3 Tips to Get Dad Exactly What He Wants This Father's D…

Father’s Day is nothing like Mother’s Day. While mom might expect a boozy brunch and a day on the town, dad, more than likely, just wants to be able to watch the game with a couple of cold beers. Nevertheless, we’re still egged on — usually by mom — to get him some thing to show our appreciation for him.

But what do you get the man who has everything?

Luckily, we’ve got the internet to help us answer these hard-hitting questions. No longer does dad have to pad his sock collection or add another necktie to his tie rack. Instead, we can get him really cool and manly gifts or just sneakily figure out what he’s been pining for over the course of the year.

If you’re stuck on what to get your old man (or husband) this Father’s Day, worry no more, because I’m going to give you three solid tips and tricks that will help you be the dad’s day hero you always knew you were.

Related: Check Out This Father’s Day Gift Guide

1. Box it up.

If there’s one service that’s trending up in the digital world, it’s curated boxed content. One of the biggest of these companies is Dollar Shave Club. If you’ve never ordered razors over the internet, or if you don’t watch a lot of television commercials, you’ve might have never heard of them.

With Dollar Shave Club, you get new razors and shaving essentials in the mail every month or few months, depending on your membership, and it ends up cheaper than buying new razors from the supermarket.

Now, dad might not need a new razor, but there are plenty of other boxes for him. If he’s into survival gear, check out BattlBox, which can give him EDC or hunting knives and tactical gear. If he’s not into the whole survivalist thing, try the Beer of the Month or Carnivore Club, which sends him bubbly libations or delectable meats.

If he’s more of the bookish type, check out the Bookcase.Club, which will send him two books a month in a genre he selects.

Related: How to Help Dad Get Tech Savvy

2. Be an internet sleuth.

Sometimes the best way to figure out what dad wants is by good ol’ fashioned subterfuge. While we don’t 100 percent condone snooping around someone’s computer, there’s a good chance you share that Amazon Prime account. Try and find out what he’s been searching. Is it a new toolset? Maybe it’s a brand new big screen TV. While the TV might be out of the equation, you certainly could get him the hammer or screwdriver of his wildest dreams.

Of course, if you really wanted to know what he’s been looking for, you could also check his internet history. Then again, that might not be the best idea. What I’m trying to say is, do your detective work, but also make sure to respect dad’s privacy. If you don’t feel totally comfortable being nosey, check out a few Pinterest boards on Father’s Day. You can always find great gift ideas one way or another.

3. Make dad an actual action hero.

Buying gifts for my old man can be difficult. He’s one of those guys who just goes and buys something he wants or needs himself. Months of detective work and surveilling the garage and toolbox all go down the drain once he buys that new power drill. So I figured I’d get him something that was totally awesome and that he’d never get himself. 

What did I come up with? Well, I made him and my mom both into action figures. Yes, action figures. There are a few companies that offer this service, in-person or online. I just uploaded my dad’s picture and selected a few clothes and physical features that were pretty close and, voila, my dad was basically Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Is it practical? No. But anything practical he would just go and purchase. So instead, I settled for something just plain cool.  

Related: For Father’s Day, Entrepreneurs Share Dad’s Most Important Business Lessons

Conclusion.

Shopping for dad used to be rough, but it’s gotten a whole lot easier. From manly-man boxes to super cool but useless baubles, the internet has truly shaped the way we shop for Father’s Day. So on June 18, you can either get him another necktie, or you can get him something really unique that he’ll be sure to treasure until at least the next Father’s Day.

Eric Samson

Eric Samson is the founder of Group8A, a boutique consulting firm focused on developing and executing integrated marketing and digital solutions for companies of all sizes.

 

Read more