Do you find yourself never having any change easily to get to without digging to the bottom of your purse? I always think about giving to the Salvation Army when leaving stores but never have anything easy to get to. Try using the mini M&M’s container to store your quarters. This is an easy way to store it, and makes it fun for the children. If you have kids get them in the habit of giving. Let each one of them give a quarter when leaving. On the way home you can talk about where the money is going and how it helps. For more ideas on ways you can give back, visit the From Santa Blog.
One of the hot new toys this year in Monty Rex, an interactive plush dinosaur brought to us by Playskool. He was created for children ages 3 to 6, but I think even older children will love playing with him. This prehistoric toy will even dance to music that comes along with him. Watch this video to see what all Monty Rex can do.
It’s often difficult to find small, inexpensive toys to use as stocking stuffers or small gifts for children. This year, several new toys fit the bill and some are fitting for boys and girls alike.
One unisex appropriate toy that is hot for this Christmas is the Zhu Zhu Pets hamsters and play sets. The hamsters cost around $10 a piece, but the accessories and play sets run a bit more. These toys look cute, run around almost like a real hamster, and are adored by both girls and boys.
For boys, LEGO offers many toys and sets including the popular Bionicle figures. The toys are popular with a large age range—they are marketed to six to 16-year old boys—and they come with a story line that explains each race and its world.
For girls, the Littlest Pet Shop play sets are very popular with girls ages five through 12. The sets include small pets and cases with accessories. The pets range from cows to armadillos and are all wide-eyed and adorable.
All of these toys and more would make welcome gifts for any child or great stocking stuffers from Santa. And for the price, you can afford to buy more than one.
After you choose the perfect toys for your children for Christmas, your next challenge is figuring out how to hide them from the kids until Christmas morning. If you’re running out of creative ideas, check out SantaProof.net. There, Santa’s Helper has some tips on where to hide items from younger kids and older ones, too. You may just come up with a few new spots to hide gifts this year and next.
What kind of toys were kids asking for 40 years ago? Whether you watch it to reminisce or to find out what your parents might have had on their holiday wish lists, this video montage of toys from the 1969 Sears Wish Book is a real “blast from the past.” Enjoy!
If you’re having trouble thinking of the perfect gift for someone, just the thought of heading to the mall to shop for them can be a nightmare. There are some great go-to gifts to be had, though, if you know where to look. Check out the Unique Gifts Online blog to find suggestions for personalized gifts for any recipient, including personalized ornaments, personalized toys, and even clothing.
Our next toy pick for 2009 is the ChixOs Design-A-Luxury Loft. This creative toy is relatively inexpensive and gives kids the control to create their own dolls and customize their luxury loft. There are three interchangeable pieces to each doll, that your child can connect together. Once they have them configured, spray the doll with water and she’ll stay together that way. Just as you put the doll together, you can use PixOs beads to create furniture and accessories for the house. (Judging from the reviews on Toys R Us, you may want to purchase an extra set or two of PixOs beads too.) Once all the building is done, kids can play with the toy just like they would any other dollhouse, so the fun’s not over once the beads are gone. Cute toy, with extra points for creativity!
Last year we had the animatronic pony, creeping people out in the aisles of discount stores everywhere. This year, it’s the Fur-Real Biscuit puppy that will be providing all of the weirdness this Christmas. The puppy is amazingly realistic, just a little slow in his movements, but he listens to commands, takes treats, sits, begs, lies down…pretty technologically advanced. This could be a good alternative if your kids want a real puppy but you know they would never hold up their end of the bargain in taking care of it. This way, if they lose interest, it’s only a toy and no lifetime investment has been made. It’s a little pricey at $180, but when you think about the cost of owning a real dog, it’s a bargain. Check out this video for a demonstration of how it works…pretty cool (even if it’s creepy).
Have your kids outgrown the usual toys and trinkets and become (gasp) teenagers? You may be shuddering at the thought of trying to buy stocking stuffers for such an indecisive and volatile mind, but there are some gifts out there that pretty much any teenager would love. This week, ChristmasStockingStuffers.info is tackling the task of buying stocking stuffers for a teenage boy. Check out their list of gift ideas to keep you from feeling quite so lost!
If you were looking for a particular toy, and saw that it was sold out, but something similar to it was still in stock, would you buy the similar item? According to a recent study conducted by the University of Alberta School of Business, shoppers become more likely to purchase a certain item if they see that a similar item has sold out.
Why is this? The empty shelf gives the sold-out product a certain level of desirability, which “transfers” to the similar product as well. If one product is desirable, then the one that is like it must be desirable too. And if one is sold out, the other will likely be selling out soon, thus creating a sense of urgency and making you want to buy it now instead of later.
Stores can leverage this phenomenon to their advantage if they create an illusion of scarcity. If they make an item appear to be difficult to get, it makes people more likely to buy it on impulse, or immediately after it comes out, because it’s so sought after. I’m sure we can all think of items we’ve suspected of being “falsely” scarce…the Nintendo Wii or the Apple iPhone come to mind, as well as the popular Christmas toys of each holiday season. The harder an item is to find, the more our kids just have to have it.
When customers know that there are limited supplies of an item left, they are more likely to buy “now” because they know it may not be in stock later. How do empty shelves affect your own holiday shopping? Do they make you want to buy a similar product just because one is sold out and must be popular? Or would you rather wait until the other product is back in stock and you’re ready to buy?