Store Credit Automation

Edited

OVERVIEW

Loop offers store credit as a way for our merchants to retain revenue while providing customers with optionality. Loop offers two ways to issue store credit to your customers, you will need to configure either gift card API or gift card orders. Please read through the options to understand which option is best for you. 


Gift card API automation (Recommended)

Loop leverages Shopify's Gift Card API to create a gift card in the exact amount of the return. That gift card is automatically emailed to the customer at time of creation. This is the simplest way to begin issuing Store Credit to your customers.

Gift card order automation (Deprecated)

Important: As of 7/25/24, this option is no longer offered to be set up as a method of issuing store credit. For those currently using this method, it will be deprecated officially in 2025. If you have any questions, please reach out to support@loopreturns.com.

When a return for store credit is issued using this method, Loop generates a new variant of a special gift card product in Shopify, then an order is created with an LGC- prefix for that gift card, which is then sent to the customer.

To use this store credit automation, you will create a Store Credit Gift Card in Shopify and connect it to Loop so that Loop can begin generating new orders for store credit gift cards.

To begin setup, you will need to create a Gift Card product that will be hidden from your store. This Gift Card will be used exclusively by Loop to provide your customers with Store Credit.

To create a Gift Card product:

  1. Log into your Shopify account, go to Products > Gift Cards.

    • If gift cards have not previously been activated, click the Add gift card product button.

  2. Select Add gift card product in the upper right hand corner:

  3. Next, set a Gift Card Title.
    Tips: a) Choose a name that is easily recognized so that your team knows this gift card product is tied to Loop, and b) Use the Title “Store Credit Gift Card” to differentiate the Store Credit Gift Card from other forms of Gift Cards (this is a best practice).

  4. Scroll to "Denominations." If any values are listed, delete each.
    Important: If Shopify requires that you keep a denomination, set to $0.01.

  5. In the top right, next to "Publishing", select the three dots, select Manage sales channels, uncheck all active sales channels, then click Done to save.

  6. After selecting Save gift card product, copy the Product ID that appears in the URL and complete the next set of steps:

To connect your newly created gift card to Loop:

  1. Navigate to the Loop admin and go to Returns management > Policy settings > General > the "Store credit" section.

  2. Select "Create new gift card orders for store credit" and input the Gift Card Product ID.

  3. Select Save.

Testing store credit

Loop advises that all new Merchants test Store Credit automation after set up. To test your Store Credit Gift Card:

  1. Follow the instructions to set up a test order.

  2. Go through the return process as the customer and click Store Credit.

  3. After submitting the return request, log in to your Loop admin, access the test you submitted, and click Process Return.

If the integration is working and you are using the Gift Card API:

  • The return will be archived.

  • In Shopify, the original order will have a note reading "Gift Card issued" along with the date, time, and amount.

  • In Shopify, under Products > Gift Cards, you should see a new gift card generated. It will look like this:

If the integration was a success and you are using the gift card order automation:

  • The return will be archived.

  • In Shopify, a new order will be created with a prefix that reads LGC- (Loop Gift Card) and the original order’s order number.

FAQ

Can I set an expiration date for Store Credit Gift Cards? Loop's Gift Card API Automation functionality will leverage your Shopify settings to set the expiration date. For example, if you have gift cards set to expire in one year and the return processes on May 10, 2021, the gift card will expire on May 10, 2022.

Can I resend a Shopify gift card to my customer? If the customer did not receive their Shopify gift card, follow these instructions:

  1. In the merchant's Shopify account, go to Products > Gift Cards.

  2. Search for the customer's email address.

  3. Select the Gift Card.

  4. Select Resend gift card to customer in the bottom right corner.

Will I see LGC- orders in Shopify when processing returns? No. Using the Gift Card API is simpler because it doesn't require the creation of a new order - Loop can just issue the credit independent of an order.

Do I need to create a gift card product or enter a Product ID anywhere if I'm using the API? No. The Gift Card API enables Loop to issue store credit without needing to create an order with an actual product in it.

How do I know how much store credit was issued through Loop? Utilize the Store Credit report located under the Analytics tab in Loop admin. Sum the Total Gift Card amount for your specified period of time.

What if I use Rise.ai for Store Credit Gift Cards? Great news! Loop is integrated with Rise.ai.


Please contact support@loopreturns.com with any additional questions.