People appreciate gifts. Think about it. When you receive a gift set from a retailer or small business owner as a means of thank you for your business it makes you feel good. In fact, it is probably safe to say that everyone loves getting gifts. By giving shoppers or customers a gift, retailers get extremely efficient marketing that can truly change consumer behavior. The use of Promotional Gifts for the holidays, or other seasonal events is a sure way for your company, or name brand to solidify long-term business relationships, and create a more profitable outcome for returning customer transactions.
Gift giving has been a staple in humanity for thousands of years. Native Tribal Leaders used to give gifts to promote peace, protection, and even food.
In modern day society, we give gifts for the holidays, anniversaries, and birthdays, gift giving has remained a strong part of our culture. Gift ideas may have changed over the years, along with trendy items and current fashion and styles, but what remains constant is the way the gift recipient feels after receiving a gift.
People feel special when they receive a gift, because they know the giver specifically selected it for them. Gift giving with brands has been a great way to connect with consumers for years.
Gifting Is Emotional
Retailers have known the secret of gift giving for years. As an example, My wife receives gift cards from her favorite retailers all the time. There are no strings attached. She is free to spend whatever she wants. Many large corporations send out gift cards to entice people to return to their store, or visit their website to make another purchase. Consumers feel good about these gifts, and are highly motivated to return.
Why do these retailers give away free money? Because it works. At a recent gift card event, we learned about the following statistic: gift cards are 10 times more effective at driving customers in the door than any other promotional activity.
Gift giving – in the form of gift cards and gift incentives – is known to be a superior alternative to coupons and deals. Gifts and gift cards are highly engaging and somewhat irresistible. They are relationship-enhancing. Gift cards allow marketers to invite consumers to enjoy their brands with no strings attached. And they put consumers in the mindset to spend again and again.
What Gifts Are We Talking About?
So what are some examples of Gift marketing that you can use for you small business, or organization? Until very recently, retailers have been unable to use gifts as incentives at the scale necessary to really move the business. The reason is simple. To give out a gift of free money, you have to be able to know with relative certainty that a consumer is likely to spend enough to make the investment pay out. When my wife receives a $25 gift card from a retailer like Bath & Body Works, she will most likely use the gift to spend more money with that retailer. The retailer knows how much she typically spends ($100) and can make a bet that she will follow that pattern again. People are very likely to follow spending patterns repeatedly, especially when a gift card can be applied to “save” them money on what they would have normally spent anyway.
Which Gifts Work Best For My Customers?
When targeting new clients, or trying to promote return business, it is important to keep things within a cost-effective parameter, paying close attention to your return on investment. Corporate Gifts with the most longevity are typically the ones that can reach a large audience without breaking your budget. Less expensive advertising, and promotional gift options exist in the form of custom imprinted giveaway items. Click here for the most popular gift marketing ideas USfastprint has to offer.
Gift Marketing Benefits
Retailers spend upwards of $300 billion a year on coupons and promotions. Consumers are more overwhelmed with offers and coupons now than at any other time in history. To stay competitive, retailers will need to shift funds from couponing and deals to far more efficient and effective gift marketing. Rather than offering shoppers a coupon, merchants can offer them a highly motivating gift based on their actual spending habits, which can be tracked and delivered via their financial institution.
By giving shoppers a gift, retailers get hyper-efficient marketing that can truly change consumer behavior and create profitable new visits at the scale they need. And shoppers feel a special connection to the gift-giving retailer, which carries into their shopping cart and future loyalty to the brand. We are on the verge of a seeing a significant shift in the economics of advertising and the rise of gift marketing.
Promotional Holiday Gift Ideas
The Christmas holiday season is a time when millions of companies give an imprinted gift to their customers and employees, using the occasion to say “Thank You”. However, in addition to giving a gift they all want to make sure that they are remembered for giving the gift and to use the gift as a way of tastefully keeping their names in front of their customers. The imprinting of your name on a promotional holiday gift should be done with subtlety and style in order to increase the perceived value of the gesture as well as that of the gift.
Select The Right Promotional Holiday Gifts
The promotional gift selection process may be slightly different depending on your target audience. You might have two or three different tiers of gifts depending on the volume of the business each client generates for your firm. The first thing you want to consider in this selection process is whether the imprinted gift be for use in the office, home, or outdoors. Depending on how close of a relationship you have with your client may help determine this factor. If the client relationship consists of frequent contact and a personal relationship, then a beautiful gift for the home might be the more personally engaging, most effective choice.
Some elegant home and lifestyle choices include upscale corkscrews, aerating wine pourers, and other food serving accessories. Promotional gifts in the office are given more often when the vendor/client relationship is based more on a business level and you want to keep your company name in front of your customers as frequently as possible. Business oriented gifts include elegant writing instruments, notebooks, planners, office calendars, stress relievers, and other desk accessories. If you’re looking for something more tech savvy, flash drives, phone grips, earbuds, wireless speakers, and other computer accessories are all great gift options to show that extra sign of appreciation. It’s really about knowing your customers and how the promotional item will relate to the product or service your company provides.
For international business clients that travel frequently, perhaps some custom printed travel accessories would be the most appreciated gifts. Some great travel gifts include neck rest pillows, USB port travel adapters, custom luggage tags, toiletry bags and travel bags and cases.
Gifts For The Team
