A recent survey revealed that approximately 27% of gift cards are never redeemed. In 2006, that came to over $8 billion in gifts that ended up going back to retailers. The most common reasons that respondents cited for not using their cards included that they never had time to shop or that they never found anything they liked.
Well, you can now chalk up another reason. In a follow up to last week's story about Sharper Image's decision to file for bankruptcy, the high-end retailer announced on Friday that it will no longer accept store gift cards, gift certificates, or merchandise credit.
This means that if you are currently holding any of these items, it is probably worthless. The bright side is that you may have a legitimate claim against Sharper Image's bankruptcy estate; the downside is that Wells Fargo is in line ahead of you, and it probably wants its $20 million back. You can fight over the remaining scraps. If any.
On the other hand, if you got your gift card through Leverage, an online gift-card retailer, you may be in luck. Yesterday, the website announced that it now extends bankruptcy protection to all cards purchased through its site. In other words, if you are holding a Sharper Image gift card that was purchased through Leverage, you can transfer your balance to any other retailer that Leverage works with.
Additionally, Leverage has features to allow you to easily purchase cards, check your gift card and rewards card balances, and transfer money from one company to another. You can even earn interest on your gift cards!
I'm not a huge fan of gift cards (I don't have time to go shopping! I can never find anything I like!), and I'm not sure how I feel about the fact that buyers now need to get bankruptcy insurance to protect their gift cards. Like Sharper Image's bankruptcy, gift card bankruptcy insurance seems like an ominous portent of an economic downturn.
That having been said, if I buy a gift card, I'm definitely getting it from Leverage!
WalletPop: Bruce Watson is a freelance writer, blogger, and co-author of Military Lessons of the Gulf War and A Chronology of the Cold War at Sea.
February 26, 2008
February 18, 2008
February 14, 2008
What the Huck does for cash...
Gov. Mike Huckabee is headed to the Cayman Islands this weekend to give a paid speech. 'I have to make a living,' he told reporters in Wisconsin yesterday, per AP. 'I do that through my writing and my speaking.'
February 12, 2008
January 28, 2008
Who did you have breakfast with last week?
Blogger Robert Scoble was invited by Mark Zuckerberg of Facebook to a breakfast with Pakistani President, Pervez Musharraf while all three were in Davos.
Makes my breakfasts with my pal VS at The Four seem pedestrian - even with The Four's legendary toast service.
Makes my breakfasts with my pal VS at The Four seem pedestrian - even with The Four's legendary toast service.
Tom Petty's LA
There exists in sound a map of Los Angeles, filled with song-lyric street names, neighborhoods, beaches, bars, empty spaces and spaces between spaces. It's a chart that follows more than 30 years in the life and work of Tom Petty, a longtime resident of the city and an undercelebrated rock & roll icon who finally appears to be getting his due. LA Weekly
Pretty cool map and insights into this artist and city.
Pretty cool map and insights into this artist and city.
Seth Godin: Who are these people?
If you look at the numbers, you soon realize that a huge portion of the population apparently:
Has read two books in the last year, Harry Potter and The DaVinci Code
Uses only two websites, Google and Facebook
Visits only a few blog posts a day, and every single one of them is on the home page of Digg
Watches only two or three TV shows, including the Super Bowl
Eats only at McDonalds
Watches only incredibly snarky or juvenile videos on YouTube
Mass phenomena are tricky things. It's true, the typical American reads exactly one book a year. How are you going to predict which of the 75,000 books published are going to be that book?
You can't.
Many bloggers seem to be on a perpetual hunt for the front page of Digg. Sure, it brings you hordes of eyeballs, but then they turn around and leave. What's the point of that, really?
I think that are plenty of tips you can follow to optimize your offering for this fickle mass group. But it's still a crap shoot. Doesn't it make more sense to incrementally earn the attention of a smaller, less glitzy but far more valuable group of people who actually engage with you? And the best part is, your odds of success are a lot better.
