Here are your options:
1. don’t give a gift
2. spend your time and effort selecting a gift, hoping it will be appreciated
3. give money, cash or a check
4. give a gift card
No clearly if the occasion calls for a gift, option number 1 is not really an option. Some people do seriously consider it though. Even at a time like Christmas when there is rich symbolic significance in giving gifts. Some people decry the “commercialism” of gift buying. Well, unless you are going to steal it, or make it, it has to be commercial. So go ahead, be a scrooge if you like. But know that this is not your only option, just your most thoughtless one.
Option 3 is not much better than option 1. In fact, it is virtually the same. You give $50 to John for his birthday and 6 months later on yours he gives it back. Both checks probably got deposited and spent on the power bill or rent. Meaningless.
Option 2 is good if it works. It is time consuming and a bit of a crap shoot but if it works out and you find the perfect gift, it is really the best option. The problem is, it rarely works out.
The 4th option actually combines the best from all the other options. It has the ease and convenience of options 1 and 3 and the thoughtfulness of option 2. The gift can’t be used to just pay a bill because it has to be spent with the merchant whose gift card it is. But since the recipient can buy anything from the merchant with the card, the actual purchase is bound to be something appreciated.
A gift card is therefore the most thoughtful, practical and sure-to-be-appreciated option when it comes to gift giving.