Just the other day over on Twitter, someone asked for suggestions for gift-giving ideas for her clients. She wanted to thank her clients by coming up with thoughtful and affordable gift ideas, but she didn’t know where to start.
“What good timing!” I thought. I was just planning on writing a post about this topic, so I immediately bullet-pointed my suggestions to test my ideas. Turns out my suggestions were well-received.
So, here I am today to share the same suggestions but more in-depth in hopes of making your life easier.
For all of us, it seems to get awfully hectic once we get into the holiday season. We have gifts for family members, friends & peers to worry about while we plan out our travel logistics and holiday-themed events to attend.
Before we know it, shipping deadlines are just around the corner & the last thing we want to agonize over is…what to give to our clients! Right?
But I don’t want this to stop you from moving forward with this. The benefit of gift-giving outweighs the bit of prep work required, which I will explain in this post.
The good news is that what I am about to share will help you avoid the “deer-in-the-headlights” situation. I know you will thank me later. So, let’s begin.
Before Diving In… The Objectives!
The question here is, “Why would you want to give gifts to your clients?”
With anything you do in your business, you want to develop muscles to get super clear on why you should do something before taking actions so that you will use your precious time wisely. This is no exception.
The biggest reason business owners struggle with what to give to their clients is simply this: They don’t reverse-engineer from their ultimate goal. If they know what they want to achieve by giving gifts, figuring this all out becomes much easier. I’m sure you agree.
It doesn’t matter where you are from, “gift-giving” is a common gesture found in all cultures. When it comes to business & professional gift-giving, there are 3 reasons as to why you would consider investing time & money into gifts.
Reason #1: Showing your genuine appreciation for the opportunities you’ve had to work with them.
Reason #2: Gift-giving serves as a reminder to stay on the top of their minds to beat competitors.
Reason #3: Gift-giving induces “word-of-mouth” promotion for possible referrals through them.
These are applicable to both current and past clients. In a report from Knack on business gift satisfaction, 77% of respondents said that receiving a gift makes them feel appreciated and 67% said that it strengthens their relationship with the business.
In the post, “How to Supercharge Your Referral Pipeline in 15 Min or Less Each Day” you will find out why retention is a far easier and less costly strategy over acquisition. Gift-giving is one of the most effective activities you can do to be consistent with your retention efforts.
This may sound obvious, but to satisfy the criteria listed above, you don’t just want to give something for the sake of giving something. You absolutely want to make sure whatever you will gift will be memorable and appreciated to increase your chances of generating more business. That is the goal.
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3 Types of Thoughtful Holiday Gifts that are Guaranteed to Wow Your Clients
Notice that I am focusing on sharing 3 different types of gifts. This is NOT a post about listing a bunch of affiliate links and calling it the “Ultimate Gift Guide.”
This is because I personally believe that understanding different types will allow you to freely choose items that fit in to any of these 3 types. As the analogy goes, “Give a man a fish & you will feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish, and you will feed him for a lifetime.”
I know. I don’t make it easy, but I don’t believe in just handing over a list for the sake of SEO (search engine optimization) for my site or going after affiliate revenues while robbing your ability to creatively think about what to give to your clients. If you ask me, I am totally being thoughtful here!
OK, now that that’s out of the way, let’s dive into 3 types of thoughtful gifts that are beyond handwritten cards.
Gift Type #1: “How Did You Know?!” Gifts
Gift Type #2: Popular Consumables
Gift Type #3: Branded Promo Goods
I’ve seen many give advice to send handwritten cards for those who ask for thoughtful gift inspirations. There’s nothing wrong with heart-felt handwritten cards. But you can do that all year round.
We, entrepreneurs, are naturally overachieving. If we are to invest our thoughts, time and energy into gift-giving, we want ours to stand out and make a lasting, positive impression on our clients. So, let’s decide right here and right now that we’ll do better than handwritten cards this year!
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www.maikosakai.com
“How Did You Know?!” Gifts
Pulling off these types of gifts successfully solely depends on how well you know your clients because it must have a surprise element. In return, you will rank on the top of their list for “my most favorite people” because you are more thoughtful than the rest.
The downside to this category is that, if you weren’t paying close attention to what they shared during a series of conversations you had with them, you won’t know what to give them.
Throughout the time you are working or have worked with your clients, most likely you have casual conversations with them about their family, their lives & things they like to do or want to do, etc.
Those are the clues you want to take mental notes on!
Do not despair if you haven’t been intentional about this. You can still trace back your conversations with them by looking for:
1. Something they shared as their “secret obsessions.”
2. Something they shared as their “guilty pleasure.”
3. Something they shared by starting a sentence, “I don’t normally talk about this with anyone…”
Can you recall any of these taking place while chatting with them?
For example, a client shared he spends too much money on anything to do with his dog & he was just browsing online for a cool dog carrier for his Frenchie…that’s a clue.
If a client told you her secret obsession was to find the best chocolate covered candied orange peel…that’s a clue.
Ideally, what you want to spot is something they shared with you only once that they don’t remember they even told you. That’s the key to giving something that has a surprise element.
Also, it’s worth noting that it does not have to be literal because the item in question may be way more than what you want to spend. Just because your client said her dream was to go on a luxury African Safari tour doesn’t mean you buy the package for her, right?
Let’s bring back the guy who spends too much money on his dog. Say, a dog carrier he wants isn’t in your budget. Then go back to the simpler fact that he is obsessed with his dog.
