Month: August 2026

There’s a question I ask every restaurant owner I work with about gift cards, and it changes the way they think about this entire revenue stream. Are you offering gift cards, or are you selling them?

Because I think there’s a whole business around selling gift cards. And what triggered that foundational realization for me was this: gift cards statistically redeem at an 80% rate. If that’s the case, that means I can offer a 20% discount, and generally speaking, I’m at a flat margin. That feels like a really good deal. That feels like I can use that to create a lot of perceived value.

So I started looking at the opportunities to do it. And what I found is that when you combine the right timing, the right offer, and the right audience, gift card sales become one of the most powerful revenue levers in your business. No new customers required. No new menu items. No new marketing spend. Just a strategic approach to something you’re probably already doing passively.

Sell When People Are Already Primed to Buy

The best time to sell is when people are primed to buy. That sounds obvious, but most restaurants completely ignore the timing component of gift card sales.

For me, it started with corporate gifting. If you were hosting a private event with me for a holiday party, I would say, “Hey John, wouldn’t it be cool if at the end of the event, we were able to hand out gift cards to everyone for $20, $30, $40? You know, if you buy them in bulk, I’ll give you a 20% discount.”

Or John comes to me and says, “Man, it’s been a really bad year. We’re not going to be doing a holiday party this year.” To which I would say, “Well, come on, Scrooge. Let’s give them something. Why don’t you order gift cards? We’ll do gift cards. They had a party last year. They’re totally going to expect something. And if you do it, I’ll give you 20% off.”

We sold tens of thousands of dollars in gift cards that way. Just by being strategic about when and how we offered them to people who were already in buying mode.

The other occasion-based opportunity that works incredibly well is Black Friday. People are already looking to spend money on Black Friday. Nobody says, “Will I spend money on Black Friday?” The question is, what are they going to spend money on? So I want to throw my hat in the ring, because the people on my mailing list already know, like, and trust me.

The Promise, Pitch, Remove, and Return Campaign

The strategy we use to sell gift cards is a multi-tier campaign built around four phases: promise, pitch, remove, and return. You’ve seen this in every other industry. Here’s how it works for restaurants.

Promise. I make the announcement. I let my mailing list know that something special is coming. Something exclusive to them. Something they’re going to want to get in on.

Pitch. The next day, I pitch. “This is the thing we’re doing. It’s only available to our list. Click here to redeem before it goes public.” It goes public the next day. This creates an early-access window that makes your best customers feel like insiders.

Remove. Then I pull it. It ends at midnight. The discount code doesn’t work. The website is down. They no longer get access to the thing.

Return. A couple of days later, we re-release it. “Hey, due to overwhelming demand, we are now bringing this thing back. You now have 12 hours to get the thing.”

Why would we structure it this way? Because consumer buying behavior works like this. People only buy on two days. They buy on the first day, and they buy on the last day. Urgency is a thing. And so what this campaign does is it gives you one first day, but it gives you two last days.

It works. It works very well.

The Numbers That Prove This Works

I want to show you what this looks like when it’s executed at scale, because these aren’t theoretical numbers. These are real restaurants using this exact system.

Loveland Coffee in Irmo, South Carolina. In 2025, they sold $72,374.10 worth of gift cards. A coffee shop. Seventy-two thousand dollars in gift cards.

Black Flannel in Essex, Vermont sold $20,000 on Black Friday alone. One day. Twenty thousand dollars.

Urban Omni in Whitefish, Montana sold $35,000 worth of gift cards to a mailing list of 1,800 people. That’s nearly $20 per person on the list. From a single campaign.

It works. It’s really compelling. If your list is primed to buy, this is how you sell.

The Corporate Gifting Lever

Beyond direct-to-consumer gift card campaigns, there’s another entire revenue stream hiding in corporate gifting that most restaurants completely ignore.

Companies need gifts for their employees. They need client appreciation gifts. They need year-end bonuses that feel personal. They need holiday gifts that don’t feel generic. Gift cards from a great local restaurant check every single one of those boxes.

The approach is simple. When someone is already booking a private event with you, the gift card conversation is natural. “While we’re putting this event together, would you like to send everyone home with a gift card? If you buy them in bulk, I’ll give you 20% off.” The 20% discount is not actually a discount – remember, gift cards redeem at 80%. You’re at flat margin. But it feels like a massive win for the buyer, and they get to be the hero who gives everyone something personal and local instead of another Amazon gift card.

Even companies that aren’t doing holiday parties need a gifting solution. That’s your opening. “I know you’re not doing an event this year, but let’s make sure your team still feels appreciated.” Gift cards solve that problem instantly, and at scale, the numbers add up fast.

