When your children are grown with families of their own, what do you want them to remember about the #pandemicholidays of 2020? Clearly, this is a question for the ages. Because of social distancing restrictions from COVID-19, we simply can’t be together as usual this year. At eGifter, we always see the glass as very full. We are convinced that gift cards can supply just the magic you need. Read on for a uniquely wonderful gifting idea that can have a long lasting impact on your child and your family. The simple act of kindness (and fun!) suggested here can bring everyone together in unexpected, meaningful ways. For everyone you love, especially the grandparents, lift holiday spirits with gift cards!

Make it Extra Special for the Grandparents

If you’re lucky enough to be in the ‘sandwich generation”, you’re certainly hyper-focused on your folks. Grandparents have had it particularly rough this year, what with not being able to hug the grandkids. If they live close enough for a drive-by, this post is meant especially for you.

Shop For a Gift Card. Select Print Delivery.

The holiday magic we’re talking about is valuable but not necessarily expensive. eGifter sells hundreds of gift cards for $20 and less. Shop from hundreds of top brands at retail stores and restaurants your parents will enjoy. The idea here is to help your child produce a special gift card creation for a grandparent (or, a relative or friend.) The personal message and photo will become part of the lasting treasure that means the world to that special someone. 

Here’s how: Navigate to eGifter.com, select a gift card and Create a Gift for “Print & Hand Delivery”

Need some gift card ideas? Here you go! 

• Restaurants! Such as Olive Garden, Applebees, TGI Fridays™ 
• Home and Garden! For instance, Target, TJ Maxx, Jo-Ann Fabric and Crafts
• Health, Spa and Beauty! Including CVS Pharmacy, The Vitamin Shoppe, Bed, Bath & Beyond

Make Memories with Kids. Color Together! 

Children love it when their parents participate in their games and activities. Today is a great day to spend coloring together! Decorate the “Giftable PDF” with stickers, messages and pictures. Take photos of the kids doing the artwork. Shoot a few selfies together. Years down the road, you’ll love looking back on this special memory. The end result of today’s arts and crafts project will be a “Giftable PDF”. This neatly folded, handmade greeting card displays the valued gift card, redeemable at retail. Alongside the gift card are personal messages and photos. Together, it’s a bundle of joy.

Christmas Morning, Knock at the Door….

Place the Giftable PDF in a box, gift bag or envelope.  Leave it on the  doorstep. Ring the bell and take a bunch of socially distant steps backward.

Witness the Moment of Joy and Delight

The looks on their faces as they see their family a safe distance away will be priceless. For sure, they’ll appreciate the gift card, meant to buy an item they need or want. But, the real bonus here is the “Giftable PDF”, packed with sentiments they can savor for years to come. It doesn’t take much to lift holiday spirits with gift cards! Forevermore, 2020 can be remembered as the year of love and compassion.

A Life Lesson – Compassion and Family Values

In the year of a pandemic, there is a silver lining. We have a firsthand, personal opportunity to demonstrate care and compassion to our children. The time spent together to create happiness for loved ones is a true lasting treasure. What’s more, the joy they’ll have created will bring smiles and warm hearts for years to come. Your children will learn to be better friends and more sensitive humans. Fostering a sense of family values and social responsibility is the magic we need. And, we’ll be building future generations that can truly change the world.

Happy Holidays, everyone!

Traditions create a sense of comfort and belonging, especially during challenging and unusual times, like the #pandemicholidays of 2020. Holiday traditions and customs reinforce values and create lasting memories with family and friends. That’s why today’s answer to “how are you going to make the holidays special this year?” is particularly sweet. Everyone knows the eGifter Marketplace is flush with hundreds of gifting options. There, you’ll discover hundreds of retail branded gift cards — all holiday shopper certified. 🛍 As the Jewish Festival of Chanukah begins, let the sweet treat gift cards roll! Yes, indeed — we’re talking about jelly donuts — a Chanukah gift card tradition. 

Why Jelly Donuts on Chanukah?

