Shopping
Ultra-Last Minute Shoppers - Gift Cards Are Thoughtful & Appreciated Gifts...
12/23/2007 20:40
If there's anyone left on your holiday shopping list
no matter personal or professional a gift certificate
is always appreciated because the recipient can
select exactly what they want. No returns. No hassles
just selecting something they really want and having
it delivered to their door. Think about it, how much
do you appreciate receiving gift cards? They're not
impersonal and certainly not in those instance where
you know stores where the person likes to shop. But
even if you don't stop and think about places where
someone can find anything, like
Target
or
Amazon.com.
Everybody knows them and if they can't find
anything they like or want you probably would have
faired much worse had you actually selected
something for them in lieu of a gift card. Think
about it.
I mention Target for lots of reasons of course their mix of hip, well designed yet useful products places them at the top of my list so I give and ask for gift cards from them. I love going to Target for my shopping and its where I go about once a month to buy all sorts of things to run my house, life and business. I have dogs so I'm the guy with the 16-pack of Brawny paper towels in the bottom of his cart. But I love snaking through the aisles with my cart and checking out what I need and whatever else pops into my view. I also love checking out the end-cap merchandise that has been marked down. Last time we were there we found this really cool dinner plates in a great color and they cost all of 44 cents per plate. Style and value. Yes, I'll gladly take a gift card from Target.
I enjoy shopping in their online store both their own and their store within Amazon.com. Also, you can use their gift cards in the store and online so that's great if someone likes Target but doesn't have a store where they live, they can shop online and still redeem their gift card.
Gift cards from the following are always appreciated:
AA.com Hilton Sephora
Amazon.com Hyatt SONY
Apple, Inc. Home Depot Spa Finder
Atlantis, Paradise Island Hotels.com Target
Banana Republic iTunes Ticketmaster
Barnes & Noble Kayak Travelocity
Best Buy Kimpton Hotels United Airlines
bloomingdale’s Legal Seafood Wal-mart
Cabela's Macy’s
Circuit City Marriott
Continental Airlines NetFlix
Dean & Deluca Nordstrom
Delta Airlines Northwest Airlines
Dillard's Saks Fifth Avenue
Four Seasons Hotels & Resorts Old Navy
Gap Priceline
Another great gift is a magazine subscription. It helps to know the person but again if you know anything about them you can select a publication for that topic, assuming it exists of course. For friends who like design and architecture I've given subscriptions to DWELL magazine. I love Architectural Digest but this is really great semi-new publication that tends to focus on modern design. Beautiful photography along with quality editorial makes for an interesting issue each time a new one arrives. Love it.
Click here to shop the incredible selection in the Magazine Subscription Center at Amazon.com
I mention Target for lots of reasons of course their mix of hip, well designed yet useful products places them at the top of my list so I give and ask for gift cards from them. I love going to Target for my shopping and its where I go about once a month to buy all sorts of things to run my house, life and business. I have dogs so I'm the guy with the 16-pack of Brawny paper towels in the bottom of his cart. But I love snaking through the aisles with my cart and checking out what I need and whatever else pops into my view. I also love checking out the end-cap merchandise that has been marked down. Last time we were there we found this really cool dinner plates in a great color and they cost all of 44 cents per plate. Style and value. Yes, I'll gladly take a gift card from Target.
I enjoy shopping in their online store both their own and their store within Amazon.com. Also, you can use their gift cards in the store and online so that's great if someone likes Target but doesn't have a store where they live, they can shop online and still redeem their gift card.
Gift cards from the following are always appreciated:
AA.com Hilton Sephora
Amazon.com Hyatt SONY
Apple, Inc. Home Depot Spa Finder
Atlantis, Paradise Island Hotels.com Target
Banana Republic iTunes Ticketmaster
Barnes & Noble Kayak Travelocity
Best Buy Kimpton Hotels United Airlines
bloomingdale’s Legal Seafood Wal-mart
Cabela's Macy’s
Circuit City Marriott
Continental Airlines NetFlix
Dean & Deluca Nordstrom
Delta Airlines Northwest Airlines
Dillard's Saks Fifth Avenue
Four Seasons Hotels & Resorts Old Navy
Gap Priceline
Another great gift is a magazine subscription. It helps to know the person but again if you know anything about them you can select a publication for that topic, assuming it exists of course. For friends who like design and architecture I've given subscriptions to DWELL magazine. I love Architectural Digest but this is really great semi-new publication that tends to focus on modern design. Beautiful photography along with quality editorial makes for an interesting issue each time a new one arrives. Love it.
Click here to shop the incredible selection in the Magazine Subscription Center at Amazon.com
|
Do We Like This Widget?