Marketing Is Math, and the Key to Success Is Scale

Here’s what I’ll tell you about gift card sales, and really about everything we’ve covered in this entire series. Marketing is math, and the key to success is scale.

If you reach out to 10 people a day for three days and it doesn’t work, you’re not doing it right. What we have to do is 10x, 100x these efforts, because these are the things that create the biggest impact in your business.

The promise, pitch, remove, and return campaign works because it’s sent to your entire list. Not a segment. Not a test group. Your entire list. The corporate gifting pitch works because you’re embedding it into every event conversation, not just mentioning it once a year in December.

And the 20% discount works because the math supports it. Gift cards redeem at 80%. You’re not losing money on the discount. You’re creating perceived value at flat margin while simultaneously driving future visits from people who redeem those cards.

Every gift card redeemed is a person walking through your door. Many of them are first-timers who have never been to your restaurant. If you give them the best imaginable version of the experience – which is the whole point of everything I teach – they come back. And now that gift card has turned into a customer acquisition tool that paid for itself.

Insulate Yourself from the Volatility of the Industry

One of the core reasons I push gift card sales so hard is diversification. When we make money more than one way, what we do is insulate ourselves from the volatility of our industry.

In Los Angeles, when it drizzles, revenues go down by 20% for the day. That used to panic me. What I wanted to do was make sure I was guaranteed to make money no matter what, because I was in direct control of it. Diversification of revenues is the best way to do that.

I talk about hitting a 15 to 20% net margin with every client. How do I do it if we spend absolutely no time talking about cost controls? It’s a blended average. We work at 10 to 12% in-house, but then we supplement that with 30% margins on events, catering, and gift cards. That blended average puts you right at 20%.

Gift cards are part of that equation. They’re high-margin revenue that you control. They’re not subject to weather or foot traffic or whether your server calls in sick on a Saturday night. You sell them on your terms, on your timeline, to people who already love you.

Your 7-Day Gift Card Sales Action Plan

Day 1: Check your current gift card sales. Pull the data. How much did you sell in gift cards last year? If you don’t know, that’s your first problem. You can’t optimize what you don’t measure. Get the number.

Day 2: Build the promise, pitch, remove, and return campaign. Write the four emails. Promise announces it’s coming. Pitch delivers the offer with early access for your list. Remove pulls it at midnight. Return brings it back 48 hours later with a 12-hour window. Load them into your email system.

Day 3: Add a corporate gifting pitch to your event conversations. Train your team to ask one question during every event planning conversation: “Would you like to send everyone home with a gift card?” Offer the 20% bulk discount. Remember – at 80% redemption, you’re at flat margin.

Day 4: Plan your seasonal calendar. Identify every gifting occasion on the calendar – Black Friday, Christmas, Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, graduation season. Each one gets its own campaign using the same four-phase structure.

Day 5: Create the “no party” pitch. For every company that tells you they’re not doing a holiday party this year, have a gift card counter-offer ready. “Let’s give them something anyway. Gift cards for the whole team, 20% off bulk orders.” Don’t let the conversation end at “no party.”

Day 6: Set your Black Friday target. Based on your mailing list size, what’s a realistic gift card sales goal for Black Friday? Black Flannel did $20,000 in one day. Urban Omni did $35,000 from a list of 1,800. Set your number and build backward from there.

Day 7: Launch your first campaign. Don’t wait for November. Your restaurant’s anniversary, a seasonal menu launch, a random Tuesday – any occasion works when the offer is compelling enough. The system works because the system works. Money likes speed. Start today.

Bulk gift cards are one of three high-margin revenue streams behind the blended-margin method. The others, and the arithmetic, are in how to improve your restaurant profit margin and The State of Restaurant Marketing 2026.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why can restaurants offer a 20% discount on gift cards and still make money?

Gift cards statistically redeem at an 80% rate. That means 20% of the money you collect never comes back as an expense. So when you offer a 20% bulk discount, you’re generally at a flat margin – the discount is covered by the non-redemption rate. It feels like a massive deal to the buyer, but the math works in your favor every time.

What is the promise, pitch, remove, and return campaign for gift card sales?

It’s a four-phase email campaign. Promise announces something special is coming. Pitch delivers the offer with exclusive early access for your mailing list. Remove pulls the offer at midnight – the code stops working, access ends. Return brings the offer back 48 hours later with a tight 12-hour window. It works because people buy on the first day and the last day, and this structure gives you one first day and two last days.

