Shelley Hunter is Your Consumer Guide to Gift Cards.

Shelley’s Bio

From gift card tips and practical advice, to inspiring ideas and insights into the gift card industry, Shelley Hunter (a.k.a. Gift Card Girlfriend) is the one-and-only consumer guide to gift cards. In addition to sharing creative ideas, she is always on the lookout for gift card trends that impact the public such as her ongoing Ranking of Top Store Digital Gift Cards and the popular Chapter 11 Gift Card Watchlist, both making national headlines.

A former IT Professional in the financial services industry, Shelley is a work-at-home mom who loves to give (and receive!) gift cards.

Her Story

In 2009, Shelley created a website (GiftCardGirlfriend.com now rolled into GiftCards.com) to share her signature way of turning any gift card into a thoughtful gift. She quickly learned, however, that consumers wanted more help than that—they needed insight on the best gift cards to give, what to do with unwanted gift cards and ways to avoid gift card pitfalls such as fraud and fees. With no other consumer gift card experts around, Shelley launched Gift Card Girlfriend and emerged as the go-to guide for all things gift cards. In 2013, she joined forces with GiftCards.com giving customers access to both education and the best gift card products available in one visit.

Prior to starting Gift Card Girlfriend, Shelley worked freelance as a product developer, online market research moderator and analyst, teddy bear designer (it’s true!) and ghost writer, among other random gigs. She also worked as a systems analyst and programmer for two of the nation’s top businesses before leaving the corporate world to be (unapologetically) home with her kids.

Read more: 10 Years as the Gift Card Girlfriend

Media Resources

In addition to talking gift cards, Shelley is a stay-at-home mom to three school-age children. She can speak to the benefits of working from home, starting a personal brand, and making the transition from the traditional workforce to the PTA and back.

Popular Gift Card Girlfriend content:

• Shelley’s Holiday Gift Guide
• Tidy Up Your Gift Cards Before It’s Too Late!
• Gift Card Scam Protection
• Complete Guide to Gift Card Reseller Industry (Gift Card Exchange)
• A Ranking of Top Store Digital Gift Cards
• Chapter 11 Gift Card Watchlist (a.k.a. The Gift Card Graveyard)
• Gift Card Girlfriend’s Complete Guide to eGift Cards
• Gift Card Girlfriend’s Complete Guide to Gift Cards for Small Businesses
• What to do with Unwanted Gift Cards

Sampling of Recent News Coverage:

• The RGCA: Tips for Safe Gift Card Use
• Payments Journal: Retail Gift Cards Association (RGCA) Shares PSA on Avoiding Gift Card Scams
• ABC 7: Gift cards could become hassle if Sears goes under, expert says to use them soon
• CreditCards.com: Reselling a gift card? This is peak season for scams
• ABC News: 7 on Your Side Helps You with Unwanted Gift Cards from the Holidays
• NerdWallet: The Smartest Way to Use Gift Cards
• NBC News: How to Safely Sell Those Unwanted Gift Cards
• Wall Street Journal: Meet the Plaintiffs Lawyer Out to Save Gift Cards
• KGO News Michael Finney: The Chapter 11 Gift Card Watchlist
• Credit Card Guide: What to do if Your Gift Card Goes Missing

For additional GiftCards.com and Gift Card Girlfriend news, please visit the company’s media page or check out Shelley’s Wistia Channel.

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