Are Gift Cards really gifts?

Gift cards most certainly ARE gifts! Generic ones like WalMart suck (for the most part; exception noted below), but I've been given gift cards on many occasions to places like Red Lobster or the Olive Garden; places I'm usually too cheap to spring for, but where I can enjoy an occasional NICE dinner courtesy of a thoughtful friend.

And even the generic WalMart gift card can be useful; on more than one occasion I've been extremely thankful for the generosity of those who gave me WalMart gift cards, as I can use them for gas if I need to.

I must also point out that shipping a gift runs a high risk of loss or damage; shipping a gift card mitigates some of that. Also, returns are very high (just ask any retailer about Dec. 26th), so a gift card increases the chance they'll actually LIKE what you get them

I actually agree with this lady. I am a firm believer that a gift is something that people put some thought into. Even if it's not something you like or can use, the fact that he/she who got it for you actually went to a store and made the effort to pick something out of the thousands of products on the store shelves or online. Giving a gift card shows just how little you know the person and how you were not willing to get to know them enough to know what to get for them on Christmas, their Birthday or even as a thank you.

Some might say there could be exceptions, what if you don't know the person at all, someone you just met or are about to meet or someone you just didn't have time to get to know? Well, I believe, in this case you give them what I call a universal gift. A universal gift is a gift that is simple, basic, that most people would like and even if they don't are still a nice thing to give. Some examples would be candles, a painting, flowers or even bottle of wine.

The point is to show that you care and that you were willing to go to the trouble of picking something out because you took the time and cared to know what they liked or you made an attempt to get to know them before you knew them. Gift Cards are just a easy way out of putting your mind to work and it limits the receiver to the store the Gift Card is for, apart from having to make the person go to the store themselves and chose what they want.

Think of it this way, what was it like before Gift Cards existed? Before surplus was a common concept? Before stores like Walmart, K-mart, Sears or Hallmark became the rulers of holidays and special occasions?

I think the only 2 good uses for Gift Cards are for when that someone you wish to give something is too far and either you risk damaging the gift, are not able to send the gift due to some kind of restriction or you just can't afford to send the gift; a Gift Card is a great alternative and if you wanna save $.03 a gallon on gas at Walmart gas station you put some money on a Gift Card and use it at the gas station, if you don't have a Walmart Card that is.

My opinion is not intended as an insult to anyone. If you think Gift Cards are a great idea, that's fine with me. This is the US after all and you have the right to give what you think is best. This is just my 2 cents on Gift Cards.

Gift cards most certainly ARE gifts! Generic ones like WalMart suck (for the most part; exception noted below), but I've been given gift cards on many occasions to places like Red Lobster or the Olive Garden; places I'm usually too cheap to spring for, but where I can enjoy an occasional NICE dinner courtesy of a thoughtful friend.

Dinner gift cards are not a bad thing. Didn't think about those. I mean, can you imagine someone bringing you a Red Lobster dinner wrapped up in a box with a bow? I can make exceptions for those. The gas idea for Walmart? Not sure gas for your car is what I would consider a gift though I can not deny it does come in handy. I would think the purpose of a gift is to get something you would normally not get, can't afford or just never get around to getting.

Don't get me wrong, I appreciate any gift card given to me and put it to good use. Still, it would be nice if they made the effort to get me something as oppose to me getting it myself in their name.

I must also point out that shipping a gift runs a high risk of loss or damage; shipping a gift card mitigates some of that. Also, returns are very high (just ask any retailer about Dec. 26th), so a gift card increases the chance they'll actually LIKE what you get them

That was one of the ideas I thought a gift card would be good for. Considering I worked in UPS during a Christmas season, I am very skeptical about the idea of shipping something, that's very fragile and expensive without enough packaging to land an ostridge egg on Mars from orbit, thru the hands of people who are more concerned with getting it there on time than in one piece (trust me, I have witness it with my own eyes every day for 8 months straight).

