Touch Admin, select POS Settings > Products. The POS Products screen appears.
2. Click the Add a Product button. The Add a Product screen appears.
3. Select of enter the following information:
   1. Name - enter a name for the gift card load product that will appear in the POS for selection by the POS operator. 
   2. Product Type - Select Gift Card Load.
   3. Category - select the category to assign the gift card load product to. 
   4. Gift Card Policy - select the gift card profile to associate with the gift card load product. If you are a child facility account, it may be that your parent account's gift card profile is available to select (if authorized).
   5. Refill type - select Variable or Fixed. 
      1. Variable - the price will be entered on the POS by the POS operator when the gift card is scanned for purchase. 
      2. Fixed- enter the starting balance in the Amount field.
4. Click the Submit button. You are returned to the main page, where the newly-added gift card load product is listed. Your next step is to add the gift card load product to the POS grid, as described below. 

Add the Gift Card Load Product to the POS Grid

With the gift card load product created, you can then add the product to the POS grid so that it is available for selection by the POS operator. See the following instructions depending on your grid type: 

• If using a Products & Services grid, then create a category tile for the category the gift card load product is assigned to (see Creating a Category Tile on a Products and Services Grid). Alternatively, the gift card load product can exist on the grid as a stand-alone product (i.e., not in a category tile); to do so, see Adding Product as Stand-Alone Product on a Products & Services Grid.
  
  
• If using a Foods & Beverages grid, then create a category tile for the category the gift card load product is assigned to (see Creating a Category Tile on a Food and Beverages Grid). In addition, ensure the category tile is configured to allow products (see Configuring a Category Tile on Food & Beverages Grid to Allow Products/Services). Alternatively, the gift card load product can exist on the grid as a stand-alone product (i.e., not in a category tile); to do so see, Adding Product as Stand-Alone Product on Food & Beverages Grid.

Adding Loaded Gift Cards that will be Pre-Issued

For loaded gift cards that will be pre-issued to residents, these gift cards first need to be manually entered into the system via the steps below:

1. In Touch Admin, select POS Settings > Gift Cards. The Gift Card Profile screen appears.
   
   
   
   
2. In the Issued Gift Cards section, click the Add a Gift Card button. The Gift Cards & Profile screen appears. 
   
   
   
   
3. From the Gift Profile drop-down, select the gift card profile the loaded gift card is to be associated with. 
4. In the Identification Number field, enter the barcode number of the loaded gift card.
5. The Notes field, Secure Code field, and Expiration Date field are optional.
6. Click Submit to apply your changes. 
7. Repeat above steps to added other loaded gift cards. 

Tracking Gift Card Balances

Each time the gift card is used for a purchase by the resident, the gift card balance is adjusted accordingly.

A facility can track the gift cards it issued by going to POS Settings > Gift Cards. The Issued Gift Card section lists the records of each issued gift card. The record is explained as follows:

• The Issued By Facility column indicates the facility that issued the gift card, the issued date, and any expiry date on the gift card.
• The Balances displays the current balance of the gift card and its original starting balance.
• The Notes column displays any notes that were entered for the gift card load product when it was originally created.
• The Identification column displays the unique code of the gift card and any secure code.

Running the Gift Card Balance Report

In addition to tracking gift card balances as per above, you can run the Gift Card Balance report.