Loyalty cards and gift cards are incredibly popular with retailers these days, and are very effective at establishing a feeling of kinship between customer and store. With card in hand, a customer is more prone to return early and often to receive discounts that come courtesy of loyalty and rewards programs.
Many retail card programs are set up using a points program that rewards the customer after a certain amount of purchases, while others offer special discounts during sales and promotions. Often times, the cardholder receives deals that an ordinary shopper might miss out on.
Retail gift cards are, quite literally, gifts. Like loyalty cards, they're usually printed on PVC plastic cards, and often contain a magnetic stripe. Each card carries a certain level of monetary value, and when the customer makes a purchase, the card is scanned or swiped and the balance adjusts accordingly. A gift card program is a great way to bring new customers into a store.