Consumers are buying and using gift cards more as they have shifted to staying and working from home during the Covid-19 crisis. New research from Blackhawk Network finds e-gift sales are up 44 percent year-over-year and e-commerce sales are up 43 percent year-over-year. Also, gift card e-commerce sales are up 54 percent year-over-year on Blackhawk's partners' channels.
The study, titled Paying for Things and Giving Gifts During a Crisis, was conducted by Blackhawk and includes data from transactions of 1,000 consumers.
Other notable findings include:
- Respondents are interested in using gift cards and e-gifts for charity or kindness during this crisis, such as contributing to a gift card for a person or family in need (31 percent), sending gift cards to healthcare workers (31 percent) or purchasing a gift card from a business they care about that is closed or struggling during the crisis (26 percent).
- Since the COVID-19 crisis began, 38 percent of respondents have already used gift cards or e-gifts for some kind of charitable action, like those mentioned above.
- Seventy percent of respondents reported that they will be looking for creative ways to give gifts for upcoming holidays (Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, graduations and weddings) this year given that many physical stores may be closed. And, 71 percent of respondents said they are more interested in giving e-gifts instead of other gifts right now than they would have been in the past.
- Respondents said that gift cards make good gift options during the crisis for several reasons, including: e-gifts can be completely bought, given and spent online (63 percent) and gift cards can be purchased easily in a supermarket when picking up groceries (45 percent).
“Gift cards and e-gifts are being leveraged by consumers for charity and kindness, and consumers report they are more appealing as gifts for the upcoming season including Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, graduations and weddings,” said Talbott Roche, CEO and president of Blackhawk Network. “As the world grapples with the Covid-19 crisis, consumers are adapting the ways they shop and give.”
