Gift Cards were once considered to be the choice of the last-minute Christmas shopper – the type of gift you’d get from someone who’d given no consideration to your carefully prepared ‘Christmas List’ of gifts you really wanted. But times have changed and nowadays, with modern Retailers embracing Gift Cards as a big part of the economy of the modern shopping experience – Gift Cards no longer represent a thoughtless gift, but instead quite the opposite.

While some people are reluctant to admit it, a recent survey by the National Retail Federation (USA) showed that close to 60 percent of respondents would rather have Gift Cards than other presents. So instead of guessing what the people on your Christmas gift list want, take the headache out of gift giving by getting them a Gift Card from their favourite store to buy themselves something they’ll use!

Here are 3 reasons for making the humble Gift Card top of your shopping list this Christmas…

1. Less Waste

Reports suggest that for every dollar on a Gift Card that goes unused, $25 worth of holiday gifts are returned to stores every year. When you’re giving a gift, you want it to be something the recipient will appreciate, not an errand they’ll have to run. Since gift cards can go towards desired purchases, it’s far less likely to go to waste.

2. Save Money

During the holidays, where impulse or panic buying is all so easy to fall victim to – it can be easy to lose track of your budget, especially if you have multiple people to buy for. The advantage of purchasing gift cards is that they can be bought in set denominations, reducing the temptation to overspend. If you’re on a budget, they can help ensure you purchase for everyone on your list without coming up short at the very end.

3. Buy Local

Do you ever worry that your favourite building supplier or hardware store might not attract enough clientele? Gift cards are a great way to connect your favourite store with new customers. By visiting a favourite local shop and buying a gift card, it both benefits the store and still offers the recipient the flexibility to buy something they love.

Now that’s what you call a triple win!

POCO Building Supplies Any Value Gift Cards (pictured below) are available in-store. They are printed on card-stock paper rather than plastic, making them an environmentally friendly choice – and the best part is that they never expire!

Excerpts of this post were borrowed from a similar post on Yellow Pages blog.