Best holiday gifts for 2017
Holiday gifts – it’s that time again
Are you struggling to decide what holiday gifts to give your clients, vendors and employees this season? This post is for you.
The #1 reason clients (and employees) report why they move on to another company is because they don’t feel appreciated. Often, it doesn’t take much more than just saying thank you, as long as they feel it’s sincere. Let’s look at ten of the most popular holiday gifts and talk about how you can make them feel more personal.
Holiday Cards
Many companies have moved away from sending holiday cards because they feel like they don’t have the time or creativity to make something that offers a professional presentation. We’ve partnered with Birchcraft Studios to make it super easy to select, customize and order cards online here. We can mail them for you if needed.
Creating a totally custom card can also have a big impact. The key to making holiday cards feel more personal is taking the time to actually sign them individually and, perhaps, handwrite the address. It’s even better is when you can add a short personal note. When you opt to take time to make your card more unique or personalized, you need to make sure you plan farther ahead. You should be ordering your cards before Thanksgiving.
Better yet, get an early start and say “thanks” with Thanksgiving cards instead. If you tend to procrastinate, you can always order New Years cards. Either of these options arrive at different times than holiday cards and can make you stand out.
If you’d only like to send out a handful of cards but want to really personalize each one, or add a gift with your card, SendOutCards let’s you create custom cards from scratch. You can select from hundreds of existing templates or build from your imagination. They print and mail directly from your online order, allowing you to add food treats, gifts cards and other items to your shipment.
Personalized Gifts
There’s nothing more personalized than receiving a gift with your name engraved into the item. A good quality pen with your client’s name will always be appreciated and will never be discarded. Here’s one that can include your logo and a name for under $10. Professional Padfolios like this refillable one from Cross can be debossed with the recipient’s initials. It’s the kind of gift that will be kept for a lifetime.
Food Gifts
Food gifts are a perennial favorite gift at the holidays. They are easy to share and are a great option when you need to provide a single gift to a group of people or when you’re not sure of what to give to an individual.
Chocolate tops the list, but not all chocolate is the same. When clients ask us for recommendations, we recommend companies whose main focus is food products rather than include as part of a larger promotional catalog.
Two of our favorites are Chocolate Inn and Maple Ridge Farms. Chocolate Inn creates custom molded chocolates with your logo. That’s great for keeping your brand front and center when the open box is sitting out in an open area for coworkers to share. Maple Ridge offers a wide variety of candy, cookie and smokehouse gifts that are shipped fresh to you or drop shipped to your customers with a personalized note.
Gift Sets
When you want to create a more impressive presentation, gift sets can be a great option. It allows you to bundle different products together in a package designed to fit the items. They can be a combination of tech items, drinkware or home items like a wine and cheese set. Adding a personalized note in the package will also be appreciated.
Technology
Tablets and smartphones are everywhere, so providing gifts that enhance the technology experience are extremely popular. People always need cords and chargers. Virtual reality viewers are really hot this year. Upgrading to a bluetooth speaker or headphones will make a good impression, but only if you spend a little more to get products with better sound quality. People on the go will really appreciate having a bluetooth keyboard with a stand to hold their device.
Calendars
While many people live and die by their digital calendars, the paper version has continued to hold popularity. There are many different versions you can send based on your budget and interest.
The ubiquitous wall calendar displays your logo in full view to everyone all year long. A planner/diary will travel with your recipient and, for people who use them every day, your brand is connected to their lifeline. A personalized desk calendar with the person’s name incorporated into images on every page is fun and can help a cubicle feel more like home.
Fleece and Apparel
The winter season is a great time to give cold-weather clothing that keep your employees warm. This heathered fleece quarter zip is great for layering or for wearing around the office when the temperature drops. Knit beanie caps are also popular. If you want to hop on the hottest recent trend, consider custom logo’d socks.
Journals and Notebooks
Digital devices are great for accessing information quickly but studies show we retain information better when we write things down. The Moleskine® Evernote Notebook brings the two styles together by using Evernote’s Page Camera feature to capture handwritten notes that instantly become digital and are stored in Evernote.
Drinkware
Drinkware items are another great option when you want to gift something useful but don’t personally know your client that well. You can choose from basic coffee mugs and water bottles to the insanely popular Yeti and similar style vacuum insulated bottles that keeps drinks hot for 5 hours and cold for 24 hours.
Brand Name Products
Anytime you give something with a brand name you let your client or vendor know that you appreciate your relationship with them. That’s especially true with holiday gifts. There’s too many to list, so please reach out to us to discuss what you you are looking for.
Still looking for ideas? Check out one of our older posts at https://www.sophwell.com/quick-holiday-gift-ideas-for-clients.