Attention indecisive people, procrastinators, and busy bees: You’re running out of time to get the mothers in your life the perfect gift card! Finding a personalized gift doesn’t have to be hard, it just takes a little extra time and critical thinking. Rather than picking up a last-minute bouquet of flowers, or taking her to the same restaurant as last year, let her know how much you care by choosing a gift card that shows you took her unique interests and preferences into consideration. The key to giving the best gift is really tailoring it to the recipient as an individual. Below are three important questions that will help you narrow down your search.

How does she spend her free time?

To find out what the mothers in your life will really love, it is often useful to think about their values, specifically related to time. When your mom has an hour or two of leisure, how does she spend it? Does she curl up in a hammock and read for the afternoon? Is she cooking pastries or perfecting a recipe in the kitchen? Maybe she goes biking outdoors to explore new terrain, or takes a breather by attending a hot yoga class.

If you think hard enough, there is likely something the moms in your life usually enjoy doing with their spare time. Think about whether there is something they’re missing, need a replacement of, or could use to enhance their favorite pass time. If your mom loves hiking, consider buying her a gift card to purchase a digital camera so she can capture the beautiful scenery. If she loves interior design, give her a gift card to Domestications or World Market that will allow her to indulge in her passion. Complementary gifts are often the best ways to show that you put thought into finding something suited just for her interests and lifestyle.

How does she recognize affection and care?

There are many things we owe our mothers for teaching us that go unrecognized. Just as we learn how to speak our native language from them, most of us grow up observing how to express affection and care from our parents or guardians in different ways. Have you ever heard of the five love languages? Developed by a relationship counselor, these love languages can be as important to communication in relationships as sharing the same native language. According to Gary Chapman, there are different ways that people recognize and internalize affection. If you and the people you care about share different emotional love languages, regardless of how hard you try to express your affection you may never get your feelings across in a way they understand.

The five love languages Chapman identified are physical touch, acts of service, words of affirmation, quality time, and receiving gifts. Physical touch includes kissing, hugging, and physically being close to one another. Acts of service include going out of your way to do something nice for someone, like cooking dinner unexpectedly, or picking up their clothes at the dry cleaners on your way home. Words of affirmation include verbally vocalizing and affirming people of their value and how they make you feel. Quality time is a matter of giving someone your undivided attention, whether it be going for a walk together, or simply sitting and chatting. The last love type is receiving gifts.

So, how exactly would you go about determining your mother’s love language? Chances are good that because she raised you, you may share the same one. However, this is not always the case. To discover her love language, or anyone’s for that matter, try to think about how she expresses love to others, what she complains about most, and what she requests most often.

How can you combine her interests and love language to package the perfect gift?

Figuring out the perfect gift includes an understanding of your mother’s interests, and how she recognizes love. This will give you a better idea of what gift card to get, and how to give it to her in the perfect way. For example, if your mom loves getting artsy in her free time, and her love language is quality time, getting her a gift card to Blick’s will make her swoon. If your mom is a foodie, and her love language is acts of service, cooking a fancy dinner for her coupled with a gift card to Cooking.com would likely hit the spot.

Regardless of what you end up with, mom’s always love the gift of choice. Giving personalized gift cards in the right context, with the right message accompanying it, can be the perfect way to make your mother’s day. It just takes an understanding of her interests, values, and how she internalizes affection to come up with what that is!

Most people buy gift cards for others with the mentality the recipient will be able to find something they like – but unfortunately that optimistic perspective isn’t always reality. Plenty of people receive gift cards they know they won’t use or flat out don’t want, but don’t know what do with them. While asking friends and family if they’re interested in purchasing an unwanted card is an option, a number of websites offer gift card purchasing and reselling services.

How it Works

Sellers: Say you’ve won a $100 Cabela’s gift card from a drawing at work, but you don’t like Cabela’s and/or don’t live near one. Although you could spend time browsing their online selection, you’d rather have money instead. So, you find a gift card buyback site. They might offer you $80 or $90 for the card, so you decide to send it in and you get a check in return. Note that most sites require sold gift cards to be worth at least $25. Some sites even offer Amazon credit or let you trade your gift card in for another one.

Buyers: You’re looking to save some extra money on purchases and heard about gift card resell websites. You decide to check one out and notice you can get a KMart gift card for 10% off retail price, which essentially is the same thing as saving 10% at the store – only the gift card is treated as cash, so you can use other coupons on top of that for even more savings. You purchase it and wait for the plastic gift card to come in the mail or the eGift card code to come to your email inbox.

