Think Franklin First Gift Cards to Continue Past Holidays
Dec 31, 2020 12:34PM ● By Judy O'Gara
December 2020, the Town of Franklin, Dean Bank and the Random Smile Project brought a new shop local initiative to Franklin in record time, and it’s a program that was designed to continue beyond the holiday season. Think Franklin First Gift Cards, a closed-circuit gift card program, is intended to keep consumer dollars within the town, to help businesses compete with larger entities, such as Amazon and Visa, that sell generic purchase gift cards. Residents who purchase Think Franklin First gift cards are making sure their purchase benefits businesses right within their community.
Anne Marie Tracey, of the town of Franklin, worked to get this program up and running.
“I had been doing some research on different economic development programs, different chambers, different municipalities, and I came across a (similar)
program run in Northampton, Mass. I reached out to the people (there) and asked them a lot of questions on how they run it,” says Tracey. It turned out, the gift card company Northampton was using was owned by a Franklin resident, Larry Rubin, of Swipe-It Technologies. Tracey reached out to him, and Rubin explained what kind of partners the town would need to run the program.
“We’re a gift card company; we’ve been doing this for 20 years,” says Rubin, whose company donated the first 500 gift cards to the town. “We can help sponsor, help with the setups, and help explain the program to merchants. Anne Marie did a great job of rallying (participants), and now it’s up to the community to support the (participating) merchants.” The gift card program, explains Rubin, can continue indefinitely, now that it has partnering organizations to make it work.
“I wanted to do this right, to make sure we put this together well. That’s how I ended up at Dean Bank,” says Tracey.
At first, she approached Dean Bank, right in the middle of Franklin at 21 Main Street. as a sponsor of the program. Not only did the bank become a Platinum sponsor, generously donating to the program to making sure local businesses are fully reimbursed for purchases made with these gift cards, with no fees, but Dean Bank is also the only local-purchase option for the gift cards. The cards can also be bought online using credit/debit cards at www.franklingiftcard.com and can be delivered via USPS or as an e-gift card.
“When Anne Marie came to us initially, she was trying to solicit a monetary donation,” says Dean Bank SVP Michael Carroll. “As she explained, we felt (the program) matches perfectly with the mission of Dean Bank, a four-branch community bank founded in Franklin and Franklin-focused. Her mission, her idea, the fact that it was Franklin, focused on the small local businesses as well as the residents, it really mirrored our mission almost perfectly. It was an easy decision to make, and it was a substantial donation, because it was a substantial project.”
Carroll added that he and others at Dean Bank were especially impressed with Tracey’s ability to collaborate and work cooperatively with the various partners she needed to solve problems. “There were a number of challenges she faced, from the bank and the town, needing to cobble together partners working toward a common goal, and not only was she able to achieve it, but the speed at which she was able to achieve it was incredible I’ve never seen an initiative of such scope be accomplished in such a short period.”
“Timing really mattered, having our partners jump in at the same pace,” says Tracey.
The town of Franklin also needed a partner to distribute weekly payments to business partners in the gift card program, so they are paid promptly for cards redeemed in their locations. Tracey looked to Matt Sousa and Paul Molla, co-founders of Random Smile Project, who offered to assist, along with their team members and volunteers.
“Obviously, Paul Molla and I are both small business owners as well,” says Sousa. “I am from the town, I know Anne Marie, and I know with COVID, the small businesses are struggling, so any way we could help, we were happy to do it. Dean Bank was great where they donated a bunch of money to absorb the fees. Usually, when someone uses a card, usually some goes to, say, Visa, but with (Think Franklin First gift cards), someone gets the entire amount.”
“Whenever a card is redeemed, businesses will get fully reimbursed for that amount,” says Tracey. “The goal is to drive traffic to Franklin businesses rather than go online. I’m working with local businesses, and they just keep telling us how imp every 20 bucks is.”
Silver Sponsor Allegra Print, Mail & Marketing located at 317 Union Street in Franklin has also generously donated Think Franklin First window clings and tent cards, which are displayed at participating businesses.
“So, the businesses benefit, because they’re obviously getting the marketing and the attention drawn to them,” says Tracey, who is managing a large social media campaign and listing participating businesses on the website. “This is not just a holiday program,” says Tracey. “The goal is to keep it going and have it be part of our Shop Local initiatives here.”
At press time, the Think Franklin First Gift Card website, www.franklingiftcard.com, had over 30 participating businesses in town. Card holders or potential purchasers can visit the website at any time to find out which businesses accept the cards, to check their card balance, or to reload a card.
The Think Franklin First Gift Card program is endorsed by the Franklin Downtown Partnership, #shopFranklin, the Metrowest Visitors Bureau, MyLocalMA, The United Regional Chamber of Commerce and the Massachusetts Office of Travel and Tourism.
