Christmas is more than just a day. The build up starts earlier and earlier every year. The anticipation. The excitement. The shopping.
In the UK, we love buying Christmas presents. The majority of shoppers will start actively purchasing in November, though a quarter of people buy their first Christmas present in September or earlier! Of these gifts, nearly 50% are items of clothing, followed by other popular categories like books, jewellery and toiletries.
Gift vouchers make up around 10% of the Christmas gift market, which when you consider the total average spend per person of between £600-£900 and over 40 million people buying gifts every year – the amount going towards gift vouchers is an absolutely staggering number.
But whether it’s gift vouchers, clothing or anything else that’s wrapped up and placed under the tree, the way these gifts are being purchased – the consumer shopping trends – are changing.
At GiftPro, we’ve reviewed the three latest gift purchasing trends for 2024, and how you can take advantage of them.
1. People are more attracted to limited-time deals
Following the most recent global pandemic, we’ve been left with a hangover when it comes to our shopping habits. People struggle to forget the months that passed where supermarket shelves were devoid of the basic necessities and while the world has all but returned to normal, it has coined the ‘scarcity effect’ phenomenon, where we want to buy things more if we’re afraid they’ll soon become unavailable.
This means the effect of a ‘limited-time deal’ is very powerful as a marketing tool and can lead to a huge uptake in purchases. For example, if you decide to offer a free dessert with every main course purchased, but only while stocks last, this will create a consumer demand to benefit from this deal, as shoppers are aware it won’t always last.
When promoting gift vouchers, often the appeal of the gift is the long expiration date. However, you can still take advantage of this trend by running additional promotions within your restaurant, pushing people to attend and use the gift voucher at a time where they will likely end up spending more than the gift card value, because they are trying to make the most of another deal.
2. Personalisation matters
Buying a gift is no longer just about fulfilling a social requirement. People care about what they’re giving and receiving and from both aspects, people want to feel that personal touch.
In fact a recent study found that 89% of shoppers find personalisation important when they’re purchasing a gift, a figure which is therefore equally as important as price. So if you’re purchasing someone a piece of jewellery, add a unique engraved date that means something to you both; if you’re buying someone an item of clothing, make sure it’s from a brand the recipient really loves; or, if you’re purchasing a gift voucher, add a personalised video message.
GiftPro now offers the opportunity to include a unique personalised video message when purchasing any gift voucher. This is sent directly to the recipient so you can really elevate the gift experience, tell them why you’ve purchased the specific voucher and share well wishes for their special occasion.
3. Gifting is becoming more practical
When you think back to purchasing a gift for someone ten or fifteen years ago, the question you’d often ask was: Is there anything you want? Now with recent issues like the pandemic and the cost-of-living crisis, this question has been minutely but intrinsically changed to: Is there anything you need?
The days of extravagant gift buying are behind us, replaced with practical requirements that might seem less exciting, but are more necessary in our daily lives. This means that where you might have once purchased a close friend a decorative item for their home, you now consider a new bag for them to take to work, or an upgrade on a kitchen appliance they own.
The problem with practical gift purchasing however, is that many people find it boring. We don’t want to buy someone something they would pick up in the shop themselves, we want to buy them something that will put a smile on their face.
This is where gift vouchers perfectly skirt the line between the practical and the exciting. Especially if it’s for a shop or restaurant that you know the recipient enjoys. It allows a gift to be given that both satisfies the buyers need to present something exciting, and the receivers need to have something they’ll actually use.
Getting the most out of gift vouchers
Whilst it’s clear that the landscape of gift purchasing is changing, with new trends affecting how people shop, gift vouchers remain a constant that can always be purchased.
If you would like to find more about how you can take advantage of gift voucher sales, GiftPro can support by helping set up campaigns, build integrated web pages and ensure all gift voucher purchases are fulfilled.
Get in touch with one of our team today to get started!
