And Slaters Go Plop

Earlier in the year my wife and I went along and saw Tim Minchin who is our new favourite comedian. This is my new favourite Christmas single.

Why do we buy them? We hand over $50 that could otherwise be used anywhere you like in exchange for a voucher worth $50 that can only be used at certain shops.

On a purely logical level $50 in cash is a far greater gift to give simply because it can be redeemed anywhere you like. The problem is that giving cash as a present is about as lazy as can be. When you buy someone a voucher you are saying that at least you made an effort.

You would think that shops would give you slightly more incentive to buy vouchers because at least then they’ve got a guaranteed customer (and maybe even a few unredeemed vouchers too, if they are lucky). Why don’t they sell $50 vouchers for $45? Surely they could find some way around people buying vouchers and immediately using them? How about a month’s delay before being able to redeem them to keep this in check?

Anyway. Happy Christmas and bah humbug.