How much can a restaurant realistically sell in gift cards?

Loveland Coffee in Irmo, South Carolina sold $72,374.10 in gift cards in 2025. Black Flannel in Essex, Vermont sold $20,000 on Black Friday alone. Urban Omni in Whitefish, Montana sold $35,000 to a mailing list of just 1,800 people. The results depend on your list size, your offer strength, and your willingness to actually sell rather than passively offer.

How does corporate gift card sales work for restaurants?

When a company is hosting a private event with you, offer to provide gift cards for all attendees at a 20% bulk discount. For companies not doing events, pitch gift cards as an alternative way to appreciate their team. Companies need client gifts, employee bonuses, and holiday presents. Gift cards from a great local restaurant feel personal and premium, and at 80% redemption, your 20% discount costs you nothing.

Why should gift cards be part of a restaurant’s overall revenue strategy?

Gift cards help you hit a blended 15 to 20% net margin. In-house dining runs at 10 to 12%. Events, catering, and gift cards run at 30% margins. When you blend those revenue streams, the overall margin rises without cutting a single cost. Gift cards also insulate you from the volatility of the industry – they’re not subject to weather, foot traffic, or staffing issues. You sell them on your terms to people who already love you.

Let me tell you about the biggest paradigm shift in my events business. It took me years to figure this out, and when I did, it changed everything.

I think you’re selling to the wrong person.

Here’s what it looks like. John’s booking an event for his office. So you talk. You send him some menus. He comes in, you chit chat for a little bit. He walks the site. But John’s not the one that’s going to approve it. His boss is going to approve it. And you never meet his boss.

So John goes back to his boss, and he goes, “I met with Josh. These are the menus. This is what we can order. Josh doesn’t seem like an idiot. It’ll probably be okay.” How does that sound?

The reason you’re failing at conversion is that the person you think you’re selling to, you’re not. The person who walks your space and hears your pitch is rarely the person who signs the check. And if that’s the case, how do you help the person who’s selling sell for you?

You give them better assets.

Your ability to close is limited by your ability to give them what they need to properly create the vision in the mind of someone who has never spoken to you and never walked within the four walls of your restaurant. That’s the game. And best-in-class assets are how you win it.

What Best-in-Class Assets Actually Look Like

I used the same event proposal to sell millions and millions of dollars worth of events at Preux & Proper. Let me walk you through what made it work, because every single page was intentional.

Page one. What do you see? You see effort. You don’t see a finished drink – you see someone making a drink. You see artisans at work. There is a singular call to action. The entire first impression is rooted in craft and care, because the first thing a prospect has to decide is whether they want to do business with you or not. So I dedicated an entire page to that decision.

The first section is rooted in what we do as an organization – the positioning around the business itself. The second is our perspective on catering and events, the effort that goes into it, why we think we’re best in the world at what we do. Will the person you’re going to tour read all of this? Probably not. But the person that has never been in – the one that’s going to approve the expense – absolutely will.

By page two, I need to have convinced them they should do business with me. And then the next question they would ask is, “Okay, where are we going to have it?”

Create the Vision They Can’t See on Their Own

Here’s where most restaurants lose the deal. You provide section-by-section options for where to host the event. But here’s the question – is this how your dining room is normally set up? Of course not. So why do you set it up differently for the photos in your proposal?

Because they’ll never see the vision on their own.

The reason you’re a business owner, the reason you sit on top of the mountain, is because you were able to envision a world that did not otherwise exist. But most of the people you’re selling to are just trying to not get fired. They can’t envision what their event will look like in your space because they’ve never done it before.

So you show them. You chop your room into sections. At Preux & Proper, we had the North semi-private dining hall and the South semi-private dining hall. Internally, we called those the left and right side of the room. We carved the space into sections so that I could take care of a party of 25 to 250 in the same space without disrupting day-to-day operations.

Everybody’s trying to get a full buyout. I’ll take a full buyout, but I’m not a cheap date. I like partial buyouts – because I can sell out half the room for a 50-top on a Saturday night and still run a busy dinner service on the other side.

Tiny Food and the Art of Priming

When you look at the group menus in my proposal, what do you see? Individual bites. Tiny food. Fancy tiny food.

Why would I show tiny food? Because I’m always selling an experience. I’m always trying to sell an expectation. The prospect is already thinking buffet. They’re already thinking plated. So why don’t I try to pitch them on tray pass as we go through this process? I’m priming them from the very first page.

