Another year has passed and similar to many businesses across the world, we look back at our year at Christmas and use this time to recognise achievements, pat each other on the back and refresh ourselves for the year ahead. It has become a long tradition that business leaders mark these achievements with a corporate gift to say thank you.
The History of Corporate Gifting
Corporate gifting or rather the first ever recorded corporate gift, was back in 1883 when John D. Rockefeller gave away calendars to his employees. Like many trends, this soon got picked up by other businesses that also started to send out calendars. This became a subtle marketing ploy in the 1900s but gifting was something of value and sparked the imagination.
Within fifty years, companies started to give T-shirts, coffee mugs and other branded merchandise to celebrate Christmas and nowadays companies’ idea of corporate gifting has become less about advertising and more about brand engagement. Gifts have extended to more than just a novelty pen, employees and customers receive everything from electronics to luxury retail gifts and experiences!
Corporate Gifting today
Today we have seen a considerable shift in corporate gifting. Sending out physical gifts at Christmas is still as popular as ever however as organisations shift and look for alternatives, employee gifting has become ever more popular in a post-COVID world where our workforce is split between home and office work.
So what should your strategy be for corporate gifting at Christmas?
The answer to this question will differ depending on how big your business is, what its main values/focuses are, and ultimately budget. As well as being a gesture of kindness, corporate gifts are an excellent way to build relationships within your company and boost morale.
Buying individual gifts for your employees and clients can be complicated, but corporate Christmas gifts purchased from a make the process less time-consuming and less stressful. The benefit of buying them is that you build a coordinated selection of items that are consistent in their quality and presentation. Sourcing them from a reputable product solutions company allows you the option to add fine touches such as personalised messaging, and branding, such as your company logo.
The right partner will be able to warehouse your gifts, reducing the need to have boxes littered around the office. Fufilment and distribution is costly and takes time to get right. Look for a partner that can look after the packing and sending out your corporate christmas gifts to individuals on your behalf.
