DENVER - May 20, 2008 - Birthdays top the list of occasions to give gift cards, leading consumers to buy gift cards year-round, according to a survey commissioned by First Data Corp. From specialty and discount retailers to coffee shops and quick service restaurants, today's diverse gift card products continue to grow in popularity.

According to the 2007 U.S. Gift Card Consumer Insights Survey, gift cards continued to gain in popularity in 2007. Nine out of 10 (90 percent) American adults who responded to an online survey purchased or received a gift card in the previous 12 months and six out of 10 (60 percent) did both, according to the survey. This is a significant increase from the previous year's findings.

"First Data has been conducting the Consumer Insights Study since 2001 to identify gift card trends, and this year we added a first-of-a-kind segmentation analysis that helps our clients better understand and target consumers," said Mark Herrington, president of First Data's Prepaid business unit. "In addition to this study, we invest in a variety of other initiatives to help our clients develop and maintain successful gift card programs, including our business and consumer incentive studies, our mystery shopping studies and a gift card marketing best practices guide."

Birthdays and Christmas are the two most common occasions to give gift cards. Among gift card purchasers who purchased gift cards that can only be used at one retailer, 68 percent bought at least one gift card as a birthday gift, while 61 percent bought at least one card as a Christmas gift. Other popular occasions include graduations, weddings, Mother's Day and Father's Day, but "thank you gifts" and "no special occasion" are frequently cited as reasons as well.

Consumers are buying more cards, too. The majority of gift card purchasers (88 percent) bought more than one card. On average, consumers who purchased cards that can be used at a single retailer bought five gift cards in the previous 12 months and spent an average $46 on each card. Gift card recipients spent an average of $29 over the original value of the gift card.

The study also indicates that gift cards that can be used at a specific retailer are purchased more frequently than those that can be used at multiple retailers, but more than one in four gift card purchasers (28 percent) chose a gift card that could be used at a variety of stores, restaurants and other retailers.

Top reasons why respondents purchase gift cards include that the receiver can buy what they want (72 percent), followed by the convenience of purchasing (43 percent), flexibility in redeeming a gift card (38 percent), and in general, not knowing what to buy the receiver (33 percent).


Fast facts

  • 90 percent of consumers purchased or received a gift card
  • 60 percent of consumers both purchased and received a gift card
  • 68 percent of gift card purchasers bought a card as a birthday present
  • 61 percent of gift card purchasers bought a card as a Christmas present
  • 88 percent of gift card purchasers bought more than one card
  • Consumers purchased an average of 5 gift cards that can be used at a single retailer
  • Consumers spent an average of $46 on gift cards that can be used at a single retailer
  • Recipients spent an average $29 over the original value of the gift card


Media available for download

  • Top Occasions to Purchase Gift Cards graph [ GIF | EPS ]
  • Top Reasons to Purchase Gift Cards graph [ GIF | EPS ]
  • Gift Card Appeal Continues to Grow graph [ GIF | EPS ]


About the Survey

Data for First Data 2007 U.S. Gift Card Consumer Insights Survey was collected September 18-25, 2007 by Market Strategies International. The data was weighted to match U.S. census data and consisted of interviews with 2,182 adult consumers 18 years of age or older, who purchased or received a gift card in the past 12 months. The results are statistically valid at the 95 percent confidence level with a margin of error of plus or minus 2 percent.


About First Data

First Data is a global technology leader in information commerce. The company processes transaction data of all kinds, harnesses the power of that data and delivers innovations in secure infrastructure, intelligence and insight for its customers. With operations in 37 countries, First Data serves more than 5.4 million merchant locations and more than 2,000 card issuers and their customers. It powers the global economy by making it easy, fast and secure for people and businesses around the world to buy goods and services using virtually any form of payment. The company's portfolio of services and solutions includes merchant transaction processing services; credit, debit, private-label, gift, payroll and other prepaid card offerings; fraud protection and authentication solutions; electronic check acceptance services through TeleCheck; as well as Internet commerce and mobile payment solutions. The company's STAR Network offers PIN-secured debit acceptance at 2.1 million ATM and retail locations. Through First Data's centers of excellence, such as security, analytics, customer loyalty and mobile payments, it offers data-driven commerce solutions for customers around the globe. For more information, visit www.firstdata.com.


Media Contact
Glen Turpin, First Data
303-967-6552
glen.turpin@firstdata.com