Has read two books in the last year, Harry Potter and The DaVinci Code
Uses only two websites, Google and Facebook
Visits only a few blog posts a day, and every single one of them is on the home page of Digg
Watches only two or three TV shows, including the Super Bowl
Eats only at McDonalds
Watches only incredibly snarky or juvenile videos on YouTube
Mass phenomena are tricky things. It's true, the typical American reads exactly one book a year. How are you going to predict which of the 75,000 books published are going to be that book?
You can't.
Many bloggers seem to be on a perpetual hunt for the front page of Digg. Sure, it brings you hordes of eyeballs, but then they turn around and leave. What's the point of that, really?
I think that are plenty of tips you can follow to optimize your offering for this fickle mass group. But it's still a crap shoot. Doesn't it make more sense to incrementally earn the attention of a smaller, less glitzy but far more valuable group of people who actually engage with you? And the best part is, your odds of success are a lot better.
Power to the People
Mountain Dew ramps up "Dewmocracy" game with a multiplayer online game campaign, which involves consumers in the quest for the next Mountain Dew flavor, is set to hit a new level when viral voting begins in February at its dewmocracy.com Web site. With the updated campaign, consumers may select three new flavors that will be included in a nationwide product sampling in July. The winning flavor will hit the market by November. Advertising Age
November 29, 2007
Keeping tabs on gift cards
The Irvine-based company hopes its online service, at www.leveragecard.com, will alleviate some of the frustrations associated with gift cards. This year, consumers will lose about $8 billion in unredeemed gift cards, according to Consumer Reports, which also found that 27% of gift card recipients have at least one unused card from last year.
Shoppers listed gift cards among their favorite presents to receive, but many acknowledged having a difficult time keeping track of their whereabouts and balances. Some had found creative ways to keep their gift cards in one place.
"I used to lose them like crazy," said Andrea McCoy, a corporate flight attendant from Los Angeles. "Now I keep them all in a Ziploc bag. It's not very sophisticated but it works."
Julie Foster, a Long Beach accountant, was so notorious among her friends for misplacing gift cards that one pal gave her a business card case for her recent birthday."When you lose several of them," she said, showing off the new leather case filled with 11 gift cards, "it adds up."
By registering a card at Leverage, users can track their gift cards online and are notified when gift card balances change. If a card is misplaced, a backup mechanism can retrieve lost card numbers.For those who buy gift cards on the site, there's a small financial reward: 3.65% in interest. Cards that are registered with but not purchased from the website earn 1%
interest.
"People might not be making $100 a year from this," Mathe said, "but it's definitely better than having dead plastic sitting in your wallet."
Shoppers listed gift cards among their favorite presents to receive, but many acknowledged having a difficult time keeping track of their whereabouts and balances. Some had found creative ways to keep their gift cards in one place.
"I used to lose them like crazy," said Andrea McCoy, a corporate flight attendant from Los Angeles. "Now I keep them all in a Ziploc bag. It's not very sophisticated but it works."
Julie Foster, a Long Beach accountant, was so notorious among her friends for misplacing gift cards that one pal gave her a business card case for her recent birthday."When you lose several of them," she said, showing off the new leather case filled with 11 gift cards, "it adds up."
By registering a card at Leverage, users can track their gift cards online and are notified when gift card balances change. If a card is misplaced, a backup mechanism can retrieve lost card numbers.For those who buy gift cards on the site, there's a small financial reward: 3.65% in interest. Cards that are registered with but not purchased from the website earn 1%
interest.
"People might not be making $100 a year from this," Mathe said, "but it's definitely better than having dead plastic sitting in your wallet."
November 28, 2007
Facebook May Revamp Beacon
In the wake of mounting criticism, Facebook executives are discussing changes to a controversial advertising tool that publicizes users’ Web activities outside of the popular social network. Alterations to the recently introduced Beacon system could be announced as early as Nov. 29, BusinessWeek.com has learned.
Executives of the three-year-old company were in deep talks over proposed changes late into the afternoon on Nov. 28, according to a person familiar with the matter. At issue is the Beacon program, which alerts members' Facebook "friends" to purchases and other activities on third-party Web sites. A spokesperson for the company declined to discuss changes, reiterating an earlier statement: "Facebook is listening to feedback from its users and committed to evolving Beacon."