And I don’t call it tray pass. I call it Butler style tray pass hors d’oeuvres. Why? Because every word matters. Have you ever been to an event where the hors d’oeuvres technically qualify as tray pass, but they just drop the trays on a bar top? That’s not what we’re building here. All of my language is evocative because people are paying for a level of service. Butler style. That word alone changes the perception of what you’re getting.

The Illusion of Choice: Three-Tier Package Strategy

One of the things I figured out early on is that people don’t want choice. They want the illusion of choice. They want to be told what to do, but they still need some level of autonomy.

How many of you go back and forth for 38 emails on whether they’re going to do the brussels sprouts or the asparagus? Before it’s even sold. Before you even have a deposit. I got tired of that because it was a waste of time.

So I don’t sell individual food items. I sell experiences. And it starts with packages. We create a broad offering rooted in our existing menu, but all we’re talking about with the client is the three options at the top. For a family-style dinner at Preux & Proper, you had three choices. The three options were priced so that the greatest value was in the middle tier. Why? Because that’s the thing I want you to buy.

There’s been $50 and $60 – that’s nothing. There’s been $60 and $75 – that’s a little scary. But I want you at $66, and then I’m going to sell you a bunch of other things too. The second option is always the one that makes the most sense. That’s intentional.

“All Dishes Replenished as Needed” – The Line That Closes Deals

Here’s the single most important line in my entire event proposal. Can you guess the number one concern of somebody booking an event? Running out of food.

One hundred percent of event bookers agree on this. It’s the one problem that keeps them up at night. So do you even have a conversation about it? I don’t. I eliminate it out the gate.

Every package in my proposal says: all dishes replenished as needed.

Here’s what I hate about most event and catering menus. They sell shrimp by the piece. How many shrimp do I need? Would I rather get just enough shrimp? That’s less fun. But what if the boss goes to grab the last shrimp and there are no shrimp? We should not set the expectation that we don’t understand how to run an event.

And the great news? You can say “all dishes replenished as needed” because if you’ve ever hosted a corporate event, they don’t eat. They don’t eat and they don’t drink. Nobody is going to a corporate event to get plowed and stuff themselves. They’re going so they don’t get fired. So you can feign generosity because you already know how the consumption plays out.

The Beverage Package Upgrade: Where Your Real Margin Lives

Let me walk you through the beverage strategy, because this is where I wheel and deal. This is where my margin is.

Beer and wine package: $20 per person per hour. Call bar: $30. Premium: $35. Select: $45. And I don’t even offer a no-beverage option on the menu. I’m not trying to sell that.

Why is it so expensive? Because I know nobody’s going to drink. Of the years that we did this and millions of dollars in events we sold, we never sold a beer and wine package once. Not once. And the reason is simple – if people selected the beer and wine package, we immediately upgraded them to the call bar package.

Why? Because what I’m able to do is increase perceived value while simultaneously improving my margin. Nobody wants to buy a $5,000 thing for $5,000. What they want to buy is a $6,000 thing for $5,000.

So when I upgrade the package, I invoice them at full freight, and then I discount it back. Now the person setting up the event has a win they can take credit for. “We were able to convince them to upgrade us from beer and wine to the call bar package, which ultimately makes this thing worth thousands more than they’re actually charging us for it.”

That is a holistic win for every stakeholder involved – for me as the restaurant, for the client, and for the person planning the event.

Dessert Is Not an Add-On. It’s a Separate Experience.

One detail most people miss. In my proposal, coffee, tea, and dessert service are grouped together as a separate experience. It’s not part of dinner. I’m going to make you pay for it.

What if someone comes to me and says, “We don’t really need dessert. We just want coffee and tea”? You can have it. It’s only $14.50 a person. But it’s actually a better deal to get dessert, coffee, and tea together, because it’s only 50 cents more.

I do not split these things up, and the reason is I’m advocating for myself and I’m advocating for the guests. This is a better experience for them, and I need to celebrate experience, because there are 150 people coming to this event, and 149 of them have probably never been to my restaurant. This is my chance to convert them.

What It Looks Like in the Mind of the Buyer

When the proposal works, this is the thought process in the buyer’s mind. “Ooh, this looks fancy. I like what they’re doing here. I’m probably going to do business with them. This is where we’re going to sit. This is what we’re going to eat. This is the menu we chose. We don’t have to worry about running out of food. We’ll do an hour of tray pass. They threw in an hour of bubbles. We’re getting coffee, tea, and dessert service that creates a layered, amazing experience. And they upgraded us from the call bar to premium for less than we expected.”

If you guessed that my close rate was through the roof, you’d be right. On average, I closed about 80% of everything I pitched.

Think about your close rate right now. If we got you up to 80%, what does that do to your business?

