A survey has found that over half of Brits intend to give a ‘virtual’ present to friends and loved ones this Christmas, including gift cards, music downloads, or book vouchers.
The survey, commissioned by Gocompare.com, also revealed that while 37% of those intending to give a ‘virtual’ present do so because they consider them to be more thoughtful than just giving cash, less than a third (32%) did so because they thought they were a truly great gift, and 30% said they opt for ‘virtual’ presents just to make their Christmas shopping easier.
Happily, 54% of those surveyed who had received a ‘virtual’ gift considered it a good Christmas present, with over a third (34%) saying that it was exactly what they wanted. Only one in ten thought ‘virtual’ presents were impersonal.
Here are the top ten virtual gifts with their corresponsing market share:
Retailer gift cards or vouchers e.g. Marks & Spencer, HMV, WHSmiths, Amazon 32%
Book vouchers 12%
Restaurant or hotel voucher 9%
Subscription e.g. magazine, newspaper or comic (including online membership) 7%
Garden voucher 6%
Music download or streaming 6%
Cinema gift card, voucher or membership 6%
Experience day e.g. driving day, spa day, hot air balloon flight 6%
Charity gift e.g. water scheme or goat 5%
Membership to theatre, museum, art gallery, etc. 4%
Mobile phone top-up 4%
Film downloads or streaming 3%
