Square Wallet for iOS gets ability to send gift cards right from your store receipts

Mobile card payment service Square has released an update to its Wallet app for iOS. Users can now send gift cards to their friends right from their store receipts. While it may not appear to be a major release, this move is one that could greatly benefit both the merchant and the customer.

Gift cards are not anything new to Square — the company released the option to the public last December and even integrated it with Apple’s Passbook payment feature. The update means merchants no longer have to be asked to procure a gift card; the whole process can be handled by the customer. It’s important to note, however, that these gift cards can only be sent only to US residents.

The ability to now send gift cards right from the receipt gives Square users more incentive to recommend a place where they received good service. If you happened to be at a local boutique shop that accepted Square (the company says there are 250,000 merchants using the service) and found it to have not only good customer service, but also fairly good products, wouldn’t you be more inclined to buy someone a gift card?

Here in San Francisco, there are numerous food trucks, many which accept Square for payment. I might discover the Creme Brulee food cart one day and figure that one of my other TNW colleagues might enjoy it too, which could motivate me to send a gift card to them after I’m done paying. Square appears to be streamlining the payment experience so users can handle all of their transaction businesses in one screen instead of darting around the app.

➤ Square for iOS

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