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'Tis the Season!
by Gayle Wiegand
Published on this site: November 30th, 2006 - See
more articles from this month
'Tis the season to begin gift shopping once again. But, rather
than battle crowds, weather and fatigue, we have the greatest
invention of our generation-online shopping!
I love online shopping. I love the convenience of sitting in my
robe, with a snack and drink close by, the TV on or a CD
playing, and being able to choose any hour of the day or night
to shop. And best of all, not having to battle traffic, rude
crowds, or Snow!
I love pretty much all online shopping, but one of my favorites
is gift baskets. Gift baskets have been around for a long time,
but seem to have really come into their own with the popularity
of online shopping. They are the ultimate in easy gifting! And
they make it easy with secure checkouts, personalized gift cards, and time-sensitive to-the-door delivery.
Whatever the occasion; whoever the intended recipient, there's
a fun and appropriate gift basket to be found. And for those of
us with the spirit of adventure, some sites even offer
customizable baskets. Many of the gift basket sites are really
one-stop gift shopping-offering flowers and plants, wines, food
baskets, corporate gifts and special gifts for kids.
I spent about an hour recently on one of my favorites, and managed to
clear my list of a birthday gift for my 10-year old
niece; an anniversary gift for my sister and brother-in-law;
flowers for my "adopted mom" who recently underwent knee-replacement surgery; and a congratulations basket for a
dear friend who recently had twins!
Being the frugal person that I am, one year I decided I would
make and mail my own gift baskets. It was very time consuming,
very expensive, but fun for a one-time activity. I created a
home entertainment basket with microwave popcorn, Milk Duds and
Raisinets, a few well-chosen video tapes (before DVDs became the
in-thing!) and a few other items. Being of Italian descent, my favorite home-spun basket is called "A Taste of Italy." It
includes pasta, sauce, good Romano cheese, bread sticks, olive
oil, wine and some delicious traditional Italian cookies!
Probably the only thing more fun than shopping for or creating
gift baskets is receiving one. Several years ago I received
this huge basket of the most incredible English muffins. Thick,
exquisite muffins in every possible flavor. Needless to say I
shared my bounty - and the next year went to the site and ordered several baskets for folks on my list. Another basket
that really impressed me was the one our realtor sent after we
bought a house. It had all the fixings for an intimate
housewarming party, including a lovely bottle of wine.
I have to admit, the "gift box" from a well-known cheese
company left me a little flat. I couldn't get over that the
entire box, which I know was not inexpensive, consisted of
about four of those 2 ounce bars of cheese, a small jar of
mustard, small package of crackers and a few hard candies. Definitely less-than impressive!
I really do Love online shopping. And I really love the ease
and convenience of gift baskets! So next month, you're likely
to find me in front of the fireplace with my laptop busily
choosing and sending out lots of holiday greetings around the
country without having to put on shoes!
If you haven't already joined the ranks of online shoppers, do
yourself a favor and try going the online shopping/gift basket
route. I guarantee you'll enjoy the holiday season a whole lot
more!
Gayle Wiegand - heads up a
marketing
communications consulting group, Outreach Pros -
http://www.outreachpros.com. She has directed projects for
private industry, not-for-profit, and government contracts.
With an M.S. in Communications and a B.A. in Theatre, Ms.
Wiegand has an extensive background in education, healthcare,
entertainment, retail and hospitality.
http://www.giftsalley.com is one of the ventures Ms Wiegand is
involved with.
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