You might find a funny t-shirt or a bracelet describing obsessive dog owners, for example. Or, you might find something specific about French Bulldogs that he would appreciate.
You just need to get creative.
Popular Consumables
This is by far my favorite gift type. For the longest time, my number one advice for what to give to clients in a hurry or at the last minute has been popular consumables. Here are the reasons why:
1. These will simply get consumed & disappear so that clients are not stuck with them.
2. These can easily be re-gifted in case they don’t fit your clients’ preferences.
3. Once you decide on an item, you can bulk-order to get discounts.
Keep in mind that no one wants to “get stuck with” something. Like a paper weight, a mug that they don’t like, or an unfitted pair of winter gloves with the color they dislike… This is why consumables are much better as gifts.
Also, this category serves as a backup plan for Gift Type #1. Maybe some clients are too new for you to know their obsessions & secret desires, or you just can’t figure out what they enjoy.
Here are some examples of popular consumables:
✔ Luxury box of truffles
✔ Wine or other types of alcohol
✔ Assorted artisanal cheeses
✔ Coffee / Tea collections
✔ Savory snack collections
✔ Any gift boxes that are cuisine specific i.e. Italian, French, Cajun, Canadian, Danish, etc.
But this is also not without downsides. There are 2: 1) The danger of being mediocre if not careful, 2) The danger of being cheesy or tacky.
To combat this, my suggestion is to go for rare goods. Avoid all mainstream brands such as Harry & David, Godiva, Harrods, Starbucks, etc. If I get any of these, I would consider the giver being lazy. (Ouch… but true!)
Instead, find something that is uniquely local in your area or purely artisanal with high quality. If they are lesser known with high quality, they can be very small in terms of quantity. It can even be a box of only 4 truffles, for example.
Remember, the whole point of giving gifts is for your clients to remember you & your business in a positive way.
Branded Promo Goods
If this is done well, you will nail all of our objectives, but this is not my go-to as it’s not easy to pull this off tastefully & less expensively.
I’m sure you’ve come across items like pens, recyclable tote bags, t-shirts, and water bottles you don’t care too much for, right? And you are annoyed that you are stuck with them.
Moreover, branded promo goods require lead time. If you are only a couple weeks away from the absolute last day of shipping, you are out of luck because manufacturers are too backed up with a sudden surge of orders during the busy season, not to mention there’s always room for errors that can cause delays in delivery.
These are the obvious downsides.
On the other hand, the upside is that this is literally the kind of gift that screams being on the top of their mind. So, if you have the time and the budget to produce branded promo goods, this is for you.
For this category, I am going to share Do’s and Don’ts so that you have a better chance of nailing it.
Do choose an item that:
✔ gets used & possibly disappear so it doesn’t take up space.
✔ gives enough room to customize so that it will be well-branded and stand out.
✔ is small but not too small where no one sees your brand.
✔ is unique to what you offer as a business.
✔ can be a conversational piece.
Here are some examples that goes with this guideline:
● Sticky notes, mini journal or notepads.
● Mini-desktop calendar that’s designed by you or designed with your brand in mind.
● USB flash drive or wireless charger.
● Key chains
● Business cards case
● Smartphone wallet
Don’t choose items that:
- are viewed as novelty & not useful.
- are not stylish and take up space i.e. drink ware, yoga mats, bulky bags, beach blanket, etc.
- are too insignificant i.e. pens, buttons, breath mints, etc.
Also, unless you are an established influencer with an aspirational brand and have die-hard followers, any apparel goods (baseball cap, knit caps, T-shirts, etc.) or accessories (bracelets, cosmetic pouch, stickers, smartphone accessories) will be thrown out.
This is because if they don’t find value in “showing it off to others,” these items are only considered to be worthless free goods. In this case, it will do more harm than good.
You are probably noticing by now that this category has the highest risk level from both time and cost perspectives.
This is why I only recommend this when you have enough time for planning and budget as well as other uses such as giving them away at conferences or making it available as content for winners as part of your promotional campaigns.
Before you get too discouraged, I can give you a couple of win-win scenarios to determine if your business is fit for this category.
Say, you are a graphic designer and you are confident enough to design a desktop calendar showcasing your work, this can create buzz among recipients.
Another example would be that you are in technology services and intentionally replace business cards with the branded USB flash drive to give out, these can get passed around more effectively.
It is possible to make these types of gifts more thoughtful & memorable if you have the ability to select an item that’s not widely available & are able to add your own unique flavor (branding) to it.
Remember that report I mentioned earlier by Knack? Well 50% of respondents report that they feel more connected to a business when the gift they receive is memorable, making giving a gift beyond the hand written card all the more important.
Let’s Wrap This Up! (No Pun Intended…)
For the past 3 years, I have been conducting a study specifically to monitor the ROI (return of investment) of practicing Gift Type #2 with a luxury service provider.
Without disclosing too many details, I can tell you that the business has received positive comments from clients who received a gift, and the number of reorders turned out to be much higher compared to those who did not receive a gift.
On top of that, the cost of such gifts took up only 4% of the additional business generated including referrals that came from the recipients.
I’m sharing all of this to say that if you haven’t considered gift-giving as a part of your business growth strategy, you absolutely should! And please track the progress as I am doing for the business mentioned above. Naturally, I am sure, you will want to know what your ROI is.
Let me know your experiences and/or if you have other suggestions that are not covered here!