The Issues

The ease of ordering items online where you don’t have to physically swipe the card makes this process a little sketchy. For one, let’s say someone sells their gift card to one of these sites but writes down the number on the back before sending it in. The buyback company checks the balance. Then, the seller gets their check and watches for the card to be sold. Once they see it’s sold (or guess when it’s sold), they spend the gift card online. The new buyer of the card gets it, goes to use it, and the balance is zero.

Of course, some gift cards require that a PIN number is entered in order to use them, and most of the time that number is under a scratch-off surface. If that surface isn’t disrupted, there’s probably less of a chance the card will be compromised before the new seller is able to use it.

And sure, there probably are ways to tell if someone has cheated the system. A lot of the gift card resell websites touting themselves as reputable have been featured on national news networks and offer testimonials on their website. While that’s fine and dandy, it’s important to remember they are publishing their own testimonials, so there definitely is room for lots of bias there.

BBB and Other Reviews

We do think this concept is a great idea, so what we’ve decided to do is compile a list of the different websites along with their BBB rating and useful information so you can make an educated decision should you choose to use these services. While plenty of people post reviews online just to complain, the BBB process takes a little more work and it is a pretty credible source.

BBB rates businesses on a traditional grading scale from A – F. On each company’s BBB page, you can click on “Complaint Details” to see more information about the problems reported.

1. Plastic Jungle

Plastic Jungle is one of the most popular websites for gift card buyback and discount gift card purchasing, especially since they offer e-Gift card codes in addition to plastic cards. They are a BBB accredited business and have been since 2009.

Their current BBB grade is an A-. However, they have a record of BBB complaints, with 273 closed by the BBB in the last 3 years. According to their BBB page, some of the issues are as follows:

• When redeeming purchased gift cards, the balance has been 0 or lower than expected
• Sellers have not received their payment on time
• Customer service has been slow to respond to issues and inquiries

2. Gift Card Rescue

On their homepage, Gift Card Rescue boasts the popular news stations they’ve been featured on such as ABC and CBS. They also have a 60 day money-back guarantee and cover up to $1,000 like PJ does.

However, Gift Card Rescue’s time frames are a little different. For one, they say they are not able to “investigate or refund claims reported after 10 days” for missing cards. In addition, after receiving the gift card, customers have 7 days to make sure the balance of their card is correct.

Unlike PJ, they are not BBB accredited, and their current BBB rating is an F based on 54 complaints. The BBB page also notes their “failure to respond to 3 complaints filed against business.” There are 6 documented instances where the customer has not been satisfied with their response to the complaint, and two instances where they failed to resolve the complaint issues.

On Reseller Ratings, their average score based on 4 reviews is a 2.5/10. Some reviews stated they took too long to ship out the card and had an absence of customer service.

 3. Cardpool

Cardpool’s 100-day guarantee definitely rivals the 60-day guarantees of the two previous retailers. However, just like the previous two retailers, they have a $1,000 limit per customer.  Sellers can receive a check or Amazon credit. They also have been featured on a number of news media outlets.

Cardpool has been BBB accredited since 2012 and they have an A- rating based on 61 complaints, 56 of which have been closed in the past 12 months. The highest number of problems have been under delivery issues and problems with product or service.

On Reseller Ratings, their average score based on 4 reviews is a 3.75/10. Some reviews stated they took too long to ship out the card and had an absence of customer service. Some of the customers said they did not receive a payment, received a card with no balance, and had issues getting customer service to respond.

4. Card Cash

CardCash.com’s homepage also contains a large section showing the news media outlets that have featured them. It is important to point out they have no return policy whatsoever. 

According to their BBB page, they’re also part of ABC Gift Cards. They have been BBB accredited since 2008 and have an A rating based on 86 complaints. The largest number of complaints are related to problems with their products or service. There were 9 instances where customers were not satisfied with their response.

On Reseller Ratings, their average score based on 5 reviews is a 0.01/10. Some reviewers said they took too long to send payment and did not respond to emails or phone calls. 

When to Buy Direct

The myriad issues we’ve presented related to these services might be enough for you to dismiss them entirely, but maybe not. If you’re selling a gift card, you might have better luck than if you are looking to purchase.

