How to Easily Find the Online Gift Cards

In the past, gift certificates were the popular giveaways most stores and establishments offered to customers on special occasions. These are paper vouchers that stand in place of cash. Each has its own exact amount that you can use to purchase items at specific retail stores and other commercial establishments. Nowadays, gift cards are more efficient and better suited to serve as presents and giveaways. And speaking of gift cards, one of the most popular are probably Subway gift cards, along with other gift cards from well known food chains and retail stores.Gift cards contain microchips that store data, much like an ATM card. For those who are in the know, gift cards are also known as a “stored-value” or “prepaid” payment device. In essence, gift cards contain a specific value, or amount, which the recipient can use on any particular item or service that he or she wishes. It is somewhat similar to a debit card, except for the fact that you cannot reuse it once it’s out of funds.In this industry, there are actually two basic types of gift cards. While there are gift cards that are sold by credit card companies, there are others that are only available at specific retailers like Gap, Target, Wal-Mart, as well as food-chains such as McDonald’s, Subway, or Pizza Hut. These types of gift cards are called closed-system cards, since they are only accepted at the establishments and stores specified in the card. Subway gift cards, for instance, are only used and recognized at Subway restaurants.Open-system cards, on the other hand, are gift cards that can be availed of at all major credit card companies like American Express, MasterCard and Visa. These types of gift cards can be redeemed or used at any establishment where credit cards are accepted. And because credit cards are pretty much everywhere nowadays, open-system cards are really as good as cash when you think about it. This is what most of us are aching to get. Free gift cards for a birthday present. What a great idea.If this is the first time you’ve heard of gift cards, then you were probably sleeping for almost a decade. Over the years, more and more people are beginning to appreciate the many different benefits that gift cards have to offer. What most people are struggling with, however, is how to obtain gift cards for free. If you do your research thoroughly, you will realize that there are actually quite a few effective ways you can get a free gift card from food chains and other well known establishments.One option for all of you Subway sandwich lovers out there is to check Subway’s official website online. There you will get a chance to receive your own free gift cards courtesy of Subway. This gift card giveaway is actually part of a settlement that is agreed upon by the food chain and its loyal patrons. Once you get your gift cards, you can just walk right into your nearest Subway and order your favorite sandwich.