Executives of the three-year-old company were in deep talks over proposed changes late into the afternoon on Nov. 28, according to a person familiar with the matter. At issue is the Beacon program, which alerts members' Facebook "friends" to purchases and other activities on third-party Web sites. A spokesperson for the company declined to discuss changes, reiterating an earlier statement: "Facebook is listening to feedback from its users and committed to evolving Beacon."
Online Company Offers Gift Card Management
Gift cards are expected to be a major component of holiday giving, with estimates putting sales at more than $100 billion in 2008. And according to Consumer Reports' survey, 62% of consumers are planning to buy gift cards this season, many of which will be bought online. Consumer Reports' survey also found that when the time came for consumers to redeem their gift card, the majority of consumers also spent their own money, with 60% spending more than the value of the card.
Leverage (www.leveragecard.com) is a way for consumers to manage an array of gift, reward and loyalty resources online. Users can perform the following tasks online with a single, free online application including purchase, track and exchange gift cards from retailers who are online; earn interest on gift card balances; enroll in and manage loyalty and rewards programs; receive targeted offers and savings from retailers based on gift card holdings, as well as self-reported demographic, psychographic, gift occasions and travel calendar information and maintain complete privacy of all personally identifiable information.
Users create an account and profile, and then register their gift cards, reward and loyalty program information. This information is securely collected from participating partners, aggregated and presented to users in a friendly and intuitive interface. Changes across all accounts are visible immediately as they occur.
Leverage also gives advertisers an opportunity to deliver relevant and timely messages to users based on self-reported, non-identifiable information. When users log in to their Leverage account, they are invited to view their offers and savings from retailers in a format that is similar to an email inbox.
The promotional messages are accompanied by a key that provides insights into each merchant's targeting rationale. Criteria include non-personally-identifiable demographic and geographic information (age, gender, and location), recent gift card transactions, loyalty program membership, or an upcoming gift occasion. This transparency provides consumers with far more control over the timing, volume and relevance of advertising.
Leverage (www.leveragecard.com) is a way for consumers to manage an array of gift, reward and loyalty resources online. Users can perform the following tasks online with a single, free online application including purchase, track and exchange gift cards from retailers who are online; earn interest on gift card balances; enroll in and manage loyalty and rewards programs; receive targeted offers and savings from retailers based on gift card holdings, as well as self-reported demographic, psychographic, gift occasions and travel calendar information and maintain complete privacy of all personally identifiable information.
Users create an account and profile, and then register their gift cards, reward and loyalty program information. This information is securely collected from participating partners, aggregated and presented to users in a friendly and intuitive interface. Changes across all accounts are visible immediately as they occur.
Leverage also gives advertisers an opportunity to deliver relevant and timely messages to users based on self-reported, non-identifiable information. When users log in to their Leverage account, they are invited to view their offers and savings from retailers in a format that is similar to an email inbox.
The promotional messages are accompanied by a key that provides insights into each merchant's targeting rationale. Criteria include non-personally-identifiable demographic and geographic information (age, gender, and location), recent gift card transactions, loyalty program membership, or an upcoming gift occasion. This transparency provides consumers with far more control over the timing, volume and relevance of advertising.
Poking Facebook
Harvard dropout Mark Zuckerberg created one of the most trafficked sites on the Web and became a paper billionaire as a result. But ongoing lawsuits suggest that Facebook's origins are murkier than Zuckerberg would like to admit. Is the man many are calling Harvard’s next Bill Gates telling the truth?
November 6, 2007
Skype Goes Mobile
Bit by bit, big names in the computing world are barging into the cell-phone business. First came Apple's (AAPL ) game-changing iPhone. Next came word that Google (GOOG ) is creating its own software platform for a new breed of cell phones.
Now Skype (EBAY ), which popularized free and cheap phone calls over the Internet, is set to launch a customized cell phone developed jointly with 3 Mobile, a wireless carrier in Europe, Asia, and Australia. Code-named the "white phone," the Skype handset will be introduced by late October in Britain, Italy, Hong Kong, and Australia, and will reach 3's other five markets later, BusinessWeek has learned. There are no immediate plans to bring the device to North America, though the companies may try to license it to other carriers or sell versions straight to consumers for them to use on other networks.