For more information visit www.franklingiftcard.com
For sponsorship opportunities, visit our website sponsorship page at www.franklingiftcard.com/sponsors
Are you a business owner who would like more information? Contact Anne Marie Tracey, Marketing and Communication Specialist at (508) 553-4888 or via email at [email protected]
To learn more about Random Smile Project and the charitable work they do in our community, or to make a donation, visit their website at https://www.randomsmile.org/
To find Dean Bank’s location and hours of operation, visit their website at https://www.deanbank.com/locations/MA/Franklin/franklin-ma .
Anne Marie Tracey, of the town of Franklin, worked to get this program up and running.
“I had been doing some research on different economic development programs, different chambers, different municipalities, and I came across a (similar)
program run in Northampton, Mass. I reached out to the people (there) and asked them a lot of questions on how they run it,” says Tracey. It turned out, the gift card company Northampton was using was owned by a Franklin resident, Larry Rubin, of Swipe-It Technologies. Tracey reached out to him, and Rubin explained what kind of partners the town would need to run the program.
“We’re a gift card company; we’ve been doing this for 20 years,” says Rubin, whose company donated the first 500 gift cards to the town. “We can help sponsor, help with the setups, and help explain the program to merchants. Anne Marie did a great job of rallying (participants), and now it’s up to the community to support the (participating) merchants.” The gift card program, explains Rubin, can continue indefinitely, now that it has partnering organizations to make it work.
“I wanted to do this right, to make sure we put this together well. That’s how I ended up at Dean Bank,” says Tracey.
At first, she approached Dean Bank, right in the middle of Franklin at 21 Main Street. as a sponsor of the program. Not only did the bank become a Platinum sponsor, generously donating to the program to making sure local businesses are fully reimbursed for purchases made with these gift cards, with no fees, but Dean Bank is also the only local-purchase option for the gift cards. The cards can also be bought online using credit/debit cards at www.franklingiftcard.com and can be delivered via USPS or as an e-gift card.
“When Anne Marie came to us initially, she was trying to solicit a monetary donation,” says Dean Bank SVP Michael Carroll. “As she explained, we felt (the program) matches perfectly with the mission of Dean Bank, a four-branch community bank founded in Franklin and Franklin-focused. Her mission, her idea, the fact that it was Franklin, focused on the small local businesses as well as the residents, it really mirrored our mission almost perfectly. It was an easy decision to make, and it was a substantial donation, because it was a substantial project.”
Carroll added that he and others at Dean Bank were especially impressed with Tracey’s ability to collaborate and work cooperatively with the various partners she needed to solve problems. “There were a number of challenges she faced, from the bank and the town, needing to cobble together partners working toward a common goal, and not only was she able to achieve it, but the speed at which she was able to achieve it was incredible I’ve never seen an initiative of such scope be accomplished in such a short period.”
“Timing really mattered, having our partners jump in at the same pace,” says Tracey.
The town of Franklin also needed a partner to distribute weekly payments to business partners in the gift card program, so they are paid promptly for cards redeemed in their locations. Tracey looked to Matt Sousa and Paul Molla, co-founders of Random Smile Project, who offered to assist, along with their team members and volunteers.
“Obviously, Paul Molla and I are both small business owners as well,” says Sousa. “I am from the town, I know Anne Marie, and I know with COVID, the small businesses are struggling, so any way we could help, we were happy to do it. Dean Bank was great where they donated a bunch of money to absorb the fees. Usually, when someone uses a card, usually some goes to, say, Visa, but with (Think Franklin First gift cards), someone gets the entire amount.”
“Whenever a card is redeemed, businesses will get fully reimbursed for that amount,” says Tracey. “The goal is to drive traffic to Franklin businesses rather than go online. I’m working with local businesses, and they just keep telling us how imp every 20 bucks is.”
Silver Sponsor Allegra Print, Mail & Marketing located at 317 Union Street in Franklin has also generously donated Think Franklin First window clings and tent cards, which are displayed at participating businesses.
“So, the businesses benefit, because they’re obviously getting the marketing and the attention drawn to them,” says Tracey, who is managing a large social media campaign and listing participating businesses on the website. “This is not just a holiday program,” says Tracey. “The goal is to keep it going and have it be part of our Shop Local initiatives here.”
At press time, the Think Franklin First Gift Card website, www.franklingiftcard.com, had over 30 participating businesses in town. Card holders or potential purchasers can visit the website at any time to find out which businesses accept the cards, to check their card balance, or to reload a card.
The Think Franklin First Gift Card program is endorsed by the Franklin Downtown Partnership, #shopFranklin, the Metrowest Visitors Bureau, MyLocalMA, The United Regional Chamber of Commerce and the Massachusetts Office of Travel and Tourism.
For more information visit www.franklingiftcard.com
For sponsorship opportunities, visit our website sponsorship page at www.franklingiftcard.com/sponsors
Are you a business owner who would like more information? Contact Anne Marie Tracey, Marketing and Communication Specialist at (508) 553-4888 or via email at [email protected]
To learn more about Random Smile Project and the charitable work they do in our community, or to make a donation, visit their website at https://www.randomsmile.org/
To find Dean Bank’s location and hours of operation, visit their website at https://www.deanbank.com/locations/MA/Franklin/franklin-ma .