The Jewish holiday of Chanukah celebrates victory over a tyrant king and the rededication of the Temple in Jerusalem. After the Temple was destroyed, there was one cruse of pure oil that should have kept the menorah lit for just one day. But, miraculously, the oil and light lasted for 8 days. Long story short, it was one cruse of oil that ignited the Chanukah miracle. So, each December, we celebrate the “festival of lights” to represent light that shines on all future generations. We actively participate by spinning dreidels, lighting menorahs to enjoy foods cooked in oil. So, there you have it — the donut!

The Best Jelly Donuts Around

At eGifter, we have the recipe for great gifts for any holiday. As you know, we sell gift cards galore. It’s easy and fun to make this years’s holiday cozy and bright, whether you celebrate religiously, spiritually or neither! Send them gift cards for jelly donuts — and bring on the smiles, comfort and memories.

• Dunkin’ – Making people smile on Chanukah and all year long  
• Krispy Kreme — Sweet treats for delicious traditions 

“Sufganiyot” — The Jelly Donut Tradition

No matter what holiday you observe, it’s always fun and interesting to trace back the origin of traditions. The more holiday history we know, the more connected and joyful we can be.

• Time Magazine Explains the History – Why Jelly Doughnuts Are Eaten During Hanukkah
• Martha Stewart Offers the Recipe – Hanukkah Sufganiyot (Jelly Doughnuts) 
• Pinterest Shares Crafts for Kids – A Dreidel Eating a Jelly Donut
• Britannica Teaches Us More: Uncover the history of Hanukkah, the Jewish festival of lights

We are so proud of our partners at Fanatics, the global leader in fan gear and licensed sports merchandise, known by avid sports fans and sports memorabilia collectors everywhere. Like other great retail branded gift cards available at eGifter.com, Fanatics.com checks every proverbial box when it comes to quality, selection, creativity and service. Their loyal base of dedicated players and spectators (plus those that love them!) is deeply engaged with the Fanatics brand as only fanatical sports fans can be! We always love serving Fanatics customers and we’re delighted to offer a limited time special promotion with deep savings while Fanatics gift card supplies last. Through 4/24/20, get a $50 Fanatics Gift Card for just $42.50 (promo Code: FANS420. But our ability to offer great deals and savings to Fanatics gift card customers is not what makes us proud at this particular moment. In our opinion, it takes more than great products, services, gift card distribution, customer service and engineering innovation for a business to transform from great to truly legendary, like Fanatics. To that end, Michael Rubin and the entire Fanatics team get kudos for demonstrating the manufacturing prowess and heart for which America has always been known. American pride, indeed.

Manufacturing Ingenuity: A Heroic Response

A Clear Gap Becomes Apparent

As the nation and the world watched the vertical climb of statistical rates of infection, hospitalizations and mortality, one of the most reported shortfalls in our ability to respond became clear. Healthcare workers were becoming dramatically limited in their ability to perform front line jobs due to a lack of personal protective equipment (PPE). As we watched news footage and read news articles, the PPE deficit occurred as insurmountable. 

Enter Fanatics CEO Michael Rubin, who began to lose sleep along with the rest of us, wondering how to make a difference in the fight against the COVID-19 virus pandemic that continues to rock the world. On March 17, he heard about the shortages of tests, respirators and everyday supplies that created severe challenges for health-care workers. In the uniquely powerful position of running a massive fabric-based production operation in the U.S., Rubin would soon realize an opportunity in the making. 

Pause on Jersey Production. Pivot to Masks & Gowns.

Like other countless numbers of manufacturing facilities forced to the sidelines due to restrictions imposed by social distancing, health concerns, governmental restrictions, supply chain limitations, depressed demand and more, Fanatics’ manufacturing operations were halted. Bottom line, no baseball season meant no production. From there, it did not take long for Rubin to realize that a million yards of fabric intended to manufacture baseball uniforms were lying dormant at the company’s manufacturing facility in Easton, PA. 

