Online Personal Shoppers

ANCHOR LEAD IN:
BUSY SHOPPERS USED TO 'LET THEIR FINGERS DO THE WALKING' THROUGH THE YELLOW PAGES INSTEAD OF HEADING OUT TO THE STORES...NOW, YOU DON'T EVEN HAVE TO LIFT A FINGER TO FIND THE PERFECT BIRTHDAY, OR ANNIVERSARY PRESENT. IN TODAY'S HEADS UP - ONLINE PERSONAL SHOPPER SITES THAT DO THE WORK FOR YOU.

TRACK ONE Length: :02
LESLEY KLEIN SHOPS ONLINE A LOT...

SOT:
NO KEY - Too quick - Lesley Klein, Uses online personal shoppers
"Typically I shop online about once or twice a week."

TRACK TWO Length: :11
BETWEEN HER CHILDREN, NIECES AND NEPHEWS, BUSINESS CLIENTS, THE HOLIDAYS - THERE'S ALWAYS SOMETHING SPECIAL SHE NEEDS TO BUY. SO SHE'S A BIG FAN OF THE NEW TREND IN ONLINE PERSONAL SHOPPER SITES.

SOT:
KEY @: :19 Kelli Grant, Smartmoney.com
"An online personal shopper is a site that helps you pick out the perfect gift for someone, whether it's maybe for father's day or someone's birthday."

SOT:
KEY @: :27 Lesley Klein, Uses online personal shoppers
"It just gives you um, room for a lot more creativity."

NATS Length: :02
Lesley clicking through ideas for present

TRACK THREE Length: :12
PERSONAL SHOPPER SITES ARE BASICALLY ONLINE COLLECTIONS OF ITEMS. STAFF MEMBERS SELECT GIFTS AND SERVICES FROM HUNDREDS OF MERCHANTS AND CATEGORIZE THEM IN A HUGE COMPUTER DATABASE. IT'S LITERALLY ONE-STOP SHOPPING!

SOT:
NO KEY - Mostly covered - Kelli Grant, Smartmoney.com
"You'll be asked a series of questions about the person that you want to give the gift to. Is this person male or female, what is the relationship to you, what is their age?"

TRACK FOUR Length: :09
THE SITES THEN SPIT OUT DOZENS OF GIFT IDEAS FOR YOUR GARDENING MOM OR PRACTICAL JOKER HUBBY. IN A MATTER OF SECONDS, YOU'LL GET GIFT IDEAS YOU MIGHT NEVER HAVE CONSIDERED...

SOT:
NO KEY - Mostly Covered - Kelli Grant, Smartmoney.com
"It's not going to be the typical idea that you're just going to see on a site."

TRACK FIVE Length: :12
FOR INSTANCE, 'EXPERIENCE' GIFTS ARE BIG, SUCH AS BALLOON OR HELICOPTER RIDES. OF COURSE, NOT ALL PERSONAL SHOPPER SITES ARE CREATED EQUAL...THERE'S UNUSUAL AND THEN THERE'S JUST WELL...

SOT:
NO KEY -Covered - Kelli Grant, Smartmoney.com
"Some of the gifts that you'll come up with are very kooky."

TRACK SIX Length: :07
BUT THE SITES ARE FREE, SO GRANT SUGGESTS SHOPPING AROUND FOR YOUR FAVORITE. THEN YOU CAN JUST KICK BACK, RELAX AND ENJOY LIFE.

SOT:
NO KEY - Too Quick- Lesley Klein, Uses online personal shoppers
"It's just a no-brainer to use that kind of site."

ANCHOR TAG:
IF YOU DON'T KNOW WHERE TO START -- GRANT SAYS HER RESEARCHERS TESTED A NUMBER OF SITES AND GAVE THE HIGHEST MARKS TO GIFTS.COM, SURPRISE.COM, AND FINDGIFT.COM.

SOURCE INFORMATION:

Kelli Grant
SmartMoney.com
212-373-9442
kgrant@smartmoney.com

Bio: Kelli B. Grant has covered personal finance since joining SmartMoney.com in June 2005. Her Deal of the Day column advises consumers on how to spend less on everything from iPods to vacation rentals. Before joining SmartMoney.com, Kelli worked at MarketWatch.com as a reporter and assistant to columnist Marshall Loeb. She holds a bachelor's degree in journalism and anthropology from Ithaca College.