Keep reading: the wider playbook on restaurant marketing, and how events fit into restaurant profitability.

Marketing Is Best-in-Class Assets

Here’s what all of this comes down to. Marketing, when it comes to events and catering, is about best-in-class assets that create the illusion of choice while mitigating decision fatigue, while painting a picture of the benefit that the buyer wants.

I’m not selling cogs. I’m not selling features. I’m selling benefits. When you drive by a gym, you don’t see banners outside that say “18 treadmills, 32 stationary bikes.” They say “rock hard abs” and “the life you’ve always wanted.” We sell the benefit, not the feature.

And these results are not flukes. The Dundee Dell in Omaha, Nebraska – literally the oldest bar in Omaha – saw private events skyrocket by over 100% compared to the previous two years after implementing these asset strategies. Marquise Steakhouse in Milton, Ontario increased the average price of their private events by 50% and doubled their event bookings.

I had a chef-owner in a small metro who spent six hours doing outbound with best-in-class assets and generated $9,000 in event sales. He thought it didn’t work. I did the math for him – he generated $1,500 per hour for the six hours he worked on it. What else could he possibly do that generates $1,500 an hour? Now imagine if he 10x’d that effort.

Your 7-Day Event Proposal Action Plan

Day 1: Audit your current proposal. Pull up whatever you’re sending to event inquiries right now. Does it answer the first question – should they do business with you? If the first thing a prospect sees is a menu and prices, you’ve already lost. Lead with who you are and why you’re best in the world at this.

Day 2: Shoot your space for events. Set up your room the way it would look for a 50-person event. Not how it looks on a Tuesday night. Take professional photos of the space configured for private events. Show them the vision they can’t see on their own.

Day 3: Build three-tier packages. Stop selling individual food items. Create three package tiers where the middle tier is the clear winner in perceived value. Price so the greatest value sits in the middle. Stop going back and forth over brussels sprouts.

Day 4: Add “all dishes replenished as needed.” Eliminate the number one fear before it comes up. You can afford to make this promise because corporate guests don’t eat and drink the way you think they will. Feign generosity with confidence.

Day 5: Restructure your beverage packages. Price them so the upgrade makes obvious sense. Invoice at full freight and discount back. Give the event planner a win they can take credit for. This is where your margin lives.

Day 6: Bundle dessert, coffee, and tea. Make it a separate experience, not an afterthought. Price the coffee-only option so close to the full bundle that dessert becomes a no-brainer. Every guest at that event is a potential future customer – give them the full experience.

Day 7: Test the proposal. Send your new proposal to one prospect. Track what happens. If you’re doing it right, the proposal does the selling for you – even when you’re not in the room. That’s the whole point. Money likes speed. Start today.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why does the event proposal matter more than the sales pitch?

Because you’re selling to the wrong person. The person you pitch isn’t usually the person who approves the expense. John meets with you and walks the space, but his boss approves the budget. Your proposal has to create the vision in the mind of someone who has never spoken to you and never been in your restaurant. Best-in-class assets sell for you when you’re not in the room.

How do three-tier event packages improve close rates?

Three-tier packages eliminate decision fatigue by giving buyers the illusion of choice without overwhelming them. People don’t want unlimited options – they want to be told what to do with some level of autonomy. Price the tiers so the middle option has the greatest perceived value. That’s the one you want them to buy. It ends the 38-email back-and-forth over side dishes and lets buyers make one simple decision.

What does “all dishes replenished as needed” actually mean for food costs?

It means less than you think. Corporate event guests don’t eat and drink the way regular diners do. Nobody goes to a work event to get stuffed and hammered – they go so they don’t get fired. You can promise replenishment because consumption at corporate events is predictable and moderate. The line eliminates the number one buyer fear – running out of food – at minimal actual cost to you.

How does the beverage package upgrade strategy work?

Price your beer and wine package at a level that makes the next tier up an obvious value upgrade. When someone selects beer and wine, immediately upgrade them to the call bar package. Invoice at full freight for the higher package, then discount it back to the original price. The buyer feels like they got a deal, you improve your margin because nobody drinks anyway, and the event planner gets a win they can take credit for with their boss.

What close rate should I expect with best-in-class event assets?

At Preux & Proper, the close rate averaged about 80% using this exact proposal system. That’s not because I was a better salesman – it’s because the assets did the selling. The proposal created the illusion of choice, mitigated decision fatigue, eliminated the biggest buyer fear, and painted a picture of the benefit. When you pair great assets with an outbound strategy and speed of response, event sales become predictable and scalable.