<http://schema.org/articleBody>
"Leverage is a new site launching on November 26th that lets you manage your gift cards.  It sounds random, but it could be of some use for you, if you have so many gift cards that you need a web-based service just to manage them all.  There are actually several aspects to Leverage that go towards loyalty-based services and gift cards in general. \nServices:\nBuy a gift card.  Leverage has hooked up with several retailers and bought a bunch of gift cards at a discounted rate.  Now these savings are passed onto you, in a way.  We'll get to that in a minute.\nSwap a gift card.  Since all cards are verified by Leverage (who checks with the retailer), you've now got a system with which to trade gift cards with other users for something that's more valuable to you.  Don't like to shop at Pier 1 Imports? Trade it in for an Olive Garden gift card.  You can trust that you're not getting a fraudulent card, because it's going through Leverage's gift card marketplace, instead of from an individual.\nLoyalty Program.  Leverage isn't just about gift cards.  It's about customer loyalty.  You know\u2014eat 10 sandwiches and get the 11th free.  If you've got some customer loyalty services through retailers like Macy's, Leverage will keep track of them, and send you promotions as they apply to you.  Guess what.  That's a great centralized place for retailers to reach out to you as well.  It works for everybody, right?\nSo let's return to a point I brought up about Leverage's savings on bulk rates for gift cards being passed onto you.  Leverage will actually \"pay\" you \"interest\" on the unused balance of your cards.  3.65% APR for cards bought through Leverage, and 1% for other cards.  That's some pretty good incentive to get people to use the site.  It's not quite like a bank paying interest, because it's not holding (and using) any money.  But it is paying you to use the service.  \nWould this be enticing for you to buy a gift card for someone else, when you're not the one getting that \"interest\" back?  And is \"interest\" really an incentive at all when it really won't amount to much on those $35 gift cards you have stashed away?  It sounds like a gimmick for getting you to buy gift cards through Leverage to me.  After the trouble of registering all your gift cards online, I'd find it more useful as an integrated feature for a service like Geezeo  or Mint, where the rest of my financial information is already being tracked and automatically organized. \n[via  webware]\nvar federated_media_section = 'holiday'; "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://mashable.com/2007/11/16/leverage/>