12/23/2007 15:22
I selected these as I thought they'd be interesting
and useful to you. I would love comments so please
take a moment and post yours here. There's a comments
link below the post, click it and fill out the form
that pops up. That's it. Everybody wins. Your
comments help me to adapt the website wherever
possible so my readers enjoy their time here at
blogMerit.com. Enjoy the day.
blogMerit.com - Hot Topics...
11/30/2007 11:51
I
have so many things buzzing in my head this morning I
decided to just start writing and see where the ride
takes us. This post will therefore have a rambling
quality but I'll do my best to stay on point long
enough to make my point. Wow I sound like a wing-nut.
The title of the post is the sidebar here at
blogMerit.com
is
giving me fits (so are some other aspects of the
rebuild) but right now I'm focusing on the
sidebar, hence the posting title. Please bare with
me while work through the kinks on the final phase
of our brand new blogMerit.com.
So, I'm laughing this morning, which is actually a normal day for me. Lots of laughter. I live and work in my home, and its home occupied by creative people writer and artist. Living and working at home creates an environment of opportunities. Open, critical thinking, I'm on a constant question open my mind and continue learning and growing because in this environment I'm capable of creating so much for myself and my dogs. We live in a society that has us chasing income instead of creating it. I have a lot to say on this topic because it continues to come up in conversations with friends, family and professional contacts. Fascinating topic to me for a myriad of reasons. But I think that point will be shared via a separate post where I'll share a story and my thoughts on a solution.
So, let's talk about holiday shopping. What are the hot items or hot toys this shopping season? I'm aware of the popularity and scarcity of one item the Nintendo Wii game system. In fact one the reasons I'm laughing this morning is because I've joined a message thread at Amazon.com whereby the posters think they're being ripped off. Let me give you some background. Basically, you should be able to get the Nintendo Wii system for around $250.00. Stores like Target, Wal-mart, Sears, K-mart would sell around that price and they do really well even with limits on how many people can buy. Most stores aren't letting you buy more than two sets. Well, people are buying or bought their two units and resold them on eBay or Amazon.com for a profit. We live in a free market economy so I personally don't have a problem with this. The reason why is simple you don't have to pay or buy anything. Remember, Free Market economy the operative word being free, you're free to choice NOT to buy the item and be patient and not wait.
Perhaps if fewer people defined themselves via their ability to acquire or buy stuff. In other words, don't buy into the bullshit including the bullshit of having to get the toy because your child wants it. I know we want to give the gifts that our children want but we never lack quality items to select for gifts. So what do you do, well instead of whining you need to own your part of this dynamic you'd like to think you're a victim of and start making different choices. Be resourceful and you'll find a creative solution that might actually provide more than some bogus gift obligation.
I say start with finding your joy. Stop what you're doing and really think about what brings you joy. Its yours, own it and become empowered. Jump off the hamster wheel and start making healthier choices for yourself first. Grow and nurture yourself first because once you're empowered you're in position to help your friends and family, co-workers and so on.
I realize it's frustrating trying to run around sourcing all these business and personal gifts. Remind yourself of effective the internet is and stick with it. I've been 'on the net' since the 1990s and I've only learned more become more productive and informed. As a writer the need for quality research is open ended and the internet places the world literally at my fingertips for the majority of my research. In addition to being a very powerful informational tool its also a distribution channel (they ship you the item to your home or office per your instruction) remembering this piece and really leveraging the power of the internet you can make a lot of your tasks more time effective for you. Luckily, I realized that early on because don't we all have other things that we want and need to be doing? It's not like our list is ever truly finished the next section of the LIST is sitting there waiting for you to notice it and the cycle remains intact. Stop and pause consider is this still my best option or best practice?
Back to the crazy holiday shopping period. I'd like to know what the HOT items are this season and except of the popularity of the Nintendo Wii game system nothing else has risen to that status. Please post comments and share your experience so we can open this up to a constructive dialog. If I have solutions I'll get them posted ASAP to facilitate. For example, I was hoping to be able to include a link to the company that sold me my Nintendo Wii which arrived 3 days ago but it's no longer a deal. They've raised their price to $499.00 and I don't blame them. It's a seller's market when you have a white hot in demand item. I would buy from them again it shipped within a few days of the order being placed and arrived as described, brand new. I only paid $349.00 but $499.00 is no deal but want or need one the web page states they have them in stock.
Sorry for the rambling post I'll double-back and edit this post with a clearer head. Enjoy the day.
Stay warm, cool or dry whatever the case may be. Again, please share what's hard to find. What you're buying. What you're still looking for that's hard to find. Or just a question maybe one of us can help.
So, I'm laughing this morning, which is actually a normal day for me. Lots of laughter. I live and work in my home, and its home occupied by creative people writer and artist. Living and working at home creates an environment of opportunities. Open, critical thinking, I'm on a constant question open my mind and continue learning and growing because in this environment I'm capable of creating so much for myself and my dogs. We live in a society that has us chasing income instead of creating it. I have a lot to say on this topic because it continues to come up in conversations with friends, family and professional contacts. Fascinating topic to me for a myriad of reasons. But I think that point will be shared via a separate post where I'll share a story and my thoughts on a solution.
