Sometimes purchasing gift cards for children can be a hard decision. We often find ourselves at a loss for what’s hip or cool. The generation gap can prove to be an obstacle for parents, family, and friends alike. Let’s be honest, no one wants to buy a gift for a child if they have no use for or aren’t going to enjoy spending it. Some gift cards though, are almost always going to hold value and will most likely appeal to children no matter their personality, hobbies, or interests. This list is broken up into categories by age and will specify boy or girl if it pertains, beginning with gift cards proper for all ages.

All Ages

Ben & Jerry’s

Even adults love ice cream but most children probably like it even more. The safe bet here is that if a kid doesn’t like ice cream or is lactose intolerant, you will most likely already be aware. Ben & Jerry’s, a popular ice cream shop with locations all across the country, offers individual pint coupons for only $4. These coupons can be redeemed at any retail store that sells B&J pints or at an official Ben & Jerry’s shop.

Target

Why Target and not Walmart? Well, Walmart gift cards are pretty universal too but Target carries more appeal for children. For starters, the cards themselves are more fun and personal. Their cards are much more engaging, like the light up Christmas line.

Target also has carries inventory, specifically clothes, geared more towards the appeal of children. Their clothing selection is extremely diverse and “cool” for lack of a better term.

Cinema/Movie gift card

Movies are getting a bit expensive these days. There is always something in theaters for kids of any age. Giving the gift of a cinema gift card is almost a sure bet for success. This gives children the option to use their card to do something with a friend or family member which is a bonus in itself.  For those older boys, it gives them a chance to take a special someone on a movie date, which is an inevitable adolescent experience we have all surely enjoyed. Regal Cinemas seems to be the most populated location and we would suggest using them.

Ages 6-9

Boys

Lego Store 

Lego Store gift cards are downright awesome. The cards themselves are extremely creative and the options for redemption are endless. Lego has done the job of appeal for you, with features like Spongebob, Harry Potter, Super Heroes, and even Architecture collections.

Gamestop

This is for the gamer. As technology continues to evolve, younger children become more prone to video game and computer exposure. Gamestop offers everything from video games to systems and accessories as well as movies. With a huge selection, a Gamestop gift card gives the recipient the chance to select from many options.

Girls

Build A Bear Workshop

Build-A-Bear workshop gift cards are more than just pick and buy. At Build-a-bear, kids are given the chance to engage in a fun activity where they actually complete the process of creating their very own stuffed animal. From choosing an animal adding the heart, these workshops offer an actual connection between the child and their product which can last for years to come. The experience is worth just as much as the stuffed animal they walk out of the store with.

Toys-R-Us

This one is actually a solid bet for boys and girls. Toy-R-Us is like a wonderland for any young child with isles full of toys, games, bikes, and more. You can be sure that any kid’s eyes will light up when they get their Toy-R-Us gift card and they realize that they will soon get to make the trip of every young child’s dream.

Ages 10-15

Best Buy

Consider Best Buy as the Toys-R-Us for tweens. With everything and anything electronic you could ask for, a Best Buy gift card basically can’t go wrong. This provides the chance to redeem the gift for new releases, new technology, and car audio. These cards are sure to put a smile on every kids face.

Visa Gift Card

Why not give them the gift of any choice. That is essentially how a Visa Gift Card functions, able to be redeemed anywhere Visa is accepted. Not to be confused with a Visa prepaid card, Visa gift cards do not carry all the fees and are flat rate. These are non-reloadable, like a Vanilla card.

Should You Receive A Gift Card That You Don’t Want

Don’t let it go to waste. Try using GiftCardRescue.com, where you can exchange gift card, or even sell gift card for money back on every dollar. With over 350 partnered merchants, GCR provides an easy, secure, and transaction guaranteed service tailored to those who find themselves with unwanted cards just like you. Visit their website or give them a call today and let their top notch customer service team help you out.

