Gift Baskets - The Straight Goods by Don Richardson

There are several reasons why gift baskets make such an ideal gift but the main reason. is their versatility. What other gift can contain assorted gourmet foods and snacks such as fine cheeses like Camembert, Brie, etc., chocolates, truffles, assorted dips, sauces, ethnic favorites, nuts, crackers, fruit either in season or exotic, assorted beverages such as wines, liqueurs, fine scotch, coffees, teas, soft drinks, bottled water, etc.. Say nothing of bath & body products often suited for the spa. Clothing, toys, needed accessories, for a newborn baby or youngster or items appropriate for a birthday, anniversary, retirement or for such occasions as corporate Christmas gifts, kosher for Jewish events, Valentines Day, Mother's and Father's Day, administrative Assistants, secretaries, entire offices, sympathy or bereavement. Well, by now you can appreciate their dexterity. Indeed, even the Academy Awards gifts them to their Oscar presenters and they contain such things as Ipods, laptops, jewelry, you name it and in it can go! Certainly, too, they can take on a look suited to the occasion, recipients or senders with varying cello wraps, ribbons and bows as well as various unique and specific adornments and , of course, containers from a small coffee mug to the pasta colander to plastic lawn chairs, even other larger the more representative such as a hubcap to a recipient having automotive interest or from the car dealer to a car purchaser.


Another good reason is that they can match most all budgets, from the very small to the very large!


The short story is that they are versatile in container, contents, appearance, value and availability. The perfect gift combination!


Gift Baskets . . . and getting them there!


There are many factors that can effect how gift baskets get to their recipients and certainly timing is usually the first concern. Often, the nature of an event can dictate the speed with which the basket needs be delivered. If the occasion is date specific, such as an anniversary, birthday or other similar occasion, how much time and money the sender has can affect the timeliness. Also, the location of the recipient is a factor. Are they in the same city as the sender or perhaps across the country or, even across the world? Quite simply, the shorter the time and the longer the distance usually determines the cost of getting it there. Additionally, in the case of shipping, there are other issues that effect cost such as protective packaging to prevent shipping damage or the affects of climate and varying temperature. In fact, shipping limits your choices of gift baskets and their delivery as well, for example, fruit baskets don't ship at all well, let alone in winter, nor chocolate in the summer and wine bottles can break Also, shipped gift baskets can't go to hospitals and other similar destinations. The risk of in-transit damage may even necessitate taking out insurance! No doubt about it, shipping becomes an expensive, even risky, mode of delivery, say nothing of those times when it simply gets lost in the carriers' complex system, never to get there on time, perhaps even at all! Certainly too, with fuel prices sky high as they are today, carriers are applying surcharges making it even more expensive. Of concern, too, is that as the internet makes products available for shipping here, there and everywhere, demand increases for fuel also driving prices even higher and what about the environmental consequences? Surely burning more fossil fuels isn't going to help us overcome global warming and the out of control affects, on us all!


Crossing international borders can also complicate the shipping of gift baskets and sometimes raise the cost should customs clearance require a broker's involvement.Furthermore, since 911, international borders have become leery of packages and often, the boxed gift basket gets such close scrutiny as to leave it anything but a gift basket in the end, and when it finally makes it way to the recipient, after the resulting time delay. Indeed, some items may even be removed should they violate various limitations such as agricultural, etc.


Local delivery, of course, is much less costly than shipping, especially if it needs be there quickly, and a small courier car is a whole lot easier on our environment than fleets of transport trucks and aircraft. Lastly, and also of worthy consideration, your chosen gift basket will be presented to your recipient as an attractive gift basket, not a scuffed up shipping container!


Choosing a reputable gift basket provider!


Nowadays, especially with the internet growing in leaps and bounds, people can often simply access a basket provider in the city of destination, order and have it delivered, and on short notice, if necessary. The problem with this approach often is finding a reputable local provider!


Many have websites offering a graphic picture of their designs, often descriptive and with prices indicated. This, however, doesn't necessarily tell all because internet websites are of design and can be made to look one way and, in realty, the operator and their products, can be otherwise. In fact, for example, there are many websites now dedicated to providing gift baskets to the consumer with the focus on simply having your basket shipped to its destination. Unfortunately, these can sometimes be merely an individual, computer equipped, having had a website provided, but not really in the gift basket business at all, simply fronting for a "drop-shipper", and on a commission. You order from them and your basket gets shipped from a factory warehouse somewhere "out there"! This doesn't mean the products aren't of a good quality or value but it can mean that if you are, for whatever reason, unhappy or dissatisfied, it might become something of an issue and, again, with it comes the risks associated to shipping, as covered above. A real concern could be a basket containing consumable products like foods and beverages. Not knowing just when, where and under what conditions, the food and beverage contents are prepared can be something of a risk in itself. These baskets are sometimes referred to, in the industry, as "mofaalas", short for "months old, factory assembled, all look alike"! This is often the variety available in some of the so called "big box" outlets, offered in August, perhaps prepared in late June or July, and ultimately for gift giving 3-4 months later, for Christmas! .That said, often too, they can be very attractive and of good value! It's just that differentiating one from the other is the problem!


Sometimes, too, gift baskets can be a hobby of the provider, not necessarily a business! In many instances, they can be of excellent design however, the contents are likely purchased at retail prices as opposed to from an industry wholesaler, resulting in a basket of considerably less value after they mark up already marked up ingredient products! Sometimes too, value aside, they can contain products available everyday from a supermarket which hardly makes them very original or distinctive!


Unfortunately, all too often, internet purchasers are confronted with an online directory, sometimes that of a telephone service, listing numerous local providers with no real information about them other than phone number, and sometimes, not even an address.. Consumers are left wondering, is it their hobby, are they new to the business or a seasoned veteran, do they buy retail or wholesale, have they a guarantee, just how reliable are they and what am I to do if they fall short of my expectations?


Is there a better way?


There appears to be!


Online Gift Baskets is the industry's "wire service style" international network that enables discerning gift basket purchasers to "shop globally but buy locally". Quite simply, a consumer needing a gift basket delivered on short notice, such as overnight for next business day arrival (sometimes even same day!), can have a gift basket, prepared and hand delivered, locally in the city of destination, by one of their system's "juried" gift basket providers. By "juried" they mean each system provider has been screened with careful consideration given to not only their products, designs and value, but their "business" longevity, operation and reliability. Each operator's gift basket design, description and price, delivery included, appear in their respective cities of delivery, on the Online Gift Baskets website at http://www.onlinegiftbaskets.com.


With Online Gift Baskets (OGB) consumers can choose to truly say goodbye to those non-informative, long and time consuming, internet directory lists, avoid the hobbyists out there, avoid the hazards and costs of shipping, including crossing borders, have their basket freshly prepared and locally hand delivered, in a timely manner and truly as a gift basket. Oh, and, you can express your warmth globally, without that global warming too!


In short, OGB combines everything that makes gift baskets the ideal gift! And, for those looking for the ultimate in a gift basket, when time and cost are of a lesser concern, the designs of each of their country's operators' are available for cross country shipping, usually for arrival in from 2-7 business days!


In the end, when you order with Online Gift Baskets, you can take comfort in that you're not a customer of a distanced operator knowing that you may never order from them again, but instead the customer of Online Gift Baskets who look beyond your patronage today with the hope that they will enjoy your business tomorrow, no matter when and where your gift baskets are going!


Who says you can't have it all?

About the Author
A long time business man and marketing consultant, Mr. Richardson oversees the operation of a unique service to gift basket consumers and gift basket operators in the gift basket industry.