Gift Cards Are More Popular Than Ever Before
Saturday, December 15, 2012, 2:00 AM | Leave Comment
According to consulting firm CEB TowerGroup, sales of gift cards are expected to rise 10% this year to $110 billion. Gift card givers and receivers both find it a smart choice as a gift. Many folks often return gifts to stores for different reasons. With gift card, the receiver gets “cash” instead. And you can easily exchange your card with another one.
Smart Money reports…
Part of what’s fueling the new popularity: more generous terms. Before the CARD Act of 2009, plenty of gift cards had tight expiration dates and irksome inactivity fees.
Federal and state legislation in recent years has improved the situation, lengthening the time before expiration to at least five years and requiring disclosures of fees.
What’s a gift card
Simply stated “A gift card is a pre-paid debit card that can be used at a specific store or franchise.
What’s a Discount Gift Card?
A discount gift card is a perfectly valid gift card that someone else didn’t need or want anymore.
Say you use the card but not for the whole amount. Let’s say you still have $59 left on it. You sell it to someone for $50. The buyer resells it for $59 or less but obviously more than $50. The difference is the reseller profit.
Apps for gift cards
Life has become quite convenient. There are applications that allow you to purchase, store and share plastic gift cards on your smartphone.
Believe it or not, some firms have introduced a re-gifting option which allows you to send your own unused cards to friends and family, as well as various promotions and giveaways. What can be more convenient than that?
A time will come when only digital gift cards will be offered and plastic cards will exist but only nominally.
The potential of scams and how to avoid them…
The use of gift cards is on the rise and so are scams and fraud. The most common scam is stealing the card number and using it for online purchases.
One way to avoid fraud is buyers include a receipt for the card when they gift it, and that recipients use their present quickly.
All gifts cards are not created equal. To get the most of a gift card, buyers should review details before purchasing it.
Gift cards are no longer physical cards that you go in a store and buy them. There are so-called digital gift cards as well. In either case, buyers are advised to check the terms and conditions.
In a Nutshell
Many astrologers say we are in the age of Aquarius (from 1447 AD to 3597). As we progress deeper, we will be a part of the mostly digital era if not quite 100%.
Many others have called it the age of EVIL. I don’t believe that. Every age is that of GOOD not evil. You better believe it.
This is the Dawning of the Age of Aquarius
Listen to The 5th Dimension
Throw us a like at Facebook.com/doable.finance
