A customer appreciation gift is simply a gift from the business to the customer. Offered as part of a loyalty program or a one-off reward, it’s something all customers appreciate, and it offers various benefits for your business:
Humans have a need to reciprocate. If you do something for a customer, they’ll want to do something for you. Give them a gift, and they’ll be more likely to give you their business.
A thoughtful gift shows the customer that their loyalty is recognized. It encourages them to remain loyal to the brand, as they’ll be rewarded more than if they went elsewhere.
You’re not just keeping customers happy and loyal. You’re also turning them into walking billboards. If they wear branded clothing, they’ll advertise your brand every time they wear it; if it’s an accessory, you’ll get exposure whenever they use it.
Customer appreciation gifts should align with other loyalty programs. They can be offered as part of specific loyalty tiers and as rewards for placing a certain number of orders. They form a key part of the relationship-building process.
Ultimately, the best customer appreciation gifts will depend on the type of business you run and the type of customers you target.
Relevance is key—even the most expensive gifts won’t do much if the customer doesn’t need them or use them.
Drinkware, stationery, bags, and clothes are some of the most common customer appreciation gifts, and not without reason. They’re effective because most customers wear or use them, and they’re also easy to source.
Look for gifts that customers will use at home and in the office; gifts that get as much use as possible. If you’re opting for clothing and accessories, focus on quality and wearability and keep branding understated. Customers don’t want cheaply made items that blatantly promote your business.
For partners and VIP clients, consider higher-end merchandise. They’re special. They mean a lot to your business. So, give them something they’re unlikely to get from other businesses.
You can still stick with the basics, but you should upgrade them a little. For example, rather than a simple polyester tee, invest in a high-quality cotton hoodie.
Gift boxes and swag bags combine multiple branded items into one gift. They often include various cheaper products with one or two premium ones, such as notepads, pens, and chargers, alongside a power bank or branded jacket.
Presentation is important. A luxury box or bag will greatly elevate the gift, even if the products inside are fairly inexpensive.
Fruit cakes and candied nuts at Christmas, chocolates and treats at Easter—holiday gifts are relevant to ongoing or upcoming holidays. They work well with seasonal promotions and other initiatives, and show the customer that you’re not just grabbing a general-purpose gift from the warehouse.
The biggest consideration for customer appreciation gifts is how much value a customer can bring to your business. If you run a B2C brand selling inexpensive items, it doesn’t make sense to spend over $100 on a gift for a single customer. Alternatively, if you’re in the B2B sector and generate 6 figures from every client, you can afford to be a little more generous.
Branded office products usually work best for corporate clients. It’s something you know they can use, and if they use it every day, you’ll be reminding them and everyone in their office of your brand.
Food hampers, premium drinkware, tech gadgets, and luxury stationery are all great examples.
Thousands of branded pens, notepads, tote bags, and clothing accessories exchange hands during events. No one will be impressed by your offer of a free plastic pen. But if you upgrade the offer a little and hand it out as an incentive (for completing a form, exchanging information, or listening to a pitch), you could gain their appreciation and their business.
Customers love loyalty programs. If they’re promised a free coffee with every 10 purchases, they’ll find every excuse they can to buy more coffee. You can tap into this psychological need by offering increasingly impressive gifts for customers advancing through a loyalty program.
You’re giving them a target to reach, a reason to spend, but you’re also building a strong business-client relationship.
Not sure which gifts would work best? Here’s how to find the best customer appreciation gifts:
One of the biggest mistakes that brands make when choosing customer appreciating gifts is to find the cheapest possible item. They focus on the bulk costs and treat them as an expense. But it’s a form of marketing, and as with all marketing campaigns, you need to weigh up the costs against the potential returns.
The more practical the gift, the more likely a customer will use it. If it’s useful, they’ll be happier, they’ll see your brand more, and they’ll expose it to everyone around them.
The gifts need to align with your brand identity, while maintaining an air of professionalism. If you’re eco-conscious, don’t give away disposable plastic gifts; if you target luxury and elegance, don’t choose low-quality items.
You’d expect a gift from Apple to be elegantly packaged or a gift from Tesla to be distinctive, unique, and eco-friendly. Just because it’s a gift doesn’t mean you can ignore your brand’s values.
Take a pen as an example. If you give away a branded pen that stops working within a few days, customers will associate your brand with low quality. It might not be part of your product line, but you still commissioned it. You still checked it and okayed it. You’re responsible for it.
Conversely, if it looks great, writes well, and is highly durable, it will reflect well on your brand.
A customer appreciation gift should always contain your logo and/or name. You want the customer to remember where it came from. If possible, it should also be personalized to the customer.
A personalized gift shows that you’re not just gifting aimlessly. As the saying goes, “It’s the thought that counts”, and if that thought comes with an actual gift, even better!
Usability and relevancy are key, but you also have a budget to consider, so don’t neglect the cost.
Look for gifts that you can easily scale. You want something you can buy in bulk without sacrificing quality, as well as something you can buy as and when needed.
The more customers you have, the trickier it becomes to manage customer appreciation gifts. You must think about quality, quantity, and cost, and that’s before you consider warehousing, inventory management, and fulfillment.
At Foxtrot Marketing, we offer various solutions for branded merchandise and gifting. You can partner with us to source, design, and ship items for a one-off event or promotion. Alternatively, we offer several solutions for ongoing merchandising.
You will get your own store hosting various corporate swag. Customers and employees can choose the items they want, and we’ll handle everything else.
Contact us for more information about our services and solutions.
It’s a gift given to a customer by a business to show appreciation for their loyalty.
It depends on your customers, but the most effective gifts are useful items that are relevant to your business and feature the brand’s name and logo.
We offer solutions such as the Enterprise Online Store that we designed specifically for this purpose.