The Advantages and Disadvantages of Giving Gift Cards

For many people, gift-giving is a tricky thing to do. This is because gift-giving requires you to invest energy and time to find the perfect gift for that particular family member or a friend. In most cases, you will find people deciding to go for getting gift cards for their special someone. They do this because it is justifiable, instead of getting a gift that the receipt would find impractical and would certainly not like.

At Christmas food hampers, people are allowed to shop with these gift cards. Some individuals find that being given a gift card instead of a gift is a lazy thing, while other people see it as impersonal as the giver could have shopped for a gift instead of giving them a gift card.

Despite these mixed feelings on the issue of gift cards, there are some drawbacks and perks about them. Below is a list of the advantages of the gift card and the disadvantages of gift cards

Advantages of Gift Cards

One of the significant advantages of giving your loved ones and friends a gift card compared to giving them an actual gift is that they get to choose for themselves what they want. You have probably been in a scenario where you have received a gift that you either cannot find a use for in your everyday life activities or you just simply hate the gift. To avoid transferring such frustration to someone you want to surprise by giving them a gift, then it is recommendable that you use gift cards as a gift to them.

Saving money and time is another advantage that people consider when opting to receive a gift card rather than an actual gift. This is worth mentioning though it is a bit selfish.  Think of the effort and time you will spend on getting the best gift for your loved ones and friends. Also, think about how much it will cost you to mail a gift to your loved ones and friends who are probably living in a far-off place, remembering that the heavier the gift, the higher the cost. This encourages you to send a gift card since its costs are much cheaper than sending an actual gift.

Disadvantages of Gift Cards

Giving someone special to you a gift requires that you put a little thought into it. People who usually get gift cards find this act as a thoughtless gesture. People get gift cards as a way of avoiding getting bad gifts but what they do not comprehend is that bad gifts are often forgiven under the pretext “it is the thought that counts,” but on the other hand, gift cards are not accorded with the same sentiment. Gift cards are an indication that either the giver could not be bothered to spend some time to get a gift or the thought of getting a gift for them was a last-minute affair.

Another disadvantage of the gift cards is that gift cards are relatively easy to lose