Which gift membership to choose?
Choosing a Gift - Which gift membership to choose?
There are so many memberships about, now, it can be tricky to work out which is best for your loved one, so here are a 8 things to consider when choosing a gift membership which will hopefully help you!
1. What interests them?
Your loved one's interests can help point you in the direction of a good gift membership for them. What are they passionate about, and what do they love discovering more about? What do they like to immerse themselves in? What hobbies and interests have they got?
2. Is there a cause they care quite strongly or passionately about?
Gift memberships are just great for people who have everything they want!
Whether your loved one is into preserving the past, what's happening to our countryside, wildlife conservation, the sea, gardening.... the list is endless! The great thing about this is that your gift is a win-win – you are helping a cause AND giving your loved one a gift which is meaningful.
Pong Cheese have a Cheese Club subscription
3. How do they like to spend their spare time?
Do they enjoy getting out and about, having days out with or without loved ones? And if they love to get out and about, what do they like doing? Do they enjoy wining and dining, or having family days out? Are there particular programmes they love to watch on television e.g. wildlife, nature, historical programmes? Are there particular programmes they love to watch on television e.g. wildlife, nature, historical programmes and have they expressed an interest in developing a skills in gardening, cooking, etc etc. Sometimes a gift box can help get them going on an activity they’ve expressed an interest in having a go at before, and if they enjoy it, then you could follow up with a membership for a present later on.
4. Would they prefer to have something which is delivered each month?
There are lots of subscription boxes for all sorts of goodies from gin to wine, chocolates to brownies, books and beauty products.
5. Online subscriptions
There are also a number of gifts which give your chance to immerse themselves in an interest online, such as a subscription for history and family history lovers to The British Newspaper Archive. If they’re into current affairs, you could look at taking out a subscription to a newspaper for them, such as The Times and The Sunday Times, or for culture and literary reviews, you could look at the Times Literary Supplement.
6. Where does the recipient live?
Some memberships won't be appropriate e.g. if someone is going to make the most of an Eden Project membership, they probably need to spend a lot of time in Cornwall if they will want to visit it a lot. Check to see where the membership applies to and how far your loved one will be able to make the most of it. Unless of course they are passionate believers in the organisation's cause and then they may not be that worried about visiting a place that's miles off, just happy that you have helped them help make a difference. I’m a membership of three Wildlife Trusts (Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, Derbyshire and Sussex) and just love to indulge myself in the news and activities they have going on, even though I don’t live there. A membership to London Zoo will help support their conservation work, even if they don't live in London.
A National Trust membership gives you free entry to over 500 places in its care!
Great for people who love exploring!
7. Is this gift membership just for one person?
Many organisations offer a range of gift memberships, such as for one adult, a couple, a family membership (often two adults & two children) & also a membership for children. This means that a joint membership for a couple can give them many hours of pleasure in which they can spend time relaxing in each other's company, enjoy light refreshments (those are extra & not included in gift memberships) & often end up volunteering, meeting new & like-minded people
8. Where do you want to buy your gift membership from?
You can buy gift memberships directly, or you can often buy it from a gift experience company such as Virgin Experience Days, Red Letter Days or Into the Blue. One advantage of buying from gift experience companies is that, depending on their T&Cs, if your loved one already turns out to have the membership, it may be possible to swap the gift for another experience up to the value of your purchase. But you need to check the T&Cs before you buy.
 | Not on the High Street has lots of subscription gifts to choose from! There are subscriptions for food and drink lovers and for those with an interest in baking, gardening, books, beauty, crafts, socks, bow ties, and lots more! There's even a subscription gift for inspirational sayings! Take a look here |
9. What is your budget?
You need to think about your budget, too, of course. With many memberships, you can either pay in one go or month by month to spread the payments out.
These are just some considerations you could think about when choosing a gift membership.