‘LIKES’ OVERTAKE CARDS AND CAKES AS HOW WE MEASURE THE SUCCESS OF OUR BIRTHDAYS

The impact of social media has totally revolutionised how we celebrate our birthdays according to new research by leading gift card company One4All.

Facebook has become the number one way we wish our friends and loved ones a happy birthday.  76% of us will post a greeting to friends on social media and a quarter of people say that the number of messages they receive is the main way they would measure the success of their birthday.

The research also suggests that many of the traditions that would normally make our day special are being undermined.

60% of people say that they rarely take their birthday as a day off from work and only 15% of people said that they would always have a birthday cake.

The main reason for having a low-key birthday is stress.  A third of people say that they find their own birthdays stressful and would rather celebrate someone else’s.

Declan Byrne, Managing Director UK of One4all, says, “Social media now plays a huge part in all of our lives and it’s interesting to see how it has impacted on the traditional birthday.

“It’s a social shift that is affecting many businesses who provide a service linked to birthday celebrations.  For example, it’s led to us creating online group gifting, where friends can come together through social media to contribute to a joint gift.”

As a result of these findings One4All is also attempting to raise awareness of the need to keep birthday’s special and is launching a social media campaign for people to ‘out’ Birthday Scrooges and encourage them to have a proper, traditional birthday celebration.

“While times do change, it would be nice to think that birthdays will retain their special status,” says Declan. “As a result we want to encourage people to make sure they still take time out to celebrate with friends and family.”

For more information on the social media campaign or if you’d like to nominate a Birthday Scrooge then visit the One4all UK Facebook page.