One Million Masks and Gowns, Coming Right Up.

Said Rubin in a telephone interview, ““When the country is in need the way it is, it’s our privilege and opportunity to try to chip in in a small way. If we can save even one life, that’s better than making baseball uniforms and jerseys.” And so began the collaboration between Major League Baseball and its official jersey manufacturer, Fanatics, to address the shortage of protective masks and gowns for hospital workers. There are now about 100 employees working “extra distanced and in a very clean and safe environment” to make one million masks and gowns to donate to hospitals in Pennsylvania, with the hopes of eventually extending this to New Jersey and New York.” Fanatics and MLB are taking on the cost of production.

We Salute the Leaders and Innovators Among Us

There is no shortage of lessons to be learned from sharp and committed business leaders like Michael Rubin, CEO of our retail gift card partner, Fanatics. With an unprecedented need for solutions dictated by our very survival, we’re convinced that goodness and innovation will emerge, mirroring the bold initiatives taken by Rubin and those on his team.

It will take a set of complex business, manufacturing and human mandates, simply stated below, to lead the way forward.

• Adapt
• Pivot
• Transform
• Persevere
• Care.

On a daily basis, we hear from customers that report back about their surprisingly easy and fun gifting discoveries. Of course, *we* know how wonderful shopping and giving digital gift cards and physical gift cards can be. But, seeing it through the eyes of newly minted gift givers is always a delight. We’re happy to share some of these stories with you.

For the college students in your life… “This was my first time purchasing gift cards from eGifter. Both of my children live a distance away from me. Sending Valentine’s Day gift cards to them was a cinch! I would definitely do it again! I shared this idea in my daughter’s college parent group so that other parents could get the same pleasure that I did. Thanks for making it easy!”

For the boys and their girlfriends…“eGifter.com is VERY easy to navigate and shop. I love that there are no service charges. I now realize that giftcards are the perfect gift to give from afar! All three of my boys loved their movie tickets because they got to take their girlfriends to the movies for Valentine’s day ♥️”

For the boss…”I love that text gifting is available. I work remotely and sent a gift to my boss via text because she’s on the other side of the country. This was incredibly convenient and worked out great! I also loved that I was able to schedule this gift to be delivered at just the right moment. She received it with her morning coffee just as I had planned. Just perfect! I will return for other gifting opportunities!”

With a gift card marketplace that carries over 300+ retail brands that can be purchased and sent both digitally (text, email, print) and physically (plastic), we realize there is something for everyone. Certainly, we built a cadre of personalization options to make gift giving special and memorable. But what delights us every day is hearing from shoppers and recipients who describe their gifting experience in detail — bringing to life the delight and satisfaction that is bundled with their gift card purchase or receipt. We want you to know that while 99.9% of our gift cards are sold at face value with no fees, the delight is packaged in for FREE. So, without further ado, we’re pleased to share sentiments from customers that found even *more* reasons to shop and save at eGifter.com. The quotes below have been taken verbatim from actual posts on Trustpilot, a popular and trusted social review site.

I recommend this to every parent of an…
“I recommend this to every parent of an adult child ! Busy busy busy but it’s sure nice to open a message on my phone that says “Happy Birthday” and a scrumptious gift to Olive Garden. Second year in a row and plan on making it an annual event. Thank You eGifter!”

Flawless service.
“I have been buying gift cards with cryptocurrency for two years now, and not once have they failed. On top of their great service, you can find some awesome bonuses. So keep track of their offers. They’re worth it.”

 Awesome
“Bought 2 Google Play gift cards. No problems, great price & instant delivery.”

Works exactly as advertised with Bitcoin Cash
“Works exactly as advertised. Purchased gift cards with Bitcoin Cash. Fast, painless transaction. Gift cards worked exactly as they should, no problems.”

Egifter is awesome
“Egifter has been a reliable source of electronic gift cards for me. They have a rock solid rewards program that has earned me credit towards gift card purchases, and they accept a large variety of payment methods. This has enabled me to have near limitless flexibility in terms of being able to purchase the goods and services I want to. Egifter is a top notch choice for gift cards in my opinion.”

