With only five weeks until the holiday season (you read that right), the panic that surrounds buying gifts is about to set in. Whether you’re the type of person that has had presents meticulously bought and wrapped for months, or the kind that’s holding off until the day before to go shopping, we can help you find the perfect solution.
Regardless if you’re shopping for a long list, short list, dirty Santa, best friend, or the quiet cousin whose name is either Tina or Tammy, we’ve got you covered.
The Good, the Better, and the Best
Although they have been previously lauded as the impersonal go-to gift choice, we’re here to tell you all the reasons gift cards are this year’s holiday game changer. Not convinced by the ease of a single purchase for all your gift-giving needs? Then consider this:
- Forget the Fear of spending hours searching for the perfect gift, only to have them return it. Instead of wondering exactly what your recipient wants, give them the flexible present that is a gift card and eliminate the guessing. At the same time, it takes out the fear that they’ll spend the cash you tucked into a card for them on something mundane.
- Ease the shopping stress by getting your gift cards ahead of the chaos that is last minute shopping. The holidays seem even more wonderful with an extra Saturday free to sip hot cocoa and avoid family.
- Personalize the practical gift card by decorating the presentation. Whether the gift card is for their favorite store or more of an all-around crowd pleaser like iTunes or Amazon, you can take it up a notch by adding some candy, small trinkets, and a sweet note.
- Give without guilt thanks to eco-friendly gift cards. Teslin-based cards are a friendlier alternative to other plastic-based cards, allowing you to give a gift that goes easier on the environment. For the ultimate effect, pair by wrapping with twine and recyclable paper.
- Don’t worry about your wallet: gift cards ease holiday budgeting by streamlining the process. By customizing the exact amount you place on each card, you don’t have to worry about spending too much on a single person (or not enough on your in-laws).
Forget about all the reasons your mother told you giving gift cards was too impersonal and think about just how perfect they can be. After all, the National Retail Federation (NRF) isn’t wrong: in 2012, they held a survey that revealed nearly 60% of respondents favored gift cards over any other gift. Why not give the people what they want?
Gift cards aren’t just smart for giving, they’re good for business
Giftcards.com and The Giftcard Network partnered to dig further into the numbers on gift cards for businesses. After polling 319 adult consumers earlier this summer, they found that:
- Gift cards were most frequently given for birthdays and winter holidays
- The target audience for most cards was children between the ages of 8 and 15, although parents were crucial in the redemption process.
- Over 30% of those surveyed indicated they would be purchasing at least 5-10 gifts for their kids in 2015. Of those gifts, 40% said that 1-4 of those gifts would be gift cards.
The survey concluded by finding that most businesses fail with gift cards by not targeting both the parent and the child for a positive redemption process. Additionally, the most frequently cited problem was that the parent simply lost or forgot to redeem the gift card. While we can’t help your customers to remember to redeem their cards, we can help you with a bigger problem: keeping them in stock.
With all the focus on buying up gift cards for the holidays, your stock is sure to be depleted following the winter holidays this year. Although it’s tempting to wait to stock up, gift cards aren’t given exclusively for the winter holidays. In fact, the survey revealed that gift cards are popular on multiple occasions:
Gift cards given by occasion
Whether you’re a consumer trying to decide how you’ll be spending the weeks leading up to the holidays or a business owner trying to find a way to survive the busiest shopping season, or even both– we’re here for you. Just take a deep breath, relax, and rely on us to keep your business’ gift cards in stock. For more information on our printing process and prices call us at 800-800-7741 or click below to get a price quote to restock your gift card supplies.