5 Ways in Which 'Add to Gift List' is as Powerful as 'Add to Cart' for E-Commerce Sites

At its core, a gift list is designed to make it easy to respect the values of the recipient or receiver. Unlike a wish list, it's always shareable and shoppable and, consequently, a sales and revenue generator for online stores. Furthermore, the ecosystem for a gift list is open, not exclusive to a single retailer, and therefore truly universal, so that shoppers can literally add products to their list from any store, anywhere.

Here are five ways in which a gift list can be essential for small e-commerce retailers to increase their share of the gifting market:

1. Gets You in the Game

The size of the gifting market is estimated at over $400 billion, and gift lists connect the dots between what we want, where we want to get it, and who we share it with, just in one click. Without offering it as a tool for shoppers to ask their friends and family what they want, your store is at a disadvantage. According to a Shopify store owner who recently activated their gift list solution, “[...] having a universal gift list gives us a chance to compete with e-commerce giants like Amazon.com. If local shoppers can share their lists with friends and family, they'll feel confident buying from us knowing it's exactly what the recipient wants.”

2. Creates Engagement Opportunities Beyond Milestone Events

Gifting is a year-round business and goes beyond milestone events, such as baby showers or weddings, to recurring celebrations like birthdays, anniversaries and holidays. This gives you more opportunities to stay top of mind with your customers: more occasions, more frequency, and more products.

In a recent article, Pinterest highlighted the importance for marketers to plan for multiple moments and opportunities to maximize performance. In fact, “In 2021, Pinterest advertisers that activated across multiple moments, especially for the holiday season, saw a 4x increase in conversion rates than those that only activated for Christmas. In addition to engaging in larger gifting occasions, it's important to find ways to stay connected with shoppers during more intimate and micro moments as the last two years have forced people to change the way they celebrate."

3. Provides the Best Pull Marketing Approach in Town

It's estimated that 71 percent of customers prefer pull marketing strategies to push marketing tactics. While pull marketing efforts are considered less intrusive and lend themselves to discovery, they take longer to drive impact. Gift lists turn customers into advocates for your brand and can increase your website’s reach quickly and efficiently. In fact, data from MyRegistry.com, the authority on the gifting market, shows that shoppers who create gift lists or registries share it, on average, with seven to eight friends and family resulting in up to 75 percent of purchasers who are net new to file.

4. Reduces Waste Associated With Unwanted Gifts

According to the National Retail Federation's 2021 Returns Survey, $218 billion worth of merchandise was returned, representing 20.8 percent of total online sales. Processing costs from returns can range from 20 percent to 65 percent and generate significant inefficiencies. Furthermore, 4 percent of all unwanted gifts end up in the trash. In contrast, because registrants get what they ask for, the return rate on gifts purchased off a gift list or registry is almost zero.

5. Generates Powerful Demand Signals for Growth

Finally, gift lists provide powerful data and business intelligence on what your customers want, what they want others to buy as gifts, and what they're willing to make public to friends and family. In essence, they lie at the intersection of demand drivers and social commerce by expressing wants and sharing desires in a seamless way.

Ultimately, by placing  the recipient at the heart of the ecosystem, gift lists put the joy of giving back into gifting by making it easy for friends and family. Beyond milestone events, gift lists rally community support for life events, from buying a first home to the holidays. From increasing market share, to acquiring new customers, to increasing efficiency and profitability, your gift list can do that.

Nivi Chakravorty is vice president of growth marketing at MyRegistry.com, the world’s leading universal gift registry provider.