So, let's talk about holiday shopping. What are the hot items or hot toys this shopping season? I'm aware of the popularity and scarcity of one item the Nintendo Wii game system. In fact one the reasons I'm laughing this morning is because I've joined a message thread at Amazon.com whereby the posters think they're being ripped off. Let me give you some background. Basically, you should be able to get the Nintendo Wii system for around $250.00. Stores like Target, Wal-mart, Sears, K-mart would sell around that price and they do really well even with limits on how many people can buy. Most stores aren't letting you buy more than two sets. Well, people are buying or bought their two units and resold them on eBay or Amazon.com for a profit. We live in a free market economy so I personally don't have a problem with this. The reason why is simple you don't have to pay or buy anything. Remember, Free Market economy the operative word being free, you're free to choice NOT to buy the item and be patient and not wait.
Perhaps if fewer people defined themselves via their ability to acquire or buy stuff. In other words, don't buy into the bullshit including the bullshit of having to get the toy because your child wants it. I know we want to give the gifts that our children want but we never lack quality items to select for gifts. So what do you do, well instead of whining you need to own your part of this dynamic you'd like to think you're a victim of and start making different choices. Be resourceful and you'll find a creative solution that might actually provide more than some bogus gift obligation.
I say start with finding your joy. Stop what you're doing and really think about what brings you joy. Its yours, own it and become empowered. Jump off the hamster wheel and start making healthier choices for yourself first. Grow and nurture yourself first because once you're empowered you're in position to help your friends and family, co-workers and so on.
I realize it's frustrating trying to run around sourcing all these business and personal gifts. Remind yourself of effective the internet is and stick with it. I've been 'on the net' since the 1990s and I've only learned more become more productive and informed. As a writer the need for quality research is open ended and the internet places the world literally at my fingertips for the majority of my research. In addition to being a very powerful informational tool its also a distribution channel (they ship you the item to your home or office per your instruction) remembering this piece and really leveraging the power of the internet you can make a lot of your tasks more time effective for you. Luckily, I realized that early on because don't we all have other things that we want and need to be doing? It's not like our list is ever truly finished the next section of the LIST is sitting there waiting for you to notice it and the cycle remains intact. Stop and pause consider is this still my best option or best practice?
Back to the crazy holiday shopping period. I'd like to know what the HOT items are this season and except of the popularity of the Nintendo Wii game system nothing else has risen to that status. Please post comments and share your experience so we can open this up to a constructive dialog. If I have solutions I'll get them posted ASAP to facilitate. For example, I was hoping to be able to include a link to the company that sold me my Nintendo Wii which arrived 3 days ago but it's no longer a deal. They've raised their price to $499.00 and I don't blame them. It's a seller's market when you have a white hot in demand item. I would buy from them again it shipped within a few days of the order being placed and arrived as described, brand new. I only paid $349.00 but $499.00 is no deal but want or need one the web page states they have them in stock.
Sorry for the rambling post I'll double-back and edit this post with a clearer head. Enjoy the day.
Stay warm, cool or dry whatever the case may be. Again, please share what's hard to find. What you're buying. What you're still looking for that's hard to find. Or just a question maybe one of us can help.
Gift Cards - photo gift card
11/28/2007 13:08
download your photo and include it into the gift card
which makes in more personal. Grand kids, whatever
makes sense. photo. of a trip you took together. In
short, a memory as a digital image included as an
element of the gift card that arrives with your gift
card.
This is a new e-gift card apparently available from Macy's. I'll post a link as soon as I locate it.
I love gift cards, for example I have a lot of friends who love Target and shop there all the time. Well, giving them a gift card is very thoughtful because they shop there already and love it so it's something they'll enjoy. From my perspective when I'm given a gift card its always somewhere I shop or can for a specialty item I'm looking for. Point is the recepeinet gets to buy exactly what he or she wants.
I really like the nice graphics on both the cyber and brick and mortar e-cards. I love them and my friends and family do too.
This is a new e-gift card apparently available from Macy's. I'll post a link as soon as I locate it.
I love gift cards, for example I have a lot of friends who love Target and shop there all the time. Well, giving them a gift card is very thoughtful because they shop there already and love it so it's something they'll enjoy. From my perspective when I'm given a gift card its always somewhere I shop or can for a specialty item I'm looking for. Point is the recepeinet gets to buy exactly what he or she wants.
I really like the nice graphics on both the cyber and brick and mortar e-cards. I love them and my friends and family do too.
It's becoming harder and harder to sit on my hands & not buy an iPhone...