Frankly, what good does an electric razor or a set of silverware do me if I can't put gas in my car. I'm a practical person, and to me, if someone gives me something I can use, they HAVE put thought into it!

Frankly, what good does an electric razor or a set of silverware do me if I can't put gas in my car. I'm a practical person, and to me, if someone gives me something I can use, they HAVE put thought into it!

What if you didn't have a car? What if the card you are given can not be used at Walmart gas stations? I get your point and as I said, gas can come in handy in tight situations and that persons ears will be ringing with all the thank yous one would be giving them for giving you the card for gas. Still, I just don't see a tank of gas as something I would look forward to for Christmas or my Birthday since I'm gonna get it either way if I have a car.

My dad gives out a gift card to Walmart to all his adult children who live out of state (grandkids get gifts picked). His theory is that we can use the $50 for a gift at Walmart OR use the money for gas or food and then take our own $50 to go out to eat or to whatever.

Sometimes we get individualized gifts but becuase we are so far away, it's hard to know what small gift to send. Clothes might not fit, we might have that movie or game or book, or not like it etc etc. And at some point, we have everything we need and the wants are too expensive to give (anyone want to send me to Disney World?)

I prefer "real" gifts but I am not opposed to giving a Starbucks card to the starbucks-a-holic.....

Sometimes we get individualized gifts but becuase we are so far away, it's hard to know what small gift to send. Clothes might not fit, we might have that movie or game or book, or not like it etc etc. And at some point, we have everything we need and the wants are too expensive to give (anyone want to send me to Disney World?)

Yup, sending stuff thru mail can really be a pain. I also have an expensive taste so getting me something I really want would mean really loving me enough to buy it. Not sure even my own wife loves me that much, lol.

But if someone can afford it and willing to give it, that would be great. But hey, there are several small things I would be happy if someone gave me, things I probably won't buy myself because I just don't.

I figure when it's people who are close by ro if you can afford the shipping charges, I still think a real gift is better than a gift card. But that's just me. Now a days we live in a world where feelings take a back seat to wants. I have seen cases where a man gets some new electronic gadget from his wife but the concept of the gift was more because they could afford it so he would have gotten it anyways as oppose to seeing it as she got it for him because she loves him and was willing to spend that kind of money for him.

Gifts? Yes.

Lazy-ish gifts? Yes.

Oh well. That's how I see it.

Gift card prostitution ring uncovered in Richmond - story at 11.

Millions of dollars in gift cards go unused every year though. That's why the retailers push them. Some people lose them and never get to use them.

I think gift giving should be thoughtful. I think it's better to get someone a gift card than a singing bass fish. Yes, the singing bass fish will get lots of laughs when you open it and then where does it go? I've never actually seen a singing bass fish hanging on anyone's wall.

(quietly removing my singing bass fish from the wall).

(quietly removing my singing bass fish from the wall).

lmao, gid

I used to be against the idea of gift cards for Christmas or any other time, but I see the usefulness of having it and I think it's a good idea if that is what the individual want's to do. Plus, you can go get something small and get the change back from most gift cards if that's what you want to do. Unless of course it's a restaurant card!

There are situations where it is better to give a gift card.

It allows the receiver to pick out what they want or need. A gift card is great for the people on your list like Scout leaders and teachers who can get more use from a Wal-Mart gift card or a Starbucks gift card or whatever instead of yet another (of dozens) tacky tree ornament or candle.

I think it's also great, like LH mentioned, for family who lives far away. Cash works better since it doesn't limit where you can shop for the gift, but cash can get "lost" in the mail pretty easily. Grandparents who live far away may not know exactly what a child wants or needs and it's must cheaper than shipping for a bunch of toys and/or clothes.

A WM or other big store gift card also makes it so that the parents can use the gift card for things they need and then use cash to buy something for the child at whatever store they want.

