A Guide To Corporate Gifting
Gift giving is an art. It's something that has been instilled in our culture and taught to us as kids. Think about the anticipation and excitement as a child for birthdays, Christmas, being rewarded for certain achievements and so on. Giving and receiving gifts has been an important part of the human experience. The simple gesture connects us and strengthens our bonds with friends and family by reinforcing our feelings towards the recipient.
We can elicit the same feelings and emotions with the right corporate gift as well as in business. However, corporate gifting is slightly different because the recipient is usually a stranger or someone of a work relation. This means you need to put a little more thought into the gift or the act is almost useless.
But when the right corporate gift is given, it becomes a tangible reminder of the relationship that exists between the giver and recipient.
Gifts chosen for a business associate or client should be creative, relevant, impersonal and most importantly, MEMORABLE.
So what gift should you prepare?
First, think about why you are sending a gift and its purpose.
Most often times it comes down to:
- Strengthening your relationship with the business associate or co-work and showing you value them.
- For them to remember you, your brand, your company, etc.
When MIKOL started their corporate gifting program, many people questioned the prices and why it was much higher than typical corporate gifts they buy.
The team would tell people it's handcrafted genuine marble products.
And for most of the response: They initially think....So what if it's marble? I just need a gift to give out showing our company logo. (You are forgetting the "purpose" of why we are giving out corporate gifts)
The main point is not that it's a nice luxurious marble notebook or marble iPhone case, but that it's different. Yes, you can easily go on Alibaba and find inexpensive corporate gifts with logo printing services like the items below. But so will your competitors and everyone else across all industries.
So the question is, what makes you special? What will allow you to be remembered by a customer, especially one you just met at a trade fair?
Is your brand/company name that strong, where they will remember you through a simple notebook gift with your brand on it? Maybe? Maybe not?
Now think....if someone handed you a REAL MARBLE Notebook, you're first going to be surprised that it's a real marble notebook because the product stands out.
Why?
Simply because not many people have seen a notebook made out of real marble before. Then they will go back and tell their colleagues, friends, and family about it.
These friends and colleagues will ask where they got it from. And the response will be from XYZ company from John Smith (which is you).
I'm not saying MIKOL products are the only way to go if you want to be remembered, but do something that will separate you from the crowd. If the purpose of giving these gifts is to be remembered, then give something that will actually help your client remember/notice you.
I'd rather buy 100 pieces of an item that has more value and leave a lasting impression than to buy 1000 inexpensive pieces that get tossed to the side.
How many free pens, USB cards, notebooks, tote bags and key chains have you received from businesses, networking events, trade shows, and restaurants? And how many of those companies do you remember?
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