Gift card APIs allow developers to build gift card distribution services through one of two ways: a code-first or developer-first approach.
While a code-first approach focuses solely on functionality, a developer-first approach is based on creating value across various points of the gift card business model.
In essence, developer-first gift card APIs prioritize the developer’s experience, enabling developers to leverage agile technology to provide the best outcomes for company stakeholders and end-users, such as:
- Expediting the development and integration process
- Enabling multiple transaction functionalities
- Easily managing online voucher distribution
- Automating processes, such as bulk transactions
- Minimizing the risk of coding errors and failures
These are just a few examples of how gift card APIs created and provided from a developer’s perspective herald numerous advantages for IT teams, businesses and their consumers, thus creating a ripple effect that cuts through the rest of the gift card products’ value chain.
This article explores the benefits of using a gift card API made for developers. Read on to unravel how your business can benefit from developer-oriented gift card APIs.
What are gift card APIs?
Put simply, gift card APIs enable the development of gift card services, and are particularly useful for enabling global transactions and mobile distribution of a variety of retail vouchers.
As the market for gift cards has surged in recent years, companies have found greater need for platforms that enable the seamless development of digital gift card solutions to service their customers, especially during festivities and holidays when demand spikes.
An ideal gift card API will enable the easy development of digital gift card services for companies, so companies and businesses can reward customers through incentives via their websites or mobile applications.
Features of a gift card API
A gift card API should offer the following features:
- A global reach: The demand for digital gift cards cuts across all regions of the world. As a result, it is one of the fastest, most liquid and widest-reaching forms of rewards and incentives today. Most companies deploy a gift-card based marketing strategy because of its global accessibility, and an API that helps them reach most countries ranks atop their development needs.
- An easy-to-integrate, contract-free platform: An ideal API platform should enable contract-free and swift deployments. Contract processing can be bothersome, and a good API platform should have cut out the clunky steps. It’s a bare-minimum best practice today.
- Affordable pricing and commission rates, with transparent discounts: A gift card API platform should not surreptitiously sneak hidden charges when pricing. Pricing and charges should be clearly stated upfront to avoid unplanned expenses.
- Flexibility and organization: A developer should be able to create a single account and deploy it for multiple businesses, or use an account for each company, depending on his/her preference
- Unlimited access to gift card retailers: An API platform should provide developers access to numerous gift card retailers. The more digital gift card retailers on a gift card API platform, the more options businesses can offer users.
These above features make for an excellent gift card API, but some unique features can make an API even better, and that is what happens when APIs are created with a developer-first approach in mind.
What is a developer-first perspective to gift card APIs?
In a nutshell, a developer-first perspective is a modern approach to API development, representing a shift from the traditional code-first approach.
Until recently, coding was the first step to API development, as the emphasis was placed on the technology and functionalities.
A developer-first ideology, on the other hand, harnesses effective design and development strategies to provide an API platform that promotes clarity, agility and flexibility for developers.
Development thus revolves around a clearly defined philosophy, a product strategy and designs optimized for exquisite user experiences. Overall, a developer-first approach equals an emphasis on the delivery of value.
Benefits of a developer-first technology
- Excellent Developer Experience
Developer-first technology prioritizes the developer’s experience (DX) as key parts of the API value chain. From creation to deployment for companies and end-users, a developer-first API enables developers to create optimal solutions for businesses and end-users.
The design-conscious approach of a developer-first API allows ease and flexibility of use, but without sacrificing the functionalities. The strategic approach to developing an API means developers can easily navigate the infrastructure provided by the platform to deliver faster products. In other words, a developer-first tech stimulates innovation and efficiency.
- Swift and safe development process
A developer-first API enables developers to leverage APIs to develop software solutions with pace. Since it is strategically designed to aid efficiency, developers can simply plug it into the software infrastructure to create market-ready solutions. Aside from that, a developer-first API also enables them to scale up to meet new and recurring demands.
As technology becomes more competitive, the ability to speedily build offers becomes indispensable.
In addition, a developer-first API reduces the probability of failures when developing solutions as they are consistent, reliable, flexible and scalable. Developers can always refine their offer product to align with consumers needs and demands without the fear of failure.
- Cost-efficient implementation
Developer-first technology is reusable, expandable and efficient. This is a highly valuable trait, simply because the reusability of such technology eliminates the costs attached to acquiring or using different software for every additional functionality.
Why use a developer-first gift card API?
A developer-first gift card API does not only make implementation easier for developers, but it also maximizes the company’s product development ROI and the end-user experience. In essence, developers can:
- Integrate a gift card API without hassles or a contract
- Explore flexible retail voucher options and more functionalities
- Scale to meet emerging trends and consumer demands
- Gain access to a customized pricing system based on transaction volume
- Move from idea to market in record time
This is what Reloady aims to help developers achieve with its gift card API.
The Relaodly gift card API is part of a zero-contract platform that allows you to to build a solution dispensing over 150 gift card brands from your website or application to 25 countries in 4 regions within minutes.
With Reloadly’s easy-to-integrate API, you can:
- Focus solely on building
Reloadly has handled the details, thereby granting you the freedom to integrate code at ease. The API platform provides developers all of the gift card infrastructure they need to integrate and build a global gift card service for their brand.
- Create custom solutions
Developers are enabled the broad capacity to create custom solutions on the gift card API. Reports, plugins and segments are provided via Relaodly’s API dashboard, enabling you to do more with a few lines of code. You can also track deliveries, prepare reports and make them accessible to others.
- Innovate
Technology platforms can feel encumbering, but the Relaodly gift card API gives developers the freedom to imagine and deploy. Asides from the ability to customize gift cards according to your company brand identity, you can recommend and create other features with as little as one line of code.
- Improve user experience
Reloadly’s robust infrastructure enables you to build and tweak in accordance with customer insight and demands as much as you desire.
Final thoughts
The Reloadly gift card API was created with a developer-first mindset to help your business integrate and deploy gift cards without hassles.
If you are interested in exploring a developer-first gift card API, contact our support team, and they’ll be glad to provide a free demo.