Now Skype (EBAY ), which popularized free and cheap phone calls over the Internet, is set to launch a customized cell phone developed jointly with 3 Mobile, a wireless carrier in Europe, Asia, and Australia. Code-named the "white phone," the Skype handset will be introduced by late October in Britain, Italy, Hong Kong, and Australia, and will reach 3's other five markets later, BusinessWeek has learned. There are no immediate plans to bring the device to North America, though the companies may try to license it to other carriers or sell versions straight to consumers for them to use on other networks.
A Business Best Seller in Japan
What do you get when you combine a guitar-playing eggplant with McKinsey-style reasoning? In Japan, a best-selling business book. Titled The World's Easiest Problem-Solving Class, it aims to teach consultant-style analysis to middle and high schoolers in a country where test-taking and rote memorization are second nature to kids at an early age. But since its June release the book has been snapped up by adults, rising as high as No. 2 on Amazon (AMZN) Japan, where it currently ranks No. 26 with 250,000 copies in print.
Author Kensuke Watanabe, a Japanese national who was educated in the U.S. and Japan and worked as a McKinsey & Co. consultant for nearly six years, says he wants to teach Japanese kids to "use critical thinking skills more and be more proactive in shaping the world."
Author Kensuke Watanabe, a Japanese national who was educated in the U.S. and Japan and worked as a McKinsey & Co. consultant for nearly six years, says he wants to teach Japanese kids to "use critical thinking skills more and be more proactive in shaping the world."
Health is wealth for leaders on the 24-hour treadmill
The dirty little secret of leadership is that it is not nearly as stressful as being a subordinate. Lack of autonomy and control over your work - now, that is stressful. Boring, repetitive tasks and being excluded from the really interesting networks - this is what makes working life unpleasant and potentially damaging to health. If you don't believe me, read Sir Michael Marmot's book Status Syndrome , based on his three decades of research into the subject.
November 2, 2007
So Many Ads, So Few Clicks
Can more targeted pitches on Facebook and other sites reverse the shrinking response to online ads? In June, Luke Mitchell's student marketing service, Reach Students, ran a series of Web ads to promote an offer from a major parcel delivery service. The timing seemed perfect: just when college students decide whether to store belongings for the summer or ship them home. So did the placement--on the Facebook social network, where students hang out for hours.
Yet when the results rolled in, Mitchell was stunned: Only 0.04% of those people who got the ads on their screens bothered to click on them. He had expected at least 1% to respond. "We had just a handful of users come to the site," he says.The truth about online ads is that precious few people actually click on them. And the percentage of people who respond to common "banner ads," the ubiquitous interactive posters that run in fixed places on sites, is shrinking steadily.
The so-called click-through rate for those ads on major Web destinations such as Yahoo! (YHOO ), Microsoft (MSFT ), and AOL (TWX ) declined from 0.75% to 0.27% during 2006, according to Eyeblaster, a New York-based online ad serving and monitoring firm. It says that last March the average click rate on standard banner ads across the whole Web was 0.2%. This reflects a surge in new ads and Web pages, fueled by the rise in social networks.
Yet when the results rolled in, Mitchell was stunned: Only 0.04% of those people who got the ads on their screens bothered to click on them. He had expected at least 1% to respond. "We had just a handful of users come to the site," he says.The truth about online ads is that precious few people actually click on them. And the percentage of people who respond to common "banner ads," the ubiquitous interactive posters that run in fixed places on sites, is shrinking steadily.
The so-called click-through rate for those ads on major Web destinations such as Yahoo! (YHOO ), Microsoft (MSFT ), and AOL (TWX ) declined from 0.75% to 0.27% during 2006, according to Eyeblaster, a New York-based online ad serving and monitoring firm. It says that last March the average click rate on standard banner ads across the whole Web was 0.2%. This reflects a surge in new ads and Web pages, fueled by the rise in social networks.
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