Check out the probable lower level of tips for service providers during the holidays.

Chalk up tips for cleaning people, school teachers, barbers, mail carriers and others as another probable victim of the weak U.S. economy, according to a new poll conducted by Consumer Reports magazine.  

The magazine polled Americans about their tipping habits during the 2008 holidays and again in October and found 26 percent of Americans who usually tip or give a gift to a service provider said they would spend less this holiday season. Just 6 percent planed to spend more.

“Families are looking for ways to balance their financial concerns with the need to thank people who have helped them during the year,” Tobie Stanger, senior editor at Consumer Reports, said in a statement. “This year, tipping is more of a challenge than ever, but CR’s survey shows that people are still trying to do it, for the most part.”

The average value of tips (i.e. some were gifts instead of cash or gift cards) varied by occupation, with a cleaning person at $50, a child’s teacher and a hairdresser at $20, and a manicurist at $10, according to Consumer Reports.

Some readers told the magazine they plan to still say thanks with a card or homemade gift.

Also in the basket:

Food the focus as Wal-Mart starts holiday giving

Kraft quarterly results could make a case to Cadbury

ADM profit soars past Wall Street estimates

Polo 2nd-qtr profit tops Street view

Walgreen October sales up a bit more than expected

Energizer quarterly profit falls

(Reuters photo)

Check out who is shopping early for Christmas.
 
U.S. consumer are, according to a new Accenture survey, which showed that 69 percent of shoppers plan to do the bulk of their holiday shopping by Dec. 7.  That’s up from 60 percent a year earlier.
 
More than half (52 percent), plan to shop on Black Friday (the day after Thanksgiving), up from 42 percent last year.
 
The game of chicken between retailers and shoppers over discounts may be more intense this year after retailers had to practically give the store away in 2008 to clear inventory in the middle of the recession.
 
The vast majority of consumers (86 percent) will not be moved to buy without a discount of at least 20 percent, and a quarter of shoppers will be looking for an aggressive 50 percent discount before they open their wallets, the survey said.
 
“We have seen a ’shift to thrift’ across all income levels during this economic downturn and breaking that habit will be the greatest challenge for retailers this holiday season,” Janet Hoffman, managing director of Accenture’s Retail practice, said in a news release.
 
Gift cards may also come back, with 79 percent of people saying they will give them and 59 percent saying they really want them.
 
Also in the basket:
 
Cadbury’s bumper Q3 puts pressure on suitor Kraft
 
Altria revenue misses estimates
 
P.F. Chang’s profit misses; ups ‘09 outlook

(Reuters photo)

Hey Brian Dunn, CEO of gadget lover's cathedral top electronics retailer Best Buy, what's on your short list of five great bang-for-your-buck devices for this holiday season?
(Thanks to the CNN Money reporter for asking this question at a press conference today)

DUNN: My short list?

* (First), on my personal short list -- a netbook is definitely on my short list - and by the way it's a companion device. It's lightweight, it's small, it's great to take on a quick trip.
* (Second) I think the HD Instinct is a very interesting smartphone. [Mediafile: That's Samsung's Instinct HD]
* (Third) I love my Flip HD camcorder. That's a great piece.
* Four, I really love the Ultra Thin OLED TVs are cool. [Mediafile: Um, cool yes. Bang for Buck? At about $2,000 for an 11-inch screen, let's just leave it at cool and move on. mkay?]
* The fifth one, of course, is a gift card , that I can give to the people I love, so they can get whatever it is they want.

Well played, Brian. Well Played.

Check Out low shopper turnout just before Christmas.

Only 38.7 percent of consumers in a survey were out for some last-minute holiday shopping in the weekend before Christmas — the smallest number in six years, according to the survey conducted by America’s Research Group and UBS.

Traffic was especially weak in the U.S. Northeast and Midwest, which were slammed by winter storms over the weekend. That kept scores of people at home, but those who did venture out seemed to opt for stores that had deep discounts going on.  Wal-Mart Stores, the world’s largest retailer, attracted over two-thirds of consumers, the survey found.

Other results from the survey include:

* 68.5 percent of shoppers are 90 percent or more done with shopping this year, the highest level since 2002.

* A greater number of parents, at 74.8 percent, are finished buying children’s gifts. That’s the highest level since 2003.

*Gift cards as a category are down to 51.5 percent, the lowest level since 2005. Only 11.8 percent of parents said that they bought gift cards for their children this Christmas as there was no “must have” gift. In 2007, that number was 26.3 percent.

