Consumers Entering Holiday Season More Joyful Than Gloomy with Plans to Give; Gift Cards Top the List

Even after a year of recession, for some consumers ‘tis the season for a rise in spending. A new survey from American Express (NYSE: AXP) reports that 10 percent of consumers actually intend to open their wallets and spend more on holiday gifts relative to last year and 43 percent plan to spend about the same. In the next 30 days, more than one in five U.S. consumers (22%) expect to spend more when compared to the last 30 day period.

The latest American Express Spending & Saving Tracker, the third in a monthly series, reports about consumers’ views on the economy, what they plan to spend on and what motivates them to spend or save. The research sample of 2011 adults included the general U.S. population¹, as well as two subgroups – the affluent² and young professionals³.

Attitude of Gratitude

Most consumers aren’t gloomy about the approaching holiday season. In fact, when given the choice of describing their attitude going into the holiday season as joyful or gloomy, 41 percent of the general population say they are "joyful”. Another 42 percent are even-keeled, saying they are "neither joyful nor gloomy" and only 13% have a "gloomy" attitude. More than two thirds of young professionals (69%) and more than half (53%) of the affluent report a joyful outlook.

"A personal need that I didn’t have before spending on the holidays” was the top reason given by consumers who expect to spend more on a particular item in the next 30 days (40% of the general population, 44% of young professionals and 40% of affluents). Notably, young professionals have a reason to gift-give: 28 percent say they’ve been saving and now have enough to spend and 28 percent are expecting an increase in income for themselves or from a spouse or partner.

"Even after more than a year of recession, the giving spirit shines brightly this holiday season,” said Pamela Codispoti, American Express senior vice president and general manager, Cardmember Services. "Consumers intend to spend on loved ones, with a plan to give more gift cards and electronics than other items and bringing a sharp eye for bargains. Even though Americans may pare down their gift lists a bit or not spend as much, a clear majority will do as much or more as last year when it comes to charitable giving.”

The Gift Card - Not Cash - Is King

The survey found that gift cards will be the gift of the season at 58 percent vs. all other gift selections.

• Nearly eight in ten (79%) consumers intend to utilize the Internet as a tool to help with holiday shopping: nearly half (45%) will use the Internet to purchase items, more than one in four (28%) will use it for hard-to-find items, 27 percent to research products, and a quarter will go online to simply look for gift ideas.
• Five in ten holiday buyers (50%) will most likely spend on clothing and accessories.
• Toys and games rank as the third most popular present this year with 41 percent.
• Only 27 percent of consumers plan to give cash as gifts (not including tips that may be given).
• Electronics are hot among young professionals with 37 percent expecting to give gifts such as iPods and MP3 players.
• Young professionals are more likely to give entertainment-related gifts such as movie or theatre tickets (38%) or experiential gifts (24%) vs. the general population (18% and 7% respectively).

Tech Reigns, Generosity Pours

In terms of the largest and most expensive single purchase holiday buyers will make, consumers expect to spend the most on technology gifts (with an average gift costing $450) followed by gift cards (with an average gift costing $270). The spending increases for affluents, with averages of $590 for technology and $350 for gift cards respectively.

Consumers like to pay it forward and on the whole plan to be more generous this holiday season. Sixty-three percent of consumers expect to do some type of charitable giving over the holidays, despite the fact that 54 percent of consumers say that as a result of the economy they will be cutting back on the number of gifts they purchase. Two-thirds (69%) plan to do more or the same when it comes to charity this holiday as they did last year. More than one in five young professionals (22%) say they plan to do more compared to last year.

• Donating money to an organization is the top way consumers like to give (36% of general population, 55% of the affluent and 40% of young professionals).
• Another popular choice for 31 percent of consumers is purchasing gifts or grocery items for a needy family, while others like to volunteer their time (18%).
• Only 25 percent of the general population plan to pare back on charitable giving this year compared to 46 percent of consumers who say they plan to spend less on gifts.

Making a List, Checking it Thrice

As a result of the economy, 22 percent of consumers say they will whittle down the number of people on their list. In general, if consumers have to make a choice to cut someone from their list in order to stay within their budget, coworkers are the first to go (17%), followed by service providers such as postal carriers, hair and nail stylists (14%) and then extended family and friends (13%).

• This is good news for teachers: only two percent would eliminate teachers from the gift list.
• Less than one percent would eliminate mom, dad or the kids. In fact, members of the immediate family, pets and close friends are the safest.

Discounts Motivate but Free Shipping Also Moves Customers

As consumers begin to buy, the American Express Spending & Saving Tracker found that price discounts are the top motivator for getting consumers into the checkout line. The survey also revealed that other incentives will entice consumers to dig into their pockets. Visions of free shipping, a free gift with purchase and bonus reward points dance in the heads of holiday shoppers as they think about making purchases.

• Seventy percent of consumers say discounts would be the top motivator to get them to shop within the next 30 days.
• On average, a 30 percent discount would do the trick. However, 47 percent of young professionals say they would be willing to begin spending with discounts as low as 10 percent.
• Almost half of holiday shoppers (45%) could be tempted to start their holiday shopping if they were offered free or faster shipping.
• Other key motivators were a free gift with purchase (35%) and bonus reward points (22%). Free gifts appeal to 52 percent of young professionals; bonus reward points are also apt to pique the interest of young professionals (45%) and affluents (33%).

The American Express Spending & Saving Tracker research was completed online among a random sample of consumers aged 18+. The research sample of 2,011 adults surveyed the general U.S. population, as well as two sub-groups – the affluent and young professionals. Interviewing was conducted by Echo Research between October 29 and November 2, 2009. Overall, the results have a margin of error of +/- 2.2 (or 4.0 among affluent and 4.3 among young professionals) percentage points at the 95 percent level of confidence. For access to previous American Express Spending & Saving Tracker results, please visit www.americanexpress.com/aboutus.

About American Express

American Express Company (www.americanexpress.com) is a leading global payments, network and travel company founded in 1850.

¹ The research was conducted online October 29 – November 2, 2009 among a random sample of 2,011 adults aged 18 and older.

² Affluent - defined as having a minimum annual household income of $100,000.

³ Young Professional - defined as less than 30 years of age, having a college degree, and a minimum annual household income of $50,000.