How to invoice €50,000 on December 24th (when your carriers no longer deliver)

There is a date that every Ecommerce Manager dreads: December 22nd at 2:00 PM .

This is the exact moment when your logistics providers (SEUR, Correos, DHL) tell you: "Anything that hasn't shipped yet won't arrive by Christmas." At that moment, most online stores display a warning banner and see their conversion rate plummet to zero.

But there is a select group of brands on Shopify Plus that make their own money on December 23 and 24, selling a product that doesn't need trucks or warehouses: The Digital Gift Card .

I'm not talking about having the product "activated" in the footer. I'm talking about an aggressive automation strategy that captures the desperate last-minute buyer.

The panic buyer

On December 24th, thousands of people realize they're missing a gift. They can't go to the mall (it's packed) and they can't buy online or in person (deliveries aren't arriving).

If they visit your PrestaShop store and see "Delivery: December 27th," they'll leave. You've lost the sale. You need to offer them an immediate solution: "Gift now, receive in 1 second."

It's not a product, it's automation.

At Shopify Plus, we don't wait for the customer to find the card. We use Shopify Flow to shove it in front of them when it hurts the most.

The "Lifesaver" (Anti-Abandonment) Flow:

1. Trigger: A customer adds a physical product to the cart on December 23rd.
2. Condition: Abandon the checkout (probably upon seeing the estimated delivery date).
3. Action (Flow): 15 minutes later, you receive an automated email: "Won't arrive on time? Don't risk it. Here's a Digital Gift Card for the same amount. Print it and put it under the tree now."

This simple automation recovers up to 30% of abandoned shopping carts on Christmas Eve.

Elevate the experience: Don't sell ugly code

The problem with gift cards in Magento or WooCommerce is that they're usually just plain text emails with a hexadecimal code. Nobody wants to "give" that.

At Shopify Plus, we personalize the Gift Card experience:

• Native Apple Wallet: The recipient can add the card to their iPhone Wallet with one click. They'll see it every time they use their phone (constant branding reminder).
• Programmable Designs: Specific "Merry Christmas" designs that automatically change to "Happy Three Kings Day" on the 26th.

Money today, traffic in January

The best thing about billing €50,000 in gift cards on the 24th is that you are guaranteeing traffic for January.

The recipient of the card will visit your website during sales and, statistically, will spend 20% more than the card's value. In other words, you're financing your sales campaign in advance and with a profit margin.

Frequently Asked Questions about Gift Cards

Do gift cards count as invoices and taxes?

It depends on local legislation (consult your accountant), but generally, the sale of a gift card is not subject to VAT until it is redeemed for a product. It's an immediate positive cash flow with no immediate tax implications.

Can I limit which products can be purchased with the card?

Yes, but we don't recommend it. The idea is to give complete freedom. What you can do with Shopify Scripts is prevent gift cards from being used to buy other gift cards (fraud prevention).

How do I avoid fraud on digital gift cards?

Shopify Plus has a very powerful risk analysis engine. If someone tries to buy ten €500 gift cards from a suspicious IP address, the system flags them as "High Risk" and doesn't release the codes until you manually verify the order.