Here is how to activate a Visa Gift Card that you ordered on Staples.com. You will receive a letter with the $200 Visa Gift Card. You will also receive a letter in a separate envelope with the activation code to activate your gift card. You need both letters to do anything. Here is what the gift card letter looks like:
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Here is how to activate a Visa Gift Card that you ordered on Staples.com. You will receive a letter with the $200 Visa Gift Card. You will also receive a letter in a separate envelope with the activation code to activate your gift card. You need both letters to do anything. Here is what the gift card letter looks like:
Here is the back side looks like:
Here is the separate letter with the activation codes (third column) and the last 4 digits of your gift card(s) (4th column):
To activate your gift card (one at a time), go to Gift Card Mall’s activation page (link). From here, select individual card (not bulk), type in your 16 digit gift card number, type in the 4 digit activation code, type in the CAPTCHA code, and click Activate.
If you typed everything correctly, you will get an activation page.
To add a PIN (necessary for loading to your Bluebird or Serve Card), go to Gift Card Mall’s home page (link) and click Update Card PIN.
Type in your gift card number, expiration date, CVV2 code, and click Next.
Type any 4 digit PIN you want (I used the last 4 digits of the gift card) and click Update Card PIN.
Congratulations, your gift card PIN has now been successfully set. You are now able to use your gift card at Walmart to load your Bluebird or Serve Card.
If you have more than 1 gift card, repeat the above steps. If you have any questions, please leave a comment below.
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The cards ship with default PINs as the last 4 digits of the card numbers, so I don’t change the PINs.
I do register my cards at GoWallet, so I can keep a record of what I have and had, both with their website and smartphone app. GoWallet is part of GiftCardMall, so they update the balances real time for their own cards. This step is optional.
Good tip about the PIN, it only takes a few seconds to “update” the PIN, but it is good to know. I used to use the Go Wallet website but I had too many gift cards moving in and out.
Wow… Thanks for the detailed write up but you just talked me out of these… Too much work for me per $200 card. I’ll stick to loading up on $500 One Vanilla’s using my 5% drugstore card and then driving a block to Walmart to quickly load them. If you add in the extra time to load $200 cards (instead of $500) at Walmart and it becomes a serious time investment.
No need to register them for evolve money. You’re also loosing out on a bit of profit by forgoing any rewards bonus from portal boosts.
Will — Great point. Maybe I’ll use these exclusively for my Evolve Money bill paying. That cuts out one of the biggest pain points in my opinion — loading $200 a time at Walmart. And yes, I know I leave some money on the table if I avoid these, but I have to factor time and convenience into the equation as well.
You are right, it is a little more time intensive, but the main reason is 5x Chase UR Points with Chase Ink Bold/Plus cards + portal cash back. I give you options, and you can decide what you want to do.
And that’s why I’ll continue to read your blog. You give great ideas, even if I choose not to use them all. Keep up the great content.
Some of the stuff I talk about is even too crazy for me! Thank goodness their are more crazy and less crazy people than me in the world :)
Why don’t you need to register them for use on evolve money?
50/50 Staples is killing this as I type and wondering what to do with 50K card orders they won’t fulfill due to Chase putting them in a choke hold.
Just wait it out and see what happens. I would recommend smaller orders in the future. Hopefully you get some good news from Staples or Chase.
there is a phone number that came with the letter, get to customer service and read your order # and verify a few info and she’ll activate all the cards at once.
Oh cool, good tip Choi. How many gift cards did you activate in one phone call?
I activated 10 with a single order number
Nice job. That could save a lot of time.
One of the more informed posters stated yesterday that there is no need to assign a PIN in order to use these $200 gift cards with Evolve money. Is this true? If so, does anyone know why they work that way. That’s WAY WAY WAY more convenient than what you have to do with these in order to use them at Walmart for BB.
Evolve is strange. They use a hybrid type payment method where they withdraw the funds from a card without having PIN required. On the flip side, PayPal debit cards don’t earn any cash back.
Just to confirm what someone else was inferring, I took my activated $200 Staples Visa Gift Card to Walmart today without preloading a PIN and just used the last 4 digits. Kiosk was of course broken. It was my first time loading a debit to BB. Went to cashier who was in a horrible mood but she just asked how much, didn’t look at my gift/debit card or ask to see it. It loaded very easily after putting in the 4 digits. I said thank you and she was on to the next person as if she was living in hell.
Thanks for the data point Kent. My Walmart reload this morning wasn’t as exciting as yours.
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