How to Give the Best Corporate Gifts

Corporate gifting is a standard expense for most big companies. There is a budget that is allocated for buying gifts and novelties for customers and partners. These are the kind of items that are given out at trade shows, by reps when they call on clients or to mark special occasions like anniversaries or the festive season. Whatever the reason, the ultimate goal behind the gift is to strengthen existing relationships and to hand out something that is branded and memorable that will constantly keep your company at the forefront of the user’s mind. Given that is the reason behind giving these items, it is quite strange how little thought often goes into the production and distribution of these items. It can nearly always be done better; and here are a few ideas to help you improve the return on your corporate gifting expenditure.

Be personal

Wherever possible, try to personalise the gifts that you give. Nobody wants to receive a gift that feels mass-produced and lacking in though. And even if the gift has been mass-produced, you can still personalise it through a smart printing solution. A quick online search for something like ‘label printing Melbourne’ should be good enough to find you some solutions. A good provider will help ensure that if for example, you are looking to gift wine, that while everybody gets the same wine, the labels are all different and personalised. It is a solution that is guaranteed to impress and get the recipients talking.

Set yourself apart from the rest

Spend a little bit of time thinking about what it is that you want to spend your gifting budget on. Don’t just look through a supplier catalogue and tick the boring old options that everybody chooses. Some branded pens, a key ring, and a hand towel. If you want to stand out from the rest, then apply some proper thought to the solution. And if possible, find a solution that speaks to your brand or product. What do you want to be seen as? Putting your name on a pen sends no message at all – aside from the fact that you are lacking in imagination. But let’s say you want to be seen as a business driver, how about you spend a bit of extra cash to provide a branded golf-club as a solution.

Nevertheless, if you are catering to customers and partners who are more traditional, you can still leave a memorable impression with gifts that will reflect both your respect for established customs and your brand’s value. In choosing traditional gifts, go for those that stand the test of time and exude undeniable elegance. Consider engraved pens like the Cross Classic Century, which offer a sleek dignified profile.

No drip feeding

One big gift occasionally is a whole lot more useful than lots of small gifts. If a rep drops off smoothing small on almost every visit – a box of chocolates, a pen, a notepad, etc, then the gifts pretty soon become meaningless and mundane. A larger and more meaningful item will stand out and, if you are able to establish a business reputation of doing these types of items at least once a year, it will actually mean that the visits of your rep will start to be anticipated and looked forward to – ‘I wonder if this will be the visit where they bring that stand-out something?’ Your goal should be to give gifts that are of good quality that they merit a thank-you mail. If you get that right, then you know that you are winning!