How to Buy Gifts for Teens

Teenagers will tell you the perfect gift is cash. Teens appreciate the freedom cash gives to make their own purchases. If cash is not your idea of the perfect gift, shopping for teenagers becomes difficult. Teen trends change as frequently as the weather and the "hot" gift of today may be passé tomorrow. Successfully buying gifts for teens can be accomplished by following a few tried and true methods.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

1. Ask your teenager what gift he wants. Buy the specific brand or model number of the item suggested. Teens are very brand conscious and a substitute brand will not suffice.
   
   

2. Allow teens to shop for other teens. A sibling or teen cousin has a much better idea of what is the current "must have" item in the teen world than even the "coolest" adult.
   
   

3. Consider gift cards that allow your teen to purchase items from a variety of stores. Many malls sell gift cards that are redeemable at a variety of stores.
   
   

4. Reflect on your teenager's school sport or if he has a favorite college or professional team. A team sweatshirt or tee shirt is always a good teen gift purchase.

5. Buy a gift that will grow over the years, such as a U.S. Savings Bond or a savings account in the teenager's own name.
   
   

6. Purchase gifts that can provide you with gift options for years to come. A charm bracelet allows you to purchase charms for every special occasion. A music collection never needs to stop growing.
   

7. Think about the occasion for which you are buying your teen a gift. Religious gifts are always appreciated and appropriate at religious occasions.

Resources

• Visit gifts.com for more information.
• The giftingresource.com offers gift ideas.

[rtolmach]

on 7/28/2007 Many of us don’t want another vase or picture frame. So why not a gift to change the world?


A new nonprofit website, http://www.ChangingThePresent.org lets you choose exactly what you want to accomplish: preserve an acre of the rainforest, provide books for children, fund an hour of cancer research, etc. There are thousands of donation opportunities from hundreds of leading nonprofits. You’re sure to find something that moves you.


Wish lists and registries let us share our passions with others and ensure the perfect gift. Beautiful, personalized greeting cards include a photo and description of the gift you gave.


ChangingThePresent.org is the website of a 501c3 nonprofit, so all of your money, less only a transaction fee of 3% and 30 cents to cover the credit card fee, goes to the nonprofit you choose to support.


http://www.ChangingThePresent.org