Based on our research and the guarantees for the companies listed, there are instances where buying the gift cards directly from the companies is a better option:

• The gift card amount is less than $25
• You or the person you’re buying the used gift card from might not use it soon after purchase (especially within 60 days)
• You’re buying an eGift card
• You want assurance the gift card will work and/or do not have the time nor the patience to deal with customer service should something go wrong
• The gift card will be for a large amount, that is, $1,000 or more

Overall, while saving money is great, it might be worth it to be safe and buy a gift card directly from the company you’re interested in. And, we can’t help but add you can make new plastic gift card and eGift card purchases from our website. 

If you’ve had experiences with any of these companies, feel free to let us know in the comments!

Although some think gift cards are too impersonal, there are ways to make them special – it just takes a little effort and framing. In fact, one of the best gifts is the gift of choice, especially if you’re the one who tends to make plans. Instead of plopping a gift certificate in a card and just writing your name on the inside, take the time to write your Valentine a special message. This could be emphasizing how your gift was based on the desire to do something together, and you’re giving them the opportunity to choose the outing. The best part about e-gift cards is there’s little to no wait time for delivery, as they are usually emailed within a few hours.

Since your sweethearts probably have varying tastes, we’ve got various gift ideas to choose from. If you really want to make a good impression and purchase something that will help build your relationship, here are our suggestions:

1. Fun Outing

Out of all the gift choices available, Groupon is one of the best investments when it comes to relationships. With a Groupon Gift Card, your sweetheart can choose a fun activity you can do together – there always are plenty to pick from. Maybe it will be a nice dinner or play. Or, on the more extreme side, it could be an afternoon indoor rock climbing or playing paintball. Groupon even has special listings for Valentine’s Day. While flowers and chocolate are nice, it’s fun to go out and actually do something together. Plus, the Groupon deals tend to be very affordable.

2. Bed and Breakfast

While this might not be appropriate for new romances or a casual date, if you’re in a more serious relationship, a getaway at a quaint bed and breakfast could be perfect for you and your significant other. A Bed and Breakfast Gift Card will allow your Valentine to choose from more than 4,000 locations. These include traditional B&B homes, historic hotels, farmhouses, lodges, country inns, cabins, and more.

3. Sporting Event, Concert, or Play

Does your sweetheart like concerts, sporting events, or plays? While Groupon can be a great avenue for deals to these events, a StubHub Gift Card is a more concrete way to assure your significant other will be able to attend that concert they’ve had their eye on or their favorite team’s game. It’s better to let them pick, too, so they get the exact tickets they want – it’s no fun spending lots of money on the wrong event.

4. Toys and Treats

You didn’t think we’d forget your pets, did you? Many dog and cat owners consider their furry pal their best friend, so a gift from Dog.co or CatToys.com would be perfect for them.

5. Spa Day or Outdoor Getaway

We’ve clumped these into the same category, but for good reason, as nothing clears the mind like a spa day or an afternoon in nature. With a Spa Week gift card, your significant other can get some much-needed R&R and pampering. Notice we didn’t include you in this one, as people tend to see spas as a solo getaway opportunity. However, if you really want to impress your lady (or man, if you think he would like that), purchase a gift card for them and their best friend.

Or, if you’re not so much into a spa getaway and prefer more active adventures, an REI gift card can be put towards new hobbies you and your special someone can do together.

Lastly, if you don’t have a date, aren’t feeling the love this Valentine’s Day, or are enjoying the single life, why not treat yourself with these last two items? Better yet, treat yourself and a friend who also doesn’t have Valentine’s Day plans.

So, don’t waste any more time and start putting that special gift together!

Winning a gift card from Amazon pretty much gives you access to buy anything you want in the world (there are people who get toilet paper off of Amazon, no joke). If you have ears you’ll probably also agree that an iTunes gift card can be a pretty fantastic thing. So now that we’ve agreed that getting this free stuff is good, how does one go about getting it?

Disclaimer: It won’t cost you money, but it will cost you a little time.

Every day bloggers and websites giveaway tens of hundreds of free things. Many of them require little to no effort to enter their contests. So what if you took a few minutes each day or each week and entered a bunch of giveaways for these highly desirable items? Chances are that you’d win some pretty nice prizes if you put some time in.

But here’s the time saver

Google Alerts. If you haven’t used Google Alerts before it’s an aggregator tool that returns results from Google searches based on the specifications you provide. So all you need to do is figure out what phrases you need Google to seek out for you on the web and it’ll keep returning you new results with your keywords. This brings the contests right to your front door. Your time can be spent entering  them to win free stuff as opposed to trying to find things to win.