I have a curious question for all you ladies in here. Would it be OK if I just gave my wife a gift card from a florist, from a candy store and from a jewelry shop so she can pick her own flowers, her own chocolates and her own jewelry when ever she has time to do it, or would it be best if I bought what I believe is her favorite flowers, a nice box of chocolates and a diamond ring or diamond bracelet? Should I use the dinner gift cards I had stored to take her out on a romantic valentines dinner?

I hope I'm making my point here. It seems that the idea of what a gift on a special occasion such as Christmas and/or Birthday have become more of a convenience than a feeling of how much one cares for them. I mean if you truly believe that giving someone a Walmart card so they can use it for gas is a great girt idea, why wait till Christmas or a Birthday to do it? Why not just offer a tank of gas just because, in the middle of the summer?

Many times in my life I have been given things that I never either really liked, couldn't wear or couldn't use. At first I thought what was the point of the gift. But then I learned as time when by how appreciative I was of those gifts when many years would pass by before I ever saw some of these people and I still had that little gift to remind me of them and how It reminded me that at least once in my lifetime they remembered me. How those things that I found useless once, became things of memory of good times, of people we care about, of the little things that make life worth living. A tank of gas comes and goes pretty quick these days, and there is nothing but mileage left to remind you of those who gave you the card that provided the gas that allowed you to add those miles to the car. I would much rather go to dinner and have a great time with a friend rather than they give me a gift card to eat at a restaurant probably by myself or not with them.

Again, there are occasions that a gift card seems like the logical answer to what to give as a gift. But I think I would much rather give or receive a gift rather than a card. cause in the end it's the thought that counts to me.

I've always been a gift buyer not a giftcard buyer until this past year and it was well received. Maybe in some cases you can assume they don't know the person well enough but the gift cards I bought were for my sons who are at the age where they are hard to buy for. Gift cards fit the bill. It's not that I don't know them...it's that I do know them very well and they love gift cards.

For my youngest (college student) I bought Starbucks and Panara Bread gift cards for his birthday. Both are right near his college. He loves to go to Panara Bread with his laptop spending hours with a cup of coffee working. So he loved the thoughtful gift of a card at these two places which are side by side btw. Now instead of buying just a coffee, he can get something more expensive and not worry about his budget.

My other son turned 25 this year. So I went out and bought a variety of gift cards at $25 each in celebration of this birthday number. I tried to find places for him to eat at....one was for Subway, another for Burger King. I also got him a Walmart and a JCPenny card. He spent all of them but JcPenney so I know next time not to go there, (he hates to buy clothes).

Not only is this easier for me with the shipping and all I actually think they enjoy it better. It's a first for me but one I think I'm going to keep. For Christmas two of the boys are getting gifts galore but the third one is hard to buy for and I think I'm going to wrap gift cards individually in large boxes for him. He's flying and space is limited so it's much easier for him to lug cards home than boxes of gifts.

Every year for the last few years I have bought my mother gift cards that correspond with her birthday number as well. When I went in to the store this year asking for a gift card for $67 the clerk asked me why and when I told her it was my mom's age, she thought it was a cool idea. Mom loves it. So every year from now on that's what Mom is going to get, but at a different store each year. So she'll never know what she's going to get exactly. I think next year it will be a Barnes and Noble or a Border's Bookstore......hmmmmm or maybe it will be for gas the way gas prices are going up or maybe her being 68 I can get two $34 cards at each place.

That's how I've felt about it, too. I can see why people like gift cards, but I'd much prefer something that the person has gone to effort to get me. It shows me that they care, and not that they felt obligated to get me something.

Maybe I'm being obtuse, but that's how I see it.

There is a big difference between gift buying for a spouse and gift-giving for the myriad of teachers, instructors, and acquaintances in yours and your childrens' lives.

I also think what KFC describes is pretty appropriate. It's really a case-by-case thing. A college kid would probably appreciate gift cards to the food places he likes to visit more than some lame sweater or shaving kit or whatever. And gift cards CAN show that you know and appreciate the person's interests if the gift card(s) reflect places where the recipient actually likes to shop/eat/whatever and if the amount is sufficient to actually enjoy something there (a $10 gift card to a gaming store isn't going to benefit the recipient much, but $20 at Starbucks will buy a nice snack for the recipient and a friend).

