Gift Credit Cards – Read the Fine Print

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Gift credit cards can be useful and much-appreciated gifts, but it is important to understand what they are and how they work, and to check the terms and conditions of your particular card. Each issuer has different fine print relating to their cards, and some of the clauses in the fine print can be costly.

What Are Gift Credit Cards?

A gift credit card is actually not a credit card in the traditional sense of the word. A holder of a traditional credit card makes purchases on credit, and pays the bill later, when it falls due. A gift credit card is a stored value card, or debit card. A certain amount of money is deposited into the card by the purchaser at the time the card is issued, and only that amount of money may be spent using the card.

If you think about the old-fashioned paper gift certificate still issued by many major retailers, you will have a more accurate notion of the nature of a gift card than if you think about a credit card in general.

Who Issues Them?

Some retailers have switched from using paper gift certificates to issuing gift credit cards. While these store-specific gift cards have the disadvantage of being limited to use in a particular store, this is offset by the benefit that generally charge lower fees than more general gift cards.

Gift credit cards are issued by major credit card providers, such as Visa, Mastercard, Discover, and American Express, both directly and through banks. Each issuer has their own particular set of terms and conditions.

What Are The Problems?

Some issuers limit gift cards to use within the USA. Others will not allow them to be used for certain purchases, such as air tickets or hotels. American Express will not issue gift cards to the residents of five US states, because, according to American Express, “restrictive legislation” makes it prohibitively expensive to do so.

Gift credit cards issued by Visa and Mastercard can usually be used in most places around the world where Visa and Mastercard are accepted, with the exception in some cases of specific types of purchases. It is very important to read the terms and conditions to make sure you, or the recipient, will be able to make use of the card as you expect.

Other Issues

In some cases, gift cards can be used at ATMs to withdraw cash. Obviously, this is not the case with store-specific gift cards, and it is not available as an option in all cases, even with Visa and Mastercard gift cards. If you wish to have this option available, you will need to research carefully before choosing your card.

Check your terms and conditions to understand the fees payable. In most cases, it is a costly mistake to keep a balance on your gift card for more than a few months. Most providers have expiry dates on their gift cards, or start charging relatively costly monthly fees after a particular time period has passed. In some cases, the balance on the card at the expiry date is simply lost. In other cases, the card issuer will send you balance by check – less an account closing fee and a check drawing fee which can add up to $30 or thereabouts, and often consume the balance completely anyway.

If you have chosen the right gift credit card, you will be able to give a gift which is as flexible as cash, but as personalised as a gift certificate. If you have received a gift credit card, you have no choice about the issuer, so make sure you read the fine print, so you can avoid any unwanted fees or complications.

Food Delivery Choices

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There is no doubt that when it comes to eating, most of us would prefer not to have to cook. Because of that, you may want to take a few minutes to consider food delivery as an option. From pizza to Thai food, there are plenty of options that are going to be available to you that can certainly help you get the meal you need, without having to step outside of your home.

In fact, what many people find is that the speed that they can receive a hot cooked meal and the healthy use of vegetables and fresh meats in Thai food can really make food delivery one of the best ways for them to feed their family. Of course, this can go beyond the home as well. Since many companies will also order out meals, especially when meetings and other events are taking place.

When you are looking at the food delivery choices, you are going to want to ensure that you are getting the best choices available. Your focus should be on items that have some nutritional value and can meet the dietary needs of everyone being ordered for. In many cases, Thai food or even some oriental dishes are going to be the perfect choice since you can have vegetarian options as well as ones that have been prepared with meat. Plus, you are going to find that many of the companies that offer these foods will also provide you with an option for food delivery as well.

If you are new to an area, then you will want to begin the process by asking which food delivery locations will provide you with the highest quality foods available. Since most people in the area are going to have their own personal favorites, there won’t be any doubts about which food items are going to prove to be some good choices for you to pick up as well.

As with any food delivery item, you are going to want to ensure that you only get what you can actually eat. While choices like Thai food can remain fresh and safe to eat when refrigerated properly, they will often not be consumed. That can lead to waste and so you are going to want to ensure that you order what the ground will eat and fill it with all the freshest vegetables and meats that you can find for a well balanced meal.