There is now a gift card which can be used for medical procedures, giving individuals the opportunity to provide under/uninsured friends or family with medical services. Life Gift Cards (LGC) has produced and launched a program for health and wellness gift cards, the first of it’s kind. With it’s initial launch, LGC developed a mammogram gift card service that derives from it’s motivation to actually start the program.

“Presenting a loved one with a Life Gift Card for a mammogram is truly a life-saving gesture, especially since research proves that one in eight women is diagnosed with breast cancer,” board certified obstetrician, gynecologist, and LGC spokesperson Harry Collins said.

One in eight women will be diagnosed with breast cancer and many fatalities can be prevented by early detection through mammography. This gift card is an awesome way for individuals to provide life saving services to loved ones who otherwise would not be able to provide it for themselves.

Healthcare providers that choose to become partnered provider will see an increase in patient activity,  services, and guaranteed payment for practice.

How Does The Card Work?

First visit the site to buy a card. The recipient can activate the card by following the directions in the follow up email or by calling the LGC office. LGC will email the recipient and notify them of the nearest partnered provider where they can redeem the voucher. The recipient will then print out the card and make an appointment. For those without internet access, LGC will send the card through regular mail.

• Non-reloadable
• Not redeemable for cash
• One time use
• No expiration

Can I use my card for other services?

At this time the card may only be redeemed for mammogram screening procedures. Other related fees or services are the responsibility of the patient  and LGC holds no bearing for incurring procedures. They are however, working with partners to provide a wider range of gift card medical services.

It was estimated that each American would receive at least one gift card over the winter holiday season.  For many reasons though, millions of dollars each year go unspent on gift cards. Chances are, some received cards of no personal value and decided to stick them in a drawer somewhere. Others like me, may spend weeks debating on how to spend it and eventually forget about it. My advice, use your gift cards sooner rather than later unless they are for something like Starbucks where multiple gift card transactions are necessary to diminish the card’s balance. Here are some tips to help you with those gift card decisions:

1.) Remember Necessity Over Frivolous Spending = Win

For those of you with the $50 or $100 Walmart gift cards, this one is for you. Impulse might tell a lot of you to upgrade your life in the electronics department with every dollar you have. A good approach I try to take to this situation is the 80/20 rule. If you purchase necessities like toilet paper, soap, groceries, and other NEEDS. This will free up budget in the immediate future. With the other 20%, go ahead and treat yourself to a movie or something. It can be fun trying to meet that $20 cap at the end of shopping for something you WANT.

2.) Re-gifting Never Hurts

No I  don’t mean re-give the gift card. Have a loved one or friend with a birthday coming up? Instead of forcing a personal purchase, use the gift card to buy something for them instead. This saves you money you would have probably spent anyway.

3.) Trade OR Redeem For Cash

There are some great sites to exchange or sell gift cards like GiftCardRescue.com. Gift Card Rescue offers consumers the chance to swap gift cards and even to earn up to $.92 back on every dollar.  This route might take a little research and work but it is surely worth it once you reap the benefits of the savings they provide. GCR accepts cards from over 350 vendors and offers trades for credit with merchants such as Amazon.

4.) Donate To Charity And Feel Good

If you really don’t happen to need a gift card, or are feeling extra generous, there are some options available for you to donate to charities. That gift card might not mean much to you, but to someone else it could mean everything. Works Of Life is a non profit Christian organization that combines smaller donated gift cards into larger cards to help needy individuals and families. GiftCardGiver distributes donated cards to non profit organizations which in turn, use the funds to help the less fortunate. GiftCardGiver also offers the option to throw a house party, meaning that you invite your friends over and collect their unused gift cards to make one bulk donation.

“Target GiftCards are a popular Christmas gift, and with a sale of this magnitude, there’s no better time to use them than on Dec. 26,” Kathee Tesija, executive vice president of merchandising, said.

In addition to these in store savings, Target is also offering online discounts and discounts for Gift Card users.  Consumers who want to redeem their gift cards on Target.com on Christmas day will receive $10 off purchases of $50 or more when they enter the promotional code “TGTGFT2U” at checkout.

