(ARA) – For millions of Americans, Thanksgiving signals the start of holiday shopping madness. For others, it’s a year-long journey, with presents carefully and thoughtfully selected along the way. Miraculously, others manage to get it all done in just one day.
Just what type of holiday gifter are you and what exactly does it say about your personality?
According to a new national survey of American women on the psychology of gifting by Kelton Research, commissioned by eBay, the majority of women identify with one of four gifter profiles: emotional gifter, convenience gifter, practical gifter and last-minute gifter. And, regardless of the gifter profile – and despite popular belief – 60 percent of women say holiday shopping brings more joy than stress.
“That number surprised me, especially since so many women do the lion’s share of holiday shopping,” says Lisa Cavanaugh, USC professor and expert in consumer psychology. “More than 80 percent of married women said that they were responsible for 75 to 100 percent of their household’s holiday shopping – that is a lot of shopping. The prevalence of happy holiday shoppers may be due, at least in part, to the increased number of possible gift options and ease of shopping online.”
Based on the profiles identified, Cavanaugh offers insights on how to embrace your inner gifter by finding the best shopping resources and how to keep stress levels in check during the holiday shopping season.
The emotional gifter: This profile resonates with more women than any other profile. Forty-two percent of women consider themselves emotional gifters. They put a tremendous amount of effort into the gifting experience, buying unique, thoughtful gifts for each person on their list to show they really understand that person. They plan ahead, take time to wrap their own presents and hand-write a card to accompany each gift.
“The emotional gifter loves to give. A lot of time and energy goes into choosing one-of-a-kind gifts for everyone on your list. If this is you, sites like eBay can be particularly helpful in finding something unique for friends and family,” says Cavanaugh. In fact, eBay has more than 200 million listings, which makes it easy to find that just-right gift.
The convenience gifter: Sixteen percent of women identified with this one-stop shopper profile. These women approach holiday shopping with maximum efficiency, getting shopping done early and usually all at once. This type of gifter prefers to find one great item and buy it for more than one person on the list.
“Convenience gifters rarely take joy in the shopping process,” says Cavanaugh. If you’re a convenience gifter, Cavanaugh says more shopping creates more stress. It may be helpful to identify a single store or website that allows you to complete your shopping efficiently so you can move on to holiday activities that bring you more joy.
The practical gifter: Do you often feel that no one knows better what they want than themselves? Like 21 percent of women, this profile tends to give gift cards or cash as presents and allow the gift recipient to make the decision of what to buy.
“Despite their popularity, each year a large percentage of gift cards are not redeemed,” says Cavanaugh. “To avoid this, consider giving gift cards from a mall so the recipient can use it at any store of their choosing, or purchase a gift card from a favorite shop or website you know they frequent.”
The last-minute gifter: Thirteen percent typically find themselves buying gifts quite close to the holidays, even the day before. These gifters don’t plan ahead and often rush, hoping to find things family and friends will like.
According to Cavanaugh, last minute gifters should do their best to protect themselves against overspending in a last minute shopping panic. To reduce stress, know your budget and keep it simple by going where family and friends commonly like to shop.
No matter what type of gifter you are, enjoy the holiday season. More than half of women say winter holidays are a joyous time of year – a fulfilling and rewarding time to spend with friends and family. For gift ideas, check out gifts.eBay.com.