#610 forgotten

It's February 1 -- do you know where your gift cards are that you received for Christmas?  Hopefully you have redeemed them and enjoyed the merriment your giver intended.  But if you are like many, you have gift cards sitting in your drawer or purse (or worse, lost) and the only jolly one is the retailer who has the cash.

A previous blog* already ranted about the lost value and environmental impact of these type of cards, but still 80% of shoppers were reported to give at least one gift card over the recent holiday season.  Yet, according to researchers at CEB TowerGroup, about $1 billion in gift-card value goes unused each year!  

Do a mental inventory of the cards or certificates you received from Santa and friends.  It has been over a month now; it's time to dig them out and put them to good use.  Or you can claim some of their value in cash through sites like Gift Card Granny and CardCash…even a reduced something is better than a plastic card that is worthless to you.

Stop ho-ho-holding on to the potential for enjoyment and spend your weekend cashing in on any gift cards that still remain.

-- beth triplett
leadershipdots.blogspot.com

@leadershipdots
leadershipdots@gmail.com

*Blog #190 12/8/12

Source:  Get the most out of that gift card by David Lazarus for the Los Angeles Times in the Telegraph Herald, December 29, 2013 p. 2B