The online sales seem to trump the in store sales because they are of a wider variety, including electronics,  and available anytime. Also, they give gift card holders the chance to redeem for savings.

Target wants to remind customers that their gift cards never expire, and are able to be reloaded for free at any location or online for amounts up to $2,000.

Note: Target also provides e gift cards on their website. You can send these straight to the inbox of someone that you are looking to surprise.

How To Check Your Target Gift Card Balance

Your first option is to call Customer Service at 1-800-544-2943

You can also visit the Target balance check website here.  Be sure to have your card in hand as you will need the gift card number and access number.

I received a Target Gift Card, But I won’t Use It…

Try using GiftCardRescue.com. With Gift Card Rescue, you can sell or exchange your gift card for cash back. These transactions are backed with a guarantee and you can rest assured that everything will go accordingly.

Open Loop vs Closed Loop

An open loop gift card comes with very few restrictions and can be used universally at almost any merchant. Common open-loop gift cards include; Visa Gift Cards, AMEX Gift Cards, and Prepaid Debit Cards. It is important to note that open loop gift cards will often come with fees and charges that are not found with closed loop gift cards. The most popular option for open loop gift cards is probably the Vanilla Visa gift card.

Prepaid Visa Cards Are the #1 Open Loop Cards

Closed loop gift cards are restricted for use at the merchant that they were purchased for. For example a McDonald’s gift card can only be used at McDonald’s locations and nowhere else. Some closed loop gift cards have multiple uses and can be used at all of a corporations different brands. The Gap Gift Card can be used at Old Navy, Banana Republic and Piperlime. While the Olive Garden gift card can also be used at Red Lobster, Bahama Breeze, LongHorn Steakhouse and the Capital Grille.

Top Rated Gift Cards

It’s important when buying a gift card that you choose one that is easy to be redeemed, comes with a variety of options and does not expire. The most popular gift cards for 2011 were Walmart, Amazon.com and Target. Picking any of these gift cards will definitely leave the recipient happy because they can spend the balance on almost anything.

If you choose a gift card on this list, then you are almost guaranteed to make that persons day. We also like to recommend gift cards like Starbucks, McDonald’s and the Apple Store.

iTunes gift cards can be used for just about anything offered on iTunes: Movies, TV shows, music videos, and of course, music. These gift cards however, may not be used for online Apple Store items. Example- iPads, iPhones etc. These items would require an Apple gift certificate.

There are a few steps to make sure that you are able to redeem your iTunes gift card.

1. Make sure to install the latest version of iTunes, which is available for both Macs and PCs.

2. Open iTunes on your computer

3. On the sidebar you will see “Library”, “Store”, “Playlists” etc. Make sure to click on “iTunes Store”.

4. To save trouble later, we suggest you create an iTunes store account before moving along. If you wait to complete this step after following these directions, you will not be required to enter credit card information. However, this may save you time in the long run should you decide to purchase from iTunes in the future.

5. On the right hand side of the store you will see a Redeem link under the “Quick Links” tab. Go ahead and click Redeem.

6. You will be directed to the redemption page. Carefully enter your iTunes gift card code into the provided space. From here, you should be good to go as long as you have created an iTunes account. If not, refer to the 4th tab of this post.

About Darden Gift Cards:

• Available in custom and pre-set amounts: Consumers tend to enjoy this freedom
• Personalized greetings available
• Visit Here to purchase and design

Balance Check

You can check your balance online at the Darden website.  You will need your 16 digit card number to process this request.

Consumers look to purchase gift cards not because of the convenience, but they like to allow the recipient to choose their own gift. It’s easier to allow someone to purchase something on their own, rather than picking something out that might not be desired.

Matthew Shay, NRF President and CEO said,

With discretionary gifts expected to be popular, many consumers will view gift cards as an ‘everyday value item,’ affording their loved ones the option of buying something they really want or need.

We recommend that consumers follow the Top 20 Most Popular Gift Cards list that we released when choosing what gift card to buy this holiday season. These types of gift cards were determined to be the most popular by the NRF survey.

