Tis the season. Lots of shopping, sometimes with no idea what to buy for certain people. The saving grace....the gift card.
I'll start out by saying that gift cards are not bad, by any stretch of the imagination. But, there are a couple of problems with them, and why I sometimes avoid them.
First, you are going to have those folks who think they are cold and impersonal. I get that. For a lot of people in my life, it makes no sense for me to hand you a gift card for $50 and you hand me one. For that, we could just take our own money and buy ourselves what we want. The point of a gift is to give something the receiver would be excited about, love to have, maybe never purchased for themselves or never found themselves. It is often the purpose to give them something that they will remember you by.
Second, I think twice about giving a gift card this time of year because by the time the recipient gets to use them (after the holiday), stores are really picked over, and selection is low. If they can wait till later in the year to spend it, they have a greater chance of finding exactly something they love, but the weeks (and sometimes months) after Christmas, there isn't anything in the stores I need or want.
Unless one of the Mastercard or Visa gift cards, the person is limited to where you buy the card. If you know them well enough, it might be the right place, if you don't know them well enough, it is something they may have to settle for.
I do use gift cards, but I am selective as to when and for whom. Teens love them. Especially itunes if they buy music, or gas cards so they can drive more, and restaurant cards so they can go out and eat with their friends. Younger kids love to have one from the toy store, so they can pick out exactly what they love (but you do have the after holiday empty shelves problem there too).
Friends who are having a rough patch often appreciate a gift card to a general merchandise store (think Walmart). They can pick up anything from groceries to clothing or any other necessity while funds are low, and it allows them to use what monies they have to pay bills. Same would go for gas cards, or food cards, anything that would basically supplement their income.
Gift cards or certificates to a specific place that you know they use, (the spa, salon, or favorite specialty store) because you know any other gift is a gamble as they have everything, or are extremely finicky, can be a great option.
I only posted this because sometimes this time of year, as people ask for gift ideas, or as people talk about gifting, there are those that think the gift card is the ultimate answer, when in fact, it isn't always so. I hate to say it, but I've been given gift cards at times that I truly have no use for. I end up donating them (much the same as others say they do with some "regular" gifts) because I don't want anything from the establishment, and I feel it is wasteful to just get something I will give away or never use anyway.
Looking for others input on the gift card issue, its pros and cons. Oh, and happy shopping!
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