It's Your Chance To Avail Online Gift Cards

In the past, one of the more popular gifts given by people as presents was gift certificates. Gift certificates were paper vouchers that represented a specific amount that can be used by the recipient to buy any item he or she desires at selected stores and other establishments. Today, the concept is still very much alive, but instead of gift certificates, people are now using Online Gift Cards. And when you talk about gift cards, it is hard not to mention Subway gift cards among others, as it is quite a popular choice amongst consumers.Compared to gift certificates, gift cards are made of plastic that contains a microchip for data storage. The information that is contained within the chip is typically the amount or available balance of the gift card. Also known as stored-value or prepaid payment devices, gift cards are somewhat similar to debit cards, which are also, in a sense, prepaid. But when a debit card runs out of funds, you can simply reload it; unlike gift cards, which you can no longer use once the balance is emptied.In the gift card industry, you will see that there are many different kinds. While many gift cards are typically available at credit card companies like MasterCard, Visa and American Express, there are some that are exclusively sold by specific retailers such as Target, Gap and fast food chains like Pizza Hut and Subway. These types of gift cards are what are known as closed-system cards. These gift cards can only be used or redeemed at the establishments specified by the card itself. If you have Subway gift cards, for example, then obviously you can only use it at a Subway restaurant.On the other hand, there is also what you can call as the open-system card. These are the gift cards that are exclusively sold by credit card companies like MasterCard, Visa and American Express. These types of gift cards are called open-system because they can be used virtually anywhere where credit cards are accepted. And since all major credit cards are recognized by almost every establishment, you can pretty much go wherever you want to use your open-system gift card. Receiving free gift cards from a close friend or relative on your birthday will most definitely be a blast, don’t you agree?If you have never in your life heard of gift cards, then you must be living in a cave somewhere in the Himalayas. In the recent years, gift cards have become the gift of choice by many individuals, especially among women. The problem that most people have with gift cards is where to get them for free. If you go online, you will find a variety of websites promising a free gift card in exchange for a specific task that you will be asked to do. Such offers, however, do not usually bear any fruit. Sometimes, it’s just flat out disappointing when you learn that you will have to spend quite a bit of money to get the free gift card.Take Subway for example, because of a settlement deal that the food chain has agreed upon with its loyal customers, the famous restaurant is now giving away free gift cards to its loyal patrons. All you have to do is visit Subway’s official website and claim your gift card. You can then either use it for yourself or give it to a close friend as a present.