A recent survey just revealed that more than half of adults prefer to get gift cards as opposed to any other form of holiday gift. It is estimated that holiday shoppers will buy approximately $25 billion worth of gift cards this holiday season.

The National Retail Federation completed their survey in which they found 55.2% of adults prefer to receive gift cards. The average cost of a gift card purchase will be $40 and it will be for anything from local restaurants to nationwide retail stores.

This trend has been rising slowly but surely over the years. The survey found that holiday shoppers will on average buy four gift cards each.

Interestingly, at least we thought so, women prefer gift cards more than men. In fact, the survey found that 63.4% of women prefer gift cards as opposed to 46.6% for men.

The study also revealed that younger consumers favor gift cards as opposed to actual physical gifts. Also, recipients are more likely to use their gift cards on basic necessities as opposed to extravagant or frivolous purchases.

Gift cards really took off in the late 1990s. They are more or less the same things as gift certificates yet they look like a credit card complete with a magnetic strip that keeps track of the activity on the card.

They are desired by retailers because they can be manufactured with attractive graphics and colorful designs. It is generally believed that Blockbuster and Neiman Marcus at the very first retailers to issue gift cards.

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