The historic tourist hot spot of Deadwood has upgraded its Deadwood Gold Bucks program for a high-tech Gift Card.
Deadwood Gold Bucks was introduced by the Deadwood Chamber of Commerce & Visitors Bureau in 2015 with over $51,000 of paper gift checks sold to date. The new Deadwood Gold Bucks Gift Card program works like a regular debit card and can be spent with multiple participating stores, restaurants, hotels, bars, and cafés in the South Dakota town.
Surrounded by the Black Hills National Park, Deadwood has a population of 1,217 and welcomes around 2 million visitors each year. The discovery of gold in the southern Black Hills in 1874 set off one of the great gold rushes in America, with many of the modern-day town’s museums, attractions, and tours dedicated to the Wild West era.
Ingrid Hayward is Membership Manager at Deadwood Chamber of Commerce & Visitors Bureau and said the new Deadwood Gold Bucks Gift Card will streamline the process for all:
“Deadwood is a thriving town with lots happening and we introduced our paper Deadwood Gold Bucks checks in 2015 to use as prizes in our events. The paper checks were successful but they had their challenges too like being easily lost and hard to track. And because people got cash as change, not all of the money would get spent in Deadwood. Our new Deadwood Gold Bucks will keep more dollars local.
“The new Deadwood Gold Bucks Gift Card will also be easier for businesses. It was a 3-week process for businesses to redeem the paper checks. The new Gift Card gets swiped at the till and businesses get paid quickly. It makes it so much easier for people to gift Deadwood and all we have to offer here.”
A business that accepts the new Deadwood Gold Bucks is Saloon #10, a bar that pays homage to Deadwood’s gold rush past. Owner Louie Lalonde said:
“Saloon # 10 has been open since 1963 and we’ll be celebrating our 60th anniversary in December. From the sawdust on the floor to the artifacts on the walls, Saloon # 10 brings Deadwood’s colorful past to life and is a place for locals and visitors alike to meet for a cocktail with a friend, or dinner in our Italian steakhouse upstairs, with unique gifts to take home.
“We accepted the old Deadwood Gold Bucks but the fact that they were paper made them hard for people to believe they were real. The new high-tech Deadwood Gold Bucks Gift Card is easier for everyone and that’s important because the whole purpose of the program is to get people spending in Deadwood.
“With the Deadwood Gold Bucks Gift Card in your hand, you can go shopping, stop for a beer, or go out for dinner. You don’t have to spend the whole amount at once, and the balance on the card gets automatically updated. It spreads the benefit out right across Deadwood to all kinds of businesses. It’s the kind of card you can send to a friend to encourage them to visit Deadwood and have a great time here.”
Deadwood Gold Bucks are available to buy online or in person at the Deadwood Chamber of Commerce & Visitors Bureau.
The Deadwood Gold Bucks Gift Card is part of the Downtown Gift Card concept from payments provider Miconex in association with payments technology solutions provider EML Payments. Downtown Gift Card systems run across the US, in Arizona, Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Montana, Michigan, Nebraska, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, South Dakota, and Virginia.
This Card is issued by Pathward®, N.A., Member FDIC. Funds do not expire. Non-reloadable and no cash access. For Cardholder Agreement or Customer Service: www.getmybalance.com or 1.833.558.1088.
Photo credit; Travel South Dakota
Pathward®, N.A., a national bank, is a subsidiary of Pathward Financial, Inc. (Nasdaq: CASH). Pathward is a U.S.-based financial empowerment company driven by its purpose to power financial inclusion. Pathward strives to increase financial availability, choice, and opportunity across our Banking as a Service and Commercial Finance business lines. The strategic business lines provide end-to-end support to individuals and businesses. Learn more at Pathward.com.