Gone are the day when young people wanted a physical gift under the tree. Now they just want a digital gift on their phone.
Gift cards are king — nearly 20% of the holiday spend this year is expected to take the form of plastic gift cards, according to CEB Tower Group.
But some of that spend will skip the plastic and go directly to digital gift cards, which are growing in popularity and utility. In late November, InComm, which produces the Vanilla line of prepaid cards, released data on digital gifting that shows how mobile has made digital gift cards must-haves for millennials.
The online survey was conducted in October and shows that in nearly all cases, younger shoppers are more comfortable with online gift cards than their elders. Almost 90% of respondents between 18 and 25 said they were more interested in buying digital gift cards then they were just two years ago. For those over 65, this number was still high, 63%.
In terms of showing interest in storing cards on one’s phone, 78% of respondents 18 to 25 agree, while just 16% of those over 65 agree. For those age 26 to 25, the number is highest of all, 79%.
More from the survey:
- 71% intend to purchase at least one gift card from an online website or mobile website/app this holiday season, while 74% agree that they are likely to purchase at least one digital gift card
- 85% of respondents between 18 and 25 agree that they’re likely to purchase at least one digital gift card this holiday season
- 77% of respondents between 18 and 25 prefer to have a digital gift card scanned from their phone rather than carry an email printout
- 55% of total respondents, 75% of those between 18 and 25, agree that they’re interested in storing digital gift cards on their phone for self-use
In terms of why they might give the gift of digital gift cards, 61% of respondents cited instant delivery, while 21% said it was a “cool gift to give.”