Area Banks Jump on Christmas Card Craze

When in doubt, give credit for Christmas.

According to CardData, an online database for the payment card industry, gift card sales will ring in about $19 billion by year’s end, up 375 percent from $4 billion in 2001.

Last holiday season, Arvest Bank Group Inc. aggressively marketed its branded Visa gift card, which sold for a one-time set-up fee of $3.97 to customers and $4.97 for non-customers.

Jason Kincy, advertising manager for the bank, said Arvest sold 23,000 cards between Nov. 20 and Dec. 31.

Hoping to cash in on some of that gift-giving traffic, other area banks have started offering “buy anywhere” gift cards this season, including The Bank of Fayetteville N.A., First Security Bank, Liberty Bank of Arkansas and ANB Financial.

Lindsay Parnell, marketing director for BOF, said her bank started selling Visa gift cards in the middle of October, but sales didn’t pick up until the week of Thanksgiving.

BOF charges $4 to customers and $6 to non-customers. The minimum amount to load on a card is $25, with a maximum of $500, which is typical in the Northwest Arkansas market with some variations.

Nat Bothwell, marketing director for ANB Financial of Rogers, said the bank offers its MasterCard gift card to ANB account holders free of charge, and $5 to non-customers.

Some cards come with an expiration date or a maintenance fee charged if the end-user takes too long to spend the balance, so consumers are urged to comparison shop for the best deal.

“Sales so far have been good,” Kincy said of Arvest’s 2005 season. “I think it’s another big year.”