By Deb L Brown
When was the last time you received a gift from a company? They may have sent you something as a thank you gift or it may have been a promotional item. It might have been something that they were sending out to everybody like a calendar.
If you're going to send out gifts to clients, don't send a promotional product, like a pen with your logo and contact information on it. There's a place for these kinds of pens and that's at a tradeshow event. When you're giving something like that out to someone, it isn't a gift. A promotional product is all about you. It's about your business. A gift should be all about the recipient, not about you. An item with your logo on it is self-serving, and a gift should not be self-serving.
A gift should be thinking about the other person 100%. When you think about giving a gift, think about the person. Think about a way you can make them feel special. Think about what they would like to receive, and whatever you do, keep your logo off of it. Keep your information off of it. The minute you add your logo or your contact information to it, it becomes a promotional piece and it becomes self-serving. That takes away from the purpose of what makes your clients feel special.
If a gift is done right, it will create a buzz. Clients will be so delighted that they'll take a picture of it. They'll post it on social media and say, "Look what I got. This made me feel special." It gives them a reason to talk about your business in a good way, which can lead to referrals. If a gift is done right, it is going to cause them to want to stay with you and do more business with you. They will feel that you care about them, and that should be the real purpose of a gift.
Even if referrals don't come right away from social media, that good will of sending out a kind gift and showing your clients you care can still result in referrals. Later when they're talking to a friend who needs whatever it is you do, the first person they're going to think of is you, because you showed them kindness.
When you're going to give out gifts, make sure it's done from the kindness of your heart, make sure it's done thinking about the recipient and not thinking about you. Don't include your contact information. Don't put your logo on it. There's a place for those things. Those are called promotional materials and if you want to hand them out at a trade show, great, but don't send them as a gift to your clients. Make your clients feel special by sending them a gift that's just for them.
The ironic thing is, when you take your branding off of the gift, it still builds your brand image. People will associate the kindness and good will with your brand, and that is good for business.
Deb Brown is the founder of Touch Your Client's Heart, a client appreciation company. Touch Your Client's Heart believes the key to client retention and word of mouth referrals is as simple as client appreciation gifts, but it must be done the right way. To find out How to Make Your Clients Fall in Love With You, enter your name and email in the upper right corner at http://www.TouchYourClientsHeart.com.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Deb_L_Brown
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