We’re all living in a digital age were communicating effectively with others is essential both for maintaining personal and business relationships. One effective way of keeping in touch with our near and dear ones and strengthening the relationships is by exchanging and sharing gifts. As an employer, business development manager, entrepreneur, or marketer, you know the significance of presenting the business gift and promotional gifts.
Promotional gifts and business gifts serve as versatile marketing tools for business organizations enabling the entities to promote their brands. At the same time, companies entrench their commercial relationships with customers by presenting corporate business and/or promotional gifts. Though vendors, dealers, retailers, distributors, and businesses use business or promotional gifts as efficient marketing tools for boosting brand image and buttressing customer loyalty, they’re not one and the same.
Companies offer a corporate business gift to their clientele as a token of appreciation and thankfulness for the cooperation the latter provides for helping the former’s business grow. Corporate promotional gifts, on the other hand, are intended for a much wider audience. Promotional gifts as the term clearly indicate are meant to promote or endorse your brand (product or service).
Although both business and promotional gifts contribute to a company’s growth and development, there exist some noticeable differences between the two. In this article, we explore the variations between the two corporate types and the significance of each in the world of commerce.
Business Gift vis-à-vis Promotional Gift
Strictly speaking, there’s not much to demarcate between business and promotional gifts. In other words, the dividing line between the two corporate gift types is not etched in stone, and may often merge. That said, business gifts tend to be more personalized in comparison to promotional gifts and are usually presented to steadfast, long-standing clients, or employees.
Business corporate gifts are bestowed to express gratitude to a special customer or employee for his or her extraordinary contribution. A business gift has a high degree of customization as it is packaged in premium wrapping with attractive embellishments. Business gifts generally have the company’s logo and the recipient’s name printed on them.
Additionally, gifts grouped under this category are purchased in very small lots or quantities and hence tend to be expensive. Promotional gifts, on the other hand, serve as a vital tool, technique or strategy for publicizing or advertising a brand or a company. A promotional corporate gift helps in building awareness about business as well as its offering i.e. a product or service.
Unlike a business gift, promotional gifts do not entail a high level of personalization as they are intended for a larger and more varied group of recipients. Gifts that serve a promotional purpose are ordered in bulk or volume and usually comprise items like t-shirts, stationeries, caps, water bottles, and so on. Gifts used for endorsing a brand also happen to be much less costly compared to business gifts.
The Significance of Business Gifts in the Corporate Sector
Presenting corporate business gifts is one of the best and most practical ways of expressing that you hold your recipients in high esteem. Therefore, you need to choose business corporate gifts with meticulous care and impart a high level of personalization to make them evocative. Pen drives, power banks, gift hampers, gold-plated pens, Cadbury chocolate gift hampers, dinner sets, gourmet food basket, and toiletry bags are regarded as trending business gifts.
A business corporate gift is presented by a company to its time-honored clients, employees, suppliers, distributors, and the like. These gifts serve as a gesture of thankfulness and goodwill and help in improving business relations. Business corporate gifts are extremely crucial in fostering the personal connection between the provider and the recipient.
While choosing a business gift for your recipients, keep the following aspects in mind:-
- The preferences, tastes, and interests of the recipients
- Budget
- Personalization factor (like engraving or printing the name of the employee or the client)
- The level and nature of the relationship with your recipient
The Importance of Promotional Gifts in the Corporate
Promotional gifts by and large consist of products that recipients can use on a day to day basis. Pens, tees, water bottles, keyrings, penknives, and smartphone cases are usually classified under promotional corporate gifts. Such gifts usually carry the name and logo of the contributor (firm or MNC).
Promotional gift can benefit the company in the following ways:-
- Boost brand awareness
- Foster and cement B2B associations
- Help preserve customer loyalty and allegiance
- Cost-effective means of promoting a product or service
- Go a long way in boosting up customer’s impression about the brand
- Generate reliable and prospective leads and referrals
- Help enhance employee-to-employee association and employee-to-business relation
- Improve the bottom line