Say it with plastic

Gift cards are no longer just the birthday or holiday present of last resort for those finicky friends and relatives, according to usage studies of these easy-to-buy, easy-to-spend placeholders for a more tangible gift. These days, with limited time and even the most obscure object of desire a mouse click away, it isn't only the tough-to-shop-for that are receiving the cards. It's everybody, kids included, in greater numbers—and in increasingly larger dollar values—than ever.

A recent study conducted by The Marketing Workshop, Norcross, Ga., looked into the attitudes about gift cards of parents with children ages 5 to 14. The study covered purchasing habits, usage habits, intent to purchase, importance of gift card attributes and interest in gift card enhancements or add-ons.

The survey's results showed several positive trends for retailers of children's products, including ever-more parents open and willing to purchase the cards for children.

Exposure to gift cards is high among children as three-quarters had received a gift card, and three-out-of-five parents had purchased a gift card, the study found.

Parents who purchased gift cards for children ages 5 to 14 appreciated that the cards allow children to shop when and where they want. Two in 10 said that gift cards are “easy/convenient,” and one in 10 said that gift cards can teach kids to budget their money.

While one-third of parents can't think of anything they dislike about gift cards, slightly more than a quarter believe that they are “impersonal,” respondents said. Additionally, a small percentage of parents complained that the cards were either too easy to lose or that they offered no immediate gratification to the recipient.

On average, parents purchased two gift cards for their own child in the past year. Those who bought gift cards for their own children during that time also purchased an average of three cards for other kids. Overall, the results found that parents purchased slightly more than three gift cards in the past year, while parents of children ages 9 to 14 purchased significantly more gift cards.

Of no surprise was the preferred occasions for purchasing gift cards are birthdays and the winter holidays. Gift cards are also purchased for kids ages 5 to 14 to reward academic and other achievements, according to the results.

When it comes to money, approximately 60 percent of parents studied loaded between $20 and $29 on gift cards purchased for kids ages 5 to 14. Overall, parents said that the average load amount is $29.

Four of five gift card purchases for children are pre-planned, participants said. Parents purchase these cards from a wide variety of retailers, including toy, department, book, clothing, and discount stores—dependent on the recipient's age. Parents of children 5 to 8 years of age are more likely to make their purchases at toy stores and less likely to buy cards from department, book, electronics, or music stores. Parents of older children are more likely to buy from clothing stores and less likely to buy from toy and electronics stores.

Three-quarters of parents said their kids exhaust their cards completely, with one-third always or often spending more than the value of the card. Six in seven discard the card when it is empty. Girls are more likely than boys to spend more than the value of the card.

Slightly more than a half of parents said the appearance of the card and whether it is in retailer-specific packaging is important when making a gift card purchasing decision. And almost three-quarters of parents said having a choice of card designs is important.

Half of the parents surveyed expected to purchase three or more gift cards during this past holiday season. They expected to spend an average of $98 on gift cards purchased for the holidays.

The Marketing Workshop survey was compiled from 755 interviews conducted online with a national sample of adults between July 27 and August 1, 2005. Respondents were screened to have children in the age category and had previously purchased a gift card for a child or had a child who had received a gift card.