Here’s how it works.

Search query: Here you tell Google what you’re looking for. This query uses some special Google queries to make sure you get what you’re looking for. Using the parentheses tells Google that its results MUST have the included phrase on the page in the search result. So every single result that you get back will have “Amazon gift card” on the page. Using the tilde tells Google that you want the attached term and any other similar terms. So for contest you see Google has highlighted the phrase “giveaway” in the results as well. All four results, you’ll notice here, are exactly what we’re looking for.

How often: This field is exactly what it says it is. It’s just instructing Google how often you want to crawl. You can change this setting over time as it fits your need.

How many: Again, this is just a way to filter out the results. You can also go back and change your search query to be more refined if you’re still getting too many results or poor results.

Deliver to: Where do you want to see these results? You can have them sent to your email account or you can login to your Google Reader feed to see the results.

The $250 prize for the most video votes goes to Video 3!

And for concrete proof, here is a screen shot of the video votes at the contest deadline:

As for the $25 Fandango gift card, we assigned all the commenters a number and chose randomly from the entries. The winner of that prize is Erin!

Congratulations to the winners (we will be contacting you soon) and thanks to everyone who took the time to enter!

We wish you all Happy Holidays, and we hope you think of GiftZip if you need a gift at the last minute or something for that ‘hard to buy for’ person on your gift list.

Here are the steps:

1. Go to the Pick Your Favorite GiftZip Commercial post.

2. View the videos.

3. Vote for your favorite video.

4. Leave us a comment on that post about what video you chose and why – and be creative! Be sure to leave a valid email so we know how to contact you if you win. Any comments left on this post will not be counted.

UPDATE: If your comment doesn’t post right away after you click “submit,” don’t worry! We have a spam filter and must approve all comments before they will show up. If you posted a comment and you don’t see it up after 48 hours (or 72 on weekends) tweet @GiftZip.

Fine Print:

-Must be a U.S. Citizen, age 18 or older

-The deadline for voting/commenting is 12pm EST on Dec. 12th, 2012.

-One entry allowed per person

Votes will be counted until 12pm EST on Dec. 12th

Video 1

Video 2

Video 3

Video 4

Video 5

Vote here

Our first voting mechanism had some difficulties, so we will be using this one. You are able to vote once per video.

Rules and such

• It’s simple really – don’t cheat. We retain the right to disqualify entrants for any behavior we deem to be misleading, fraudulent, offensive, or in violation of contest rules.
• We will select one winner, announced on Dec. 21st, once you’ve been notified, just tell us which GiftZip retailer you’d like a $250 gift card for and we’ll get it to you ASAP.

More chances to win coming soon!

Stay tuned, our contestants will be having another chance to win soon…so check back over the next couple of weeks to see the other amazing entries so you can compare your favorite with our judges.

Need a cheat sheet? Let us tell you a little bit about ourselves:

GiftZip.com is simple, fast, and completely free. We are a one stop shop for finding a last minute gift or as a more efficient way of sending or gifting eGift Cards. No catches, no hidden fees — just here to save you time and energy on your shopping list without leaving the comfort of your home.

Your mission, if you choose to accept it:

Create an entertaining commercial that’s less than 1 minute showcasing GiftZip and our service. Your videos should be focused on the advantages of using GiftZip, how quick and easy it is, the selection of our retailers, etc. For more information on how GiftZip works, visit our website.

We created a video of our own to show you an example of what we’re looking for, which you can check out below. And remember, we never said we were great at acting…

Rules and Eligibility

• Submit a video in response to ours on the GiftZipTube YouTube Channel that is no longer than 1 minute that helps answer the question, “Why use GiftZip?”
• The target time is 45 seconds to 1 minute. Videos that exceed 1 minute will not be eligible to win.
• Upload the video to YouTube and tag the video “Why GiftZip?” so we’ll be sure to see it. You can also send us a link via Twitter, @GiftZip
• You must be 18 years or older to win. We ask that the video remains free of vulgar language. All videos not suitable for all ages will be disqualified.
• All videos must be submitted by 12:00pm on October 31st, 2012. .
• A panel of GiftZip employees will select a winner to be announced on November 2nd, 2012.
• Winning video will be judged on creativity, message and “convinciblity.”
• The winning video will receive $500.00 in a gift card of your choice from GiftZip.com.

Click image to see a larger version.

Click image to see a larger version.