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Retail Gift Card Association releases Holiday Gift Card Trend Tracker Survey

November 21, 2013

The holiday shopping season is just around the corner and to kick it off, the Retail Gift Card Association has released the results of its Holiday Gift Card Trend Tracker Survey that examines how consumers plan to give and receive gift cards purchased at retail locations this holiday season. The results, based on responses from nearly 3,000 consumers, reveal ways that retailers can best capitalize on consumers’ continued satisfaction with the products.

According to the survey, 74 percent of respondents plan to give one or more gift cards this holiday season, and nearly 30 percent surveyed said they planned to give five or more gift cards. Overall, the number of gift cards consumers plan to purchase as gifts this year increased by 71 percent, according to survey results.

"There is no longer a question that retail gift cards are the most coveted gift to give and get during the holidays, but consumers are being more deliberate about which cards they purchase, with 73 percent spending less on holiday spending than they did last year," said Jennifer Tramontana, spokesperson for the Retail Gift Card Association. "This survey shows ways that retailers can compete for savvy-consumer dollars by adding holiday promotions and offering online and mobile gift card options such as e-gift codes."

Additional key insights from the survey include:

• gift cards drive store traffic — 78 percent of consumers plan to spend their cards at the retailer’s brick and mortar location;
• restaurants and department stores will benefit most from gift card promotion this holiday — consumers are most likely to give cards from these types of retailers (57 percent plan to give a restaurant gift card this year), and they most want to receive cards from these businesses as well (60 percent hope for a department store gift card);
• convenience and practicality drive the decision to give gift cards — 79 percent of consumers give gift cards because they know the recipient can purchase what they want, and 70 percent give them for convenience;
• consumers are embracing more online and mobile options — 56 percent plan to stay home and shop on Cyber Monday, and 83 percent like the option to send physical gift cards or e-codes; and
• promotions drive gift cards sales — 17 percent of consumers wait for a promotion before buying a gift card, and 23 percent almost always look for promotions at competing retailers before deciding where to buy a gift card.

Read more about consumer behavior.