Lottay Wish List Survey Forecasts Holiday Shopping Trends for Black Friday and Cyber Monday

Cow, Monkey, Hookah, Satan Earn “Oddest Wish” Honors for Online Gift Giving

LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Lottay, the online gift-giving company, today announced the results of its wish list survey, forecasting holiday shopping trends for Black Friday and Cyber Monday.

• 38 percent of people want something other than products
• Top product wishes: Nintendo Wii, Wii games and accessories
• Top experiential wishes: Travel, cash for shopping

In addition to revealing the most wished-for products and gifts, the survey also reveals some of the oddest wishes that people have made on Lottay, including a cow, a monkey, a hookah and Satan.

Survey of 1,000 Wishes

Lottay surveyed a random sample of 1,000 wishes created for the 2009 holiday season. The survey reveals that 38 percent of people are wishing for an experience or something other than a product while 62 percent are only wishing for products. Overall, 60 percent of Lottay users are women, each of whom has an average of 2.5 wishes. On average, men have 2.1 wishes per wish list. Other survey results include:

• Top product wishes – Nintendo Wii, Wii games and accessories. The Wii and Wii-related gear are wished for twice as much as Sony and Xbox 360 combined.
• Runner-up product wishes – iPods, followed by cameras and boots. Ugg’s are the most popular shoe that is specifically named in wishes.
• Top experience wishes – Travel to France, Disneyland and Las Vegas.
• Runner-up experience wishes – Cash for use towards shopping, the holidays or hobbies. Massages came in third, and 2.5 percent of wishers want puppies.
• Top wishes (women) – Cash as a gift, Nintendo Wii, travel and vacations, massage, iPod, boots.
• Top wishes (men) – Travel, cash as a gift, love and sky diving (tied), iPod, Nintendo Wii, a car.
• Oddest wishes – A cow, a monkey, a hookah, Satan—all of which were given one time, each. Surprisingly, Satan only cost $200, according to the person who gave him.
• Wish most likely to appear on MLS – “A beautiful, one story, 2-car garage home in a very nice neighborhood, with 3 bedrooms, 2 1/2 bathrooms, custom eat-in kitchen with stainless steel appliances (including a Viking range with built in grill), pantry, sufficient cabinet space, and an island.” Presumably, “island” referred to a kitchen countertop rather than a land mass surrounded by water.

The 2009 Lottay survey reveals that in tough economic times, cash is a great gift that allows everyone to get what they want and need the most. Friends and family can use Lottay to deliver cash as a personal gift to help recipients pay their rent or treat themselves to a nice dinner. Lottay can also help out in a pinch for shoppers looking for the perfect holiday gift for a BFF or a $5 Secret Santa present for a co-worker. Regardless, a gift on Lottay is the gift of cash combined with the security of PayPal—not a gift card that can be lost or expire, no ugly sweaters, and no candles that will end up being re-gifted.

“A Lottay wish list doesn’t restrict you to choosing merchandise from a catalog. You can wish for anything you want,” said Harry Lin, CEO of Lottay. “That freedom opens up a lot of doors and a lot of creativity for the wisher. As a result, we’re finding that a growing number of people want something more than the latest ‘it’ product. They want love, world peace and the occasional mani-pedi. Lottay is the only place you can wish for, and give, anything at all.”

For more information on Lottay, please visit www.lottay.com. To get breaking Lottay news and additional perspectives, visit the Lottay blog at http://hintsdontwork.blogspot.com. Follow Lottay on Twitter at @GiveGiftsOnline and visit the Facebook fan page athttp://www.facebook.com/LottayInc.

Additional Resources

Lottay website: http://www.lottay.com

Lottay blog: http://hintsdontwork.blogspot.com

Lottay on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/GiveGiftsOnline

Lottay Facebook fan page: http://www.facebook.com/LottayInc

About Lottay

Lottay™ Inc. makes giving and receiving the gift of money a personal, heartfelt experience. The free, online service uses e-greeting cards, private messages, images and pictures to wrap money in the emotion of the occasion. Gift givers and recipients enjoy the intimacy of a personalized present and the flexibility of money—all backed up by the safety and security of PayPal. Lottay was founded in 2008 and is headquartered in the greater Los Angeles area. For more information, please visit www.lottay.com.