Remember, there are going to be plenty of options that are going to be available to you in this process. Be sure that you take your time to explore all the different dietary options that you have and begin to choose items that your entire group is going to love. No matter if you are at work or at home, food delivery is going to be a great way for you to have your next meal handled, without having to invest too much time in the process that will mean you can focus on more important items instead.

Social Media: A Must for Fashion Startups to Accelerate Success

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Social media is becoming a bigger and bigger part of every person’s life. 2.7 billion People (almost 40% of the world’s population) are connected to the Internet. In the developed countries, this percentage goes up to 80%. It started as a powerful communication arena for people and now it is becoming a marketing tool for companies.

The traditional means of promotion are now supported by modern means of communication. While it is a new necessity for companies, the right strategy can become an inexpensive and effective marketing channel. The Internet gives an opportunity to reach customers worldwide in no time and sometimes at no cost.

The businesses that perhaps utilize social media the most are those in the fashion industry. It is a vital part of digital and content marketing strategy. A good strategy for a new fashion brand could be a very large part of the reason that it reports success in its first few difficult years. Brands have to do everything they can to stand out from every other company that is fighting for coverage and customers. By having a stellar social media strategy, a start-up can find one way in which they can try to secure their place in a very difficult industry.

• The biggest reason why fashion start-ups need social media is free publicity. What it means for fashion start-ups is visibility. It is incredibly important for fashion brands to be able to show off their assets and products and one of the easiest ways to do this is through the magic of Instagram.

• Connectivity is a huge draw for fashion start-ups as it allows them to build relations with their customers that wouldn’t be possible through an advert on a web page or in a magazine. By having a platform that allows customers to talk directly to them, businesses can benefit as they are able to reach out directly to those people and get them to share news about the products and services of the business.

• Further to this, businesses can gain real insider customer knowledge because they will be able to see what their customers like and don’t like. A company will also begin to get a knack for knowing which type of content their customers like to engage with and at what times of the day they are most responsive.

Running a successful social media as a fashion startup can also help to ensure that businesses above their most fierce competition by listening to their customers and keeping a watchful eye on their competitors.

Start-ups need to look towards this to boost their coverage in sales. Keeping yourself educated and engaged in social media is a great way to become a known quality and can make any startup viable. Building a consistent presence over it for any company is a good start to establishing it as a thought leader. Understanding it and using it well will only make the brand stronger.

All In One Cloth Diapers – The Best of Both Worlds?

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All in one cloth diapers (AIO for short) are a welcome addition to the reusable diaper industry. They are highly favored due to their ease and simplicity of use, and are a huge upgrade from the boring safety-pin prefold diapers of yore. There are many attributes to make these washable diapers the ones to beat…

In 1950, a young wife invented what is believed to be the beginning of the AIO cloth diaper; it was 4-ply, held together by sewn in fasteners and reversible. The AIO of today usually is made of a fitted waterproof outer shell that is sewn together with extra absorbent cloth that acts as the inner layer. They come already fastened with velcro or snaps and have elastic leg openings that keep the leaks at bay. After the baby eliminates his waste, the diaper is removed just like a disposable, but is not thrown into the trash. If there are solids present, they are dumped into the toilet and the diaper is rinsed or spot treated for fecal matter. Urine soaked diapers can be placed into a pail for up to three days (any longer will cause a nasty, stinky bacteria breeding frenzy) or washed with other soiled cloth diapers in a closed, washable bag.

The manufacturers of all in one diapers have sought to make them very fashionable with vibrant colors and prints. Furthermore, each brand brings something different to the table in terms of design. Bumkins has a line with microfiber inserts for extra leakage protection, as do BumGenius. BumGenius also manufactures an organic all in one cloth diaper. Other popular brands include Bummis, Thirsties, Kushies, Kissaluvs, Drybees, and GroVia.

Like with any cloth diapers, the start-up costs of $200-300 can be daunting. However, that is still less expensive than the entire cost of buying disposables from newborn to toddler. Deals can be found at diaper swaps (check your classifieds), mom groups, garage sales, thrift stores, and local and internet based classifieds.

Lastly, all in one cloth diapers are great for the environment! Over 3 million tons of disposable diapers take up precious landfill space every year. While the regular disposable is barely degrading in the dirt, the AIO is freshly washed and basking in the sun to be used for another day!