I have a curious question for all you ladies in here. Would it be OK if I just gave my wife a gift card from a florist, from a candy store and from a jewelry shop so she can pick her own flowers, her own chocolates and her own jewelry when ever she has time to do it, or would it be best if I bought what I believe is her favorite flowers, a nice box of chocolates and a diamond ring or diamond bracelet? Should I use the dinner gift cards I had stored to take her out on a romantic valentines dinner?

While I think gift cards can be very well received I think when it comes to your spouse it's a whole nuther thing. While I have no problem giving gift cards out to my sons and mother I would have a hard time doing that for my husband. I wouldn't even think of giving him a gift card. On a day to day basis you should be so in tune with your spouse that it's so easy to pick up a gift for her/him knowing she/he is going to love it. It's not quite as easy for those living outside the home, be it a relative or a friend.

I know for instance my husband needs a grill light so he can grill outside at night. He hooked up a spot light that was ok temporarily but it's not going to suffice and the one I bought him for Christmas is made expressly for a grill. He's going to love it.

I have a feeling the gift I bought for my son may even be bought by his fiancee so that's the trouble you can get into buying outside the home.

It really is a case-by-case thing. The more you know someone, the more you should buy them a real gift. The more shipping is going to cost, the more likely you should buy a gift card. If you don't know your spouse well enough to get him/her more than a gift card, you've got more problems than just Christmas. But, you know what? My wife would rather get a gift card to a clothing store than have me go in a buy something for her. Or we could go shopping together (gag). The experience of shopping is what she wants to do, and she wants to come away with the clothes that fit her right and that she wants to wear.

It's funny how one does not see al angles of something till someone points them out to you. You all make good points on when a gift card is the right choice. I will have accept that gift cards are gifts as well, but I will stick to it's better to give a gift than a gift card in situations where distance is not the issue. Even a person who is not well known can have a nice gift if one just makes a small effort to find out what would be nice to give them or even give one of those universal gifts. I'm sure the average man wouldn't mind getting a nice Gillette shaving kit with the nice bag to carry it. I love them things.

Thanks for the post. This is great stuff.

Gift cards are great for stores. They have your money, so they can invest it. There is a chance that it will never be cashed in. I'm guessing the statistics on that are out there, but a quick Google search turned up 10-15%. That's huge, especially in low margin stores.

Yes, it's good to discuss these things. Tell you what...I'll ask my kids (all boys in their 20's) and ask their preference and get back to you. I think it's an interesting discussion.

Here's another story.

We got a $500 gift card to Dicks last December and we still have it. Haven't spent a dime. It was given to us by our church as a gift because we are sports minded or athletic people. But we never go to Dicks and we find it expensive for the most part. In fact Dicks isn't very accessible to us. Now if it were to Home Depot, it would have been spent already.

Here in Florida, the closest Dicks is an hour and a half away, as far as we know, and we do plan on taking a trip to buy tennis racquets and bike accessories now that we're here and can use them. It will be an effort tho to spend that much money in a store like Dicks.

See this is where you have to be careful. What if you lose the card? Also some cards expire after a year or two. You had better get that out and check the fine print. Some also hit you with service charges or maintenance fees after a certain amount of time.

So far we haven't had any trouble with expired gift cards. Most of the cards we have received have been dinner ones like Applebees (get lots of them)and since we are not very good go out to dinner people, sometimes it's a year or more before we use them.

We actually thought we did lose the Dicks card for a while. Couldn't find it for a while and then we eventually did. That wasn't fun. It was in my husband'd top drawer. So we put it in a safe place. Since we got it last Christmas we should think about using it soon tho.



this is my husband's sentiments exactly. I see husbands out shopping with their wives all the time, but my husband hates to shop. I mean with a passion. He'd rather have brain surgery than go to a department store. I'm serious.