Also in the basket:

Emerging market consumers hurting with rest of the world

Wine: Vintage ‘08? A mixed case of economy and ecology

Wal-Mart Chile bid for D&S seen successful

A not-so-jolly season for eBay - WSJ

(Photo/Reuters)

Check Out the tough love consumers are doling out to retailers.

Not only are they thinking twice about shopping, consumers are also losing faith in gift cards, according to the America’s Research Group/UBS 2008 Christmas survey.

While such cards were among the top gifts for holiday 2007, consumers this year are worried that stores could slip into bankruptcy and leave gift card recipients out in the cold.

Of consumers who will not do their regular gift card buying this year, 64.4 percent said they will gift money instead.

And if you got a gift card last year, don’t be too sure you’re going to see a present coming your way this Christmas. More than a third of the people in the group mentioned above said it’s possible they will give nothing at all.

While 22.8 percent of Americans have already seen job cuts at their workplace, 31.8 percent expect the axe to drop in the future, according to the survey, which polled 1,000 adults aged 20 to 59.

And the thought of their debt load is not giving them a warm, fuzzy feeling either. More than half of those surveyed said they are feeling some pressure from their debt, while 21.8 percent said they felt it bearing down on them.

About 57.9 percent of those pressured by debt are going to spend less this Christmas due to credit concerns.

“Consumers have snapped shut their wallets this year and it’s difficult to find a bright spot for the Christmas shopping season,” said Britt Beemer, chairman of ARG.

But if you are a retailer and come out guns blazing with deep discounts, there is a chance you will snag some sales. Nearly 90 percent of surveyed shoppers said they are swayed at some level by discounts and sales, while 84 percent admitted they are more sales-driven now than three to five years ago.

Also in the basket:

PepsiCo stands by outlook, to outline 2009 plans

Debt protection costs on Macy’s, Limited surge

Wal-Mart in wind energy deal with Duke Energy

Kohl’s to offer wider price cuts for holidays

Barnes & Noble loss more than expected, shares fall

US weekly jobless claims surge to 16-year high

(Photo/Reuters)

Feeling guilty about giving an uninspired gift card in this uninspired holiday season? How about a little pizzazz?

Amazon.com is dressing up its electronic gift cards this year, partnering with HDGreetings, which makes animated, high definition e-cards.

 That means an Amazon gift card this season can include your own photos, text, or music.
    
“This is definitely a step up for us in terms of the personalized content,” said Michal Geller, Amazon’s director of consumer gift cards.
    
Experts have been predicting that the once-hot holiday gift card market will be down this year, given the flood of bargains shoppers can find in stores. 
    
The National Retail Federation predicted this week that sales would fall 6 percent from last year’s levels and found that gift card shoppers planned to spend less on the cards.
    
But Amazon’s Geller said the company was “relatively bullish” on the prospect for gift cards this year, saying that as yet, he had noticed no behavior changes in its card purchasers. 
    
HDGreetings CEO Jennifer Sharp said it can take hours of work and cost up to $20,000 to produce each holiday animated card on offer at HDGreetings.
   
But it takes only a few seconds to personalize the cards, inserting photos of the gift giver or friends directly into a 3D winter wonderland. 
    
Moreover, the animated greeting can also be viewed on the iPhone, because HDGreetings’ platform is player-neutral.

Image courtesy of HDGreetings

Holiday gift cards are feeling a lot less like the gift that keeps on giving.

Over the past few years, gift card popularity exploded and retailers rushed to display new merchandise the day after Christmas, hoping to attract shoppers flush with new cards.

Retailers could count on consumers to splurge on full-priced merchandise or spend all the money on the card, plus a few dollars more.

But as shoppers have witness a slew of retail bankruptcies this year (Sharper Image, Linens N Things, Mervyn’s, Circuit City), they are showing some reluctance toward buying the cards as gifts for friends and relatives.

A survey by America’s Research Group conducted for Reuters found that 43.2 percent of respondents said they will give gift cards less often this year because they worry that those cards would be worthless if a retailer files for bankruptcy.

Additionally, with retailers already rolling out tremendous discounts to entice consumers to spend their limited dollars, shoppers may find they can buy presents this year for less than the amount they were planning to spend on a gift card.

“You’d rather buy a $75 sweater for $30, than a $50 gift card,” said NRF spokeswoman Ellen Davis.

Roughly 10 percent of sales during the November-December holiday season happen the week after Christmas, according to the National Retail Federation. But weaker gift card demand could make ringing up those sales, in an environment where shoppers are already loathe to spend, an even bigger challenge.

(Photo: Reuters)