Most Popular Gift Cards

Data collected from 2011 NRF Survey.

The trends found in this survey actually match the same data that was released by GiftCardRescue.com in the top 20 most popular gift cards list. In the top 20 list, Walmart, Amazon.com and Target were the most desired gift cards and these merchants are each considered department stores. The only variation found between the two surveys were the popularity of restaurant gift cards in the NRF survey, where as in the GCR survey only two restaurant gift cards made it into the top 20.

As a gift card exchange retailer, we see a massive spike in restaurant gift cards that are sold for cash or Amazon.com credit immediately after Christmas. It appears that while consumers have the mindset that restaurant gift cards are desired, in actuality people prefer the department store and specialty merchants more.

 Reasons Why Gift Card Holders are Nice

This gift card holder by Basicgrey is very creative

• It will help you put more personal touch to your gift even though what you are giving are just gift cards. It will show the receiver of the gift card that you were able to think of something to make the present unique and special for them. The only reason why some people think that giving gift cards are very impersonal is because the way it was presented is not that impressive.
• You can still incorporate the element of surprise on your gift. Most people want to be surprised when receiving gifts from other people. Take for example, giving out a Camcorder to someone. Even though there is already a box for the camcorder, you would still want to wrap it in a beautiful wrapper to thrill the person receiving the gift. That goes with gift cards as well. Though the gift card is already personalized, it would still be better if you get a gift card holder to make it more personal and attractive.

When you choose a gift card holder, it is essential that you choose something that it is associated and would fit the occasion. Due to the fact that gift card holders are common nowadays, there are many ways for you to look for the packaging for your gift card that fits the occasion. You can also opt to make your own gift card holder and customize it yourself so you can maintain the element of surprise.

If you are not that creative, you can seek help from a friend or a family member so you can still include yourself in the process. You just have to give your best to make sure that the person who will receive it will have a smile on his or her face after receiving the gift from you. This will assure you that your gift will be remembered and treasured for life.

Gift cards are going to be one of the most popular items this holiday season, make sure you check out Free Gift Card Week where you can find a gift card for them and a bonus for you!

The Different Types of Gift Cards

Plastic Gift Cards – these are the most common type of gift cards that can be purchased online and what everyone always thinks of first. You can order your gift cards online and have them shipped to wherever they need to be sent. This is a great tool if you have a friend or family member that you will not see, you can just visit the merchants website and have them ship the card. This way you can avoid going to the store to buy the card and then having to visit the post office to get it shipped.

Online Gift Cards – these are also known as e-gift cards, electronic gift cards or e-cards. These gift cards are meant to be used at the businesses website and some of the most popular cards are Amazon.com, Walmart, and Target. When you buy online gift cards you will need to select the method of delivery to your recipient which can be sent directly to their email, cell phone, or sometimes even to their Facebook account. It’s important to communicate with the person you’re sending the e-gift card to so that they do not think that the message is spam and accidentally delete it.

Discount Gift Cards – did you know that there are gift cards online that you can buy for less than the face value? You can get deals for these cards and sometimes save up to 30%! You can save on everything that you normally do like go out to eat at restaurants, shop for new clothes, or buy home improvement supplies. Another savvy shopping tip is to combine these discounted gift cards with coupons and sales offered by the merchant. You will be surprised by how much money you’ll be able to save and be able to spend towards other things.

Prepaid Debit Cards – prepaid debit cards are just like gift cards except they can be used wherever you want and aren’t limited to just one store. Some of the most popular prepaid debit cards include the Walmart MoneyCard and the RushCard. With a prepaid debit card you can shop online at your favorite stores, withdrawal cash at ATM’s, or use it anywhere that Visa, MasterCard, or American Express is accepted. They usually come with a small activation or card fee and will have a monthly charge that is something that you do not see with gift cards.

Free Gift Card Week provides the best way to find gift card deals that include a sweet bonus for yourself!