08/25/2007 17:08
I want an
Apple iPhone so bad I can barely stand it. Sometimes
I'm what the industry calls an 'early adopter' and
sometimes I wait, continue my research and purchase
later or not at all depending upon how things pan
out. It's especially difficult to for me to wait
because I'm already an AT&T Wireless customer so
it would be a pretty seamless transaction but my
purchase trigger finger needs to be told no, wait
because my intuition is telling me to hold off on
purchasing for now.
[INSERT THE CODE FOR THE IPHONE HERE]
See I think Apple has a trick up their sleeve and we're going to see another iPhone model in times for the 2007 holiday shopping season. I don't know why I think this, but I do. Don't quote me on this because it's pure speculation on my part. Anyway, for those of you who'd like to buy it now or if you'd like more information I've included links throughout this post and the iPhone photograph is a link to more info. or purchase too. Enjoy.
[INSERT THE CODE FOR THE IPHONE HERE]
See I think Apple has a trick up their sleeve and we're going to see another iPhone model in times for the 2007 holiday shopping season. I don't know why I think this, but I do. Don't quote me on this because it's pure speculation on my part. Anyway, for those of you who'd like to buy it now or if you'd like more information I've included links throughout this post and the iPhone photograph is a link to more info. or purchase too. Enjoy.
Nordstrom's Anniversary Sale Ends Soon - Hurry!
08/24/2007 13:25
Are Affiliate Commissions Getting Smaller?
08/10/2007 17:56
So, has anyone else noticed some affiliate
commissions being reduced, in some cases by 50%? Now,
the rates have trended lower for higher ticket items
like computer and electronics but now I'm seeing that
commissions that were a meager 2% have been reduced
to 1%. Is it me or is sending a message to marketing
affiliates that we're not needed or valued but we'll
throw you a tiny bone for the sale? I tend to promote
products that I'm personally using which is why my
reviews tend to generate notice with some converting
to sales. I share my story and my review of the
product or service and the rest happens as people
pick up the article/review while searching Google or
elsewhere. Oh, just to provide some perspective, say
your referred customer spends $100.00 you've made all
of $1.00 [volume is key in retail, I guess] Yikes
makes me wonder if I should bother, the bummer is
we're talking about my favorite high-tech. companies.
I'd love to hear back from others, share your story,
opinion, etc. I’ve been an affiliate marketer from
the beginning. I joined Amazon’s program when it
began along time ago; their associates program is
still the best on the internet; all in, control
panel, commissions structure, et al. Also, what’s
with the harrassing emails from ‘affiliate mangers’
telling me I’m not doing enough to promote their
brand and that giving me monthly targets, this is BS.
I have traffic but people aren’t converting (I have
no control over where or even if, the consumer will
decide to buy. The consumer has more purchase
opportunities than ever before and more ways to
conduct research to facilitate making more informed
purchase decisions. Content is king, it’s not just
about traffic, I learned that years ago and internet
customers are in a unique sub-set of their own. I’ll
stop for now because I didn’t intend for this become
a rant. Enjoy the day.
Trouble In Paraside - AT&T Dumps iPhone from...
08/07/2007 18:05
It will be interesting to watch this deal as we move
forward. The rumor is that it's a five year,
exclusive deal for
AT&T
to sell
Apple's iPhone
but it's known that Apple extracted unprecedented
deal terms from
AT&T
not the least of which is a revenue share based upon
a percentage of the monthly plan fee the
iPhone
customer signs up for. This will be fun to watch as
Apple develops what we know will be a line of
iPhones
beyond the first model.
[insert code banner for iphone]
[insert code banner for iphone]
So I watch all this fantastic programming...
07/31/2007 13:04
...on a SONY HDTV. We have the 50" SONY SXRD high
definition rear projection (not the bulky old style
this TV is only 18 inches deep. We purchased it last
fall from Amazon.com and they shipped it to our door
FREE SHIPPING and their price was incredible. The
picture is 1080p, or 1080i the TV switches to
whatever setting it reads from the content when you
change channels. I really love this HDTV obviously I
have a history with SONY TVs, I have owned SONY
Trinitrons over the years. Watching native HD
programming like the VOOM Network channels or FOOD
NETWORK HD the color and detail still stops me in my
tracks and I work in Hollywood so I'm used to the
best quality audio and video. We're really enjoying
having HDTV at home. I dumped our cable company in
favor of DISH NETWORK because they have more HD
channels than any other provider right now that
includes cable tv companies and DirecTV. I love those
VOOM Network channels, more on that in a separate
post. This signal from DISH NETWORK is so clean and
sharp and vibrant compared to the mushy signal from
our local cable TV company. Even the standard
definition (SD) programming is better from DISH
NETWORK and looks amazing on our SONY SXRD HDTV. In a
future post I'll tell you about this really cool SONY
DVD player I have hooked up to our new HDTV...
