Father's Day BringsGifts for Most Dads

Stevens, PA  June 1, 2004 — A majority of Americans (55percent) celebrate Father’s Day with a gift, according to new researchabout gift giving from Unity Marketing. Father’sDay is the fourth most important gift holiday, after Christmas,Mother’s Day, and Valentine’s Day. The typical gift-giver spends $80on Father’s Day, based on a surveyamong 950 ‘serious’ gift-givers who spent over $250 throughout theyear on gifts.

 “Whileholidays represent predictable sales opportunities, the day-in-day-outgifting occasions, i.e. birthdays, anniversaries, weddings, graduations,hostess presents, etc.,  throughoutthe year represent about half of gifters’ total gift budget,” saidPam Danziger, president of Unity Marketing and author of WhyPeople Buy Things They Don’t Need. “Every time a shopper crosses the retail threshold, itrepresents a sales opportunity for a gift along with other purchases. Savvy retailers maximize each gifting opportunity.”

Retailers’Gifting Strategy Hinges on Guided Discovery

Anunderstanding of how gift buyers select gifts can help retailers prepare questions and probes for their salespeople to use to helptheir customers ‘discover’ the best gift choice. The key decision points in the gifting process include:

2)     What would I liketo give them?  Thepersonality and gifting orientation of the person selecting the gift isanother important factor in the gifting equation. A practically-orientedperson is much more likely to favor a useful gift, while a moreself-indulgent person is likely to turn to a primarilyemotionally-satisfying gift. While my father would have been thrilled ifI gave him a tool for Father’s Day, that’s just not my kind of gift.I connected with my father through books, so I shopped at the bookstore,rather than the hardware store.

3)      Whatoccasion is the gift for?  Father’sDay calls for gifts that spark a man’s fancy, so go for gifts thatentertain (e.g. DVDs, CDs, books, games); have shiny knobs andtechnological ‘whistles’ (e.g. Plasma TVs, computers andaccessories, digital cameras, etc.); connect with the outdoors (e.g. gasgrills, sporting equipment, golf accessories, binoculars); give father‘bragging’ rights (e.g. family photo for his desk, executivepuzzler, desk accessories, plaques, family scrapbook for his credenza). 

4)      Howmuch is my budget?  Thegift budget is an important decision point and shoppers spend more forclose and intimate relations. Gift budgets are fluid, however, and areestablished as a range.  Retailersshould try to understand the low and high-ends of the range, thenpresent consumers alternatives from good-better-best choices. Most often, shoppers will opt for the best value, not the lowestprice. 

Unity Marketing’s new study, Gifting Report: The Who,What, Where, How Much and Why of Gift Giving & Shopping, presentsan experiential research perspective of the gifting market. Combiningqualitative and quantitative research, it reveals gift giving incidenceand spending throughout the year, including seven major gifting holidaysand 12 gifting occasions (e.g. birthdays, anniversary, wedding,friendship, etc.). The key attributes of a good gift are presented, asare the types of stores gifters prefer and why. How people choose acrossthe range of gifting options is explored, including gift certificatesand cash, home furnishings, entertainment, apparel, gifts of experience,etc. Finally the personalities of three types of gift givers withdifferent gift giving and buying motivations are explored.

Contacts:

For more information, contact PamDanziger, 717-336-1600; pam@unitymarketingonline.com 

To arrange an interview or othermedia inquiries, contact Len Stein, Visibility, 914-712-2610; lens@visibilitypr.com