I would first like to say, BatchPCB looks like an awesome service for hobbyists. Go BatchPCB!
What is the easiest way to create Gold Fingers on a PCB board. Is there an inexpensive way to gold plate pads?
I know there are some chemical / electroplate methods, but I’ve only had boards done all at once before, [and thats not a service batchpcb offers].
Cheers,
–David Carne
If you really want gold pins, for example on an edgecard connector, it’s a several-step process. First off, the artwork for the fingers on the board should be slightly extended past the actual finished edge planned for the edgecard. Then, all the pins on the edgecard are shorted together in this extended space. (This allows all the pins to get charged, allowing the gold to plate out of solution, onto the pins.) The finishing step is to machine off this extension, bringing the edgecard back to its intended dimension.
It’s nearly impossible to plate the pads with gold without doing it during the manufacturing process. For prototypes, and for hobbyist use, tin-plated edgecard fingers work fine (I’ve made some). I understand there are some obscure reasons to use gold pads with some RF designs, but for that level of control, you might as well start your own board-fab process. It’s not simple, but it is well documented. (Needless to say, if it were easy, everyone would be doing it 
The advantages include being able to control the copper thickness, the substrate thickness and material, including varying thicknesses/materials (teflon and ceramic, if you can get them).
For plating resources of all types, try http://www.caswellplating.com
For (complete) instructions (and supplies) on how to set up a PCB fabrication shop in the comfort of your own home, check out http://www.thinktink.com