When it comes to popular gift ideas or choices for holidays, graduations, baptismal, birthdays, and other occasions, gift cards are one of those that rank at the top. They offer a personal touch without giving the giver a hard time. Gift card recipients’ satisfaction and joy are mostly a guarantee.
It’s Great to Buy Gift Cards as Gifts. Here’s Why…
Gift cards are classified into two, i.e. cash cards and store cards, and they have their own pros and cons.
CASH CARDS
These are gift cards that are usually sponsored by American Express, Discover, MasterCard, and Visa. Since these channels are widely available in the market, one of the best advantages of cash cards is that they can be used anywhere. The recipient just needs to ensure that the store he or she will be spending the card on accepts these types of credit cards. In other words, “hassle” is not in the vocabulary of cash card users. The downside, though, is its lack of personal touch as cash cards are typically an alternative to a cash gift. But to the new generation, this is not a big deal.
STORE CARDS
These are gift cards that are quite picky and are exclusively associated with their issuers unless there is a partnership between business establishments. On the upside, store cards have more personal touch to them, thus the recipients will feel cared for and loved. However, before you buy gift cards of this type, do know that restrictions and policies pertaining to the spending process are common. For instance, this may be in the form of validity periods that commonly range from thirty to ninety days.
Regardless, it cannot be denied how gift cards are great as a present especially for the less thoughtful but who do not want to disappoint the people they want to give their gifts to.
Still not convinced? Reasons below will help you understand better why it’s great to buy gift cards for your loved ones:
It is budget-friendly but it will make your loved one happy.
Gift cards are widely available. Although some are outrageously expensive; the majority are mostly affordable. Buying an item within the same price range as a gift cannot always guarantee to paint a smile on your recipient’s face. On the contrary, giving your recipient a gift card, aside from it is flattering, will also ensure your recipient’s gratification as he or she will have the chance to personally pick the item that he or she truly desires.
With discounted gift cards, there are huge savings in store.
It is your little sister’s birthday. You gave her a restaurant gift card with a $100 face value. With the amount enough to treat her entire classroom, of course, it made her jump for joy. Little did she know, you were able to buy it at a price $15 cheaper. Imagine the steal?
There are a lot of gift cards offered with discounts and these are common in select retail shops and restaurants. Because these establishments are aware that gift card owners are likely to overspend it comes to gift cards, their ultimate goal is to get as many gift card owners as possible inside their premises and one effective way to lure them in is through discounts. It may be a clever act but you too, as a customer, will benefit. So, why not?
It offers flexibility for the recipient and there is an element of thoughtfulness in it.
Give your loved one a present, there’s a chance he or she won’t like it but give him or her a gift card and you will be surprised how thrilled and happy he or she will be. That is because gift cards let their future owners choose what item to buy. Of course, they’ll choose something that will make them happy. It’s like getting rid of unnecessary anxiety because you know your recipient will enjoy your gift wholeheartedly, whether it is a material thing or an experience your recipient chooses to avail.
Although technically, cash can do the same thing, the latter lacks sensitivity and personal touch. For sure, cash is not the best choice there is.
Gift cards are effortlessly attractive.
They are attractive without any effort. You will not have to wrap presents which can be messy. Just give the card with a note; for sure your recipient will melt out of joy. As per many studies, gift cards rarely leave their recipients disappointed.
Your recipient can spend more out of it.
A $20 gift card is not always worth $20. Sometimes, it can offer more. For instance, when selected gift cards are used online, there may be discounts or free shipping promos the owner can avail of. Instead of spending the card on a brick-and-mortar location which might mean gas expense, the user can easily use it online and spend nothing. In this digital age, a lot of retailers have already established their e-commerce websites which are capable of honoring gift cards. That said, your recipient can stretch it out with convenience.
Last but not the least, gift cards are safe to use. They are anti-fraud!
The pioneering gift cards used to offer less security. They were good as cash – permanently gone when stolen or lost. These days, however, most gift cards are already bank-branded. They can be registered to their rightful owners such that if thieves have them, they will not be able to use or sell the card. Lost or stolen gift cards will be basically useless.
The same applies to most retail stores that issue gift cards. They make use of registration models or keys and ask their gift card buyers to register the card appropriately. Others even make use of a pin.
“What happens to the unused gift cards? Will they be put to waste?”
If your loved ones have such reservations, tell them to stop fretting. There are reliable websites that host buy-and-sell of gift cards. That means if your recipient does not have the time to visit the store to spend the card within its validity period, he or she can always sell the gift card online and enjoy its monetary worth.
In other words, there is no reason why you should not buy gift cards!
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