Used Venmo funds to buy gift cards
“I love that I could use my Venmo funds to purchase gift cards! Lots of choices and easy to use.”

One of the best websites
“One of the best websites for gift cards, if not the best. Easy to buy, and they are sent to your email so fast, like five minutes. Try them out, you’ll be happy!”

Buy gift cards with paypal and shop at Amazon.com with ease
“I was having trouble buying things on amazon with my paypal account due to the fact amazon does not except paypal payment . i searched for days looking to find a way around it other then a money transfer that would take days to get approved and luckily i found the vanilla visa on egifter and within minutes i had a account linked to my paypal i payed a small 2$ fee and had my things from amazon on there way…absolutely love this site! I will be a life long customer.”

Everything went perfectly
“Everything went perfectly. The email came exactly when I needed it to and was easy for my daughter to use in the store rather than online. Will definitely do again.”

eGifter is the BEST! !
“Obtaining the Gifts and the ease of providing to our loved one was last minute, but it was beyond timely for our needs. Now that I know of eGifter, I will be using it again and again.”

Best way to shop for picky and other…
“Best way to shop for picky and other discriminating relatives.”

Hearing from our customers like affects our mojo, injecting a fierce motivation to please. Your words (both positive and critical) impacts our team for real. Your feedback motivates us to up our game, and raise our own bar for speed, selection, service, creativity and savings. Let us hear from you! Submit your #eGifterstories to us at support.egifter.com.

“I was having trouble buying things on Amazon.com with my PayPal account due to the fact Amazon.com does not except PayPal payment. I searched for days looking to find a way around it other than a money transfer — that would take days to get approved.

Luckily, I found the Vanilla Visa digital gift card on eGifter.com. Within minutes, I had an account — and then linked it to my PayPal. I paid a small fee and in minutes, my items from Amazon.com were on their way.

I absolutely LOVE this site! I will be a life long customer.”

>>Submitted by Kaylee, reprinted from Trustpilot.com

Happy New Year! Today brings a wonderful opportunity to send our warmest wishes for good health, peace and abundance in the New Year. May 2020 see your goals realized, relationships strengthened, challenges lessened and may kindness abound. The new year brings with it an opportunity to consider ideas and resolutions that can make a difference in your family, your community and your world this year. Here are some suggestions on how you can make a difference using gift cards from eGifter.

• Spend quality time with the one(s) you love most! Schedule some playtime and create the memorable moments that will go down in family history — fun list of gift ideas is here.

• Find the philanthropist in you. There are so many worthwhile causes that need our support to continue their good works. The Charity Choice gift card is a very special way to honor someone, either by investing yourself or by making a donation in their name. There are hundreds of organizations to which you can donate, and here are just a few: Alzheimer’s Association, American Heart Association, American Red Cross, Autism Speaks, Food for the Poor, Greenpeace USA, Jewish Federations of North America, National Multiple Sclerosis Society, Paralyzed Veterans of America, Shriner’s Hospital for Children and World Vision.

• Make a difference for that struggling young family in your community by gifting them practical provisions that lessen the strain. Diapers, pharmacy items, formula and warm clothes are gifts of practicality and love that matter. Checkout this shortlist of retail brands that would make life easier for the parents — and provide much needed care for the kids– click here.

• Invest in your future — and in future generations. Gift cards that allow you to easily buy and own company stock are smart buys — and great entry points to teach fiscal responsibility to the youngsters in your life. Teaching them to save and invest wisely through the ease and convenience of gift cards to Acorns or Stockpile lets you entrust the future to those who will inherit the earth.

• Celebrate a milestone in the family! The mundane of daily life can lull us into laziness, taking for granted the fact that we only pass this way but once. So, make it count! Take them out to dinner at one of the many restaurants featured at eGifter.com and have a great time together – dining list is here.