GiftCard Partners Blog

The National Retail Federation has announced that this holiday season, if all goes according to plan, spending on gift cards will break all previous records.
NRF predicts gift card spending will reach $31.74 billion, up 83% since gift card spending tracking began in 2003. What does this mean? It's simple. Gift cards are the perfect gift. They are easy for the giver, they are guaranteed to please the receiver, and the price is set. It fits the budget, and is easy. Could any holiday-shopping-crazed consumer ask for anything else? We don't think so either. The important thing to remember is that gift cards work for everyone. This means not just your friends and family, but anyone else you might need to give gifts too. Providing small gifts to employees at the end of the year is a great way to say thanks. It's a small act of appreciation. It could be as simple as giving them a gift to a
grocer to help curb the cost of their Thanksgiving or holiday dinner. So, as everything starts to get crazy later this week, with presents and decorations and wrapping paper, keep it simple and everyone will be happy.

We've spent some time over the last few weeks talking about gift card purchasing and gifting as the holiday shopping season heats up. However, it's important to keep a secondary focus on trends going forward. Based on
First Data's latest Consumer Insights Survey, the future of gift cards is virtual. Here are a few key stats from the survey.

We are entering an age of great workplaces. A job is no longer just a job, but a good fit in environment and skills between employer and employee. Due to more transparency given by employers and more trust in the employee/employer relationships employees are happier in their workplace. What does this mean? Generally, it means better business results. Awesome, right?

This year holiday gift card spending on both plastic and digital gift cards will top all previous records with sales expecting to reach over $31 billion!  Gift cards have shed their reputation of being impersonal and have emerged as the perfect practical gift item for millions of holiday shoppers and are the most requested holiday gift for the 8th year in a row. Shoppers are expected to spend an average of $47.87 a card, up 6% over last year.  Since the
National Retail Federation began tracking customers holiday purchasing intentions in 2003, the total spend on gift cards has increased 83%. “Consumers young and old want to find the best way possible to create a happy holiday experience for their loved ones, and gift cards are a great option every time.”  Gift cards are a go-to gift for consumers of all ages; adults 65+ will spend the most on gift cards, while young adults will spend the least.  In addition, men will spend almost 10% more than women on gift card purchases. The following charts provide more insight into the 2014 NRF survey results, check out more
here.
About the Survey The NRF 2014 Gift Card Spending Survey was designed to gauge consumer behavior and shopping trends related to the winter holidays. The survey polled 6,593 consumers and was conducted for NRF by Prosper Insights & Analytics, November 3-10, 2014. The consumer poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 1.2 percentage points.

There are a few key factors to a successful employee wellness program. The folks at the
Lane Report have boiled it down to three. Are you driving your program with these components? If not, it may be time to adjust.