How Corporate Gifting is Changing

Gone are the days of corporate gift baskets filled with junk food and kitschy desk supplies. While these can pass as charming, your colleagues will see through the store-bought cookies and packets of Swiss Miss.

That said, the act of gifting is a wonderful thing, and we’ll never pooh-pooh any gift, so long as it isn’t a mini stapler or a gift card with less than $5 on it.

Buying a gift for clients, colleagues or a boss shouldn’t be something you have to settle for. Most full-time employees spend 45 - 55 hours per week at work, which means the people you’re surrounded by every weekday may as well be your adopted family. Make a commitment to WOW your work family this year. Going the extra mile with a gift—tailoring it to each individual—will leave a lasting impression on your gift recipient. The bigger the positive impact you have, and the longer it lasts, the more positive influence you’ll gain. And in the world of corporate gifting, positive influence is one of the leading reasons gifts are given.

Here are the five best things you can do to create a thoughtful, impactful gift for your boss, colleagues, or clients:

1. Give products that tell a story 📖

   In order for a product to have a story, it must come from a maker who has a story. Gifts from faceless entities that are mass-produced in an overseas factory won’t leave a deeper impression beyond the object itself. Gifts made by someone who reminds your recipient of themselves will help your recipient connect to the item. If the gift is made by a mother of two in Indiana who has always had a passion and love for ceramics, for example, your recipient is much more likely to display the piece of pottery in her home and think about that mother each and every time she uses it to hold a hot meal. Human connection is impactful, and it sticks with people.

2. Shop small and choose hand-crafted items 🖐🏾

   We live in a world of mass-produced goods. They are cheap, we get them delivered to our doors in two days, and we toss them in a landfill as soon as we tire of them. The inexpensive price and cheap construction of mass-produced goods lend themselves to be disposed of. We buy them, we get a small dopamine hit, and then search for the next fix. Hand-crafted items have significance and meaning that mass-produced items do not. No one wonders about the life of the machine that cranked out a fleece blanket in 20 seconds. But we think about the person behind a hand-woven blanket. We can imagine his hands making it, wonder where he learned the craft and how long it took to weave. Conveniently, the products that have been crafted by hand are most often the ones that have the best stories. These are the products that will produce the biggest impact.

3. Pair items that compliment each other 🧦

   If the items within a gift complement each other, there is a multiplier effect on the impression generated. A cozy blanket is wonderful, but a cozy blanket and a nice candle or fine tea takes it from a 7 to a 10! Being gifted a product is one thing, being gifted an experience is entirely another. The scene is set: the recipient will immediately imagine herself taking a relaxing evening on the couch—cozying up with a blanket, sipping tea, reading a book while a candle lightly flickers beside her. Few people would trade that evening for just a blanket.

4. Ensure the gift fits the recipient’s personality 👌🏼

   Just because it’s nearly impossible to get the kind of highly personalized gifts that Leslie from Parks & Rec gets her co-workers (P&R Leslie GIF) doesn’t mean we shouldn’t take the time to do a little personalization. It doesn’t have to get super granular or specific, and in most circumstances, depending on our relationship with the recipient, that won’t even be possible. You don’t have to have been best friends in high school to know that someone is an outdoorsman type, and thus, bath bombs might not be the best gift for them. This is a no-brainer, and Gifting- 101, but it must be mentioned.

5. Spend time on the gift and wrap it intentionally 🎁

   I know I’m not the only one guilty of presenting someone with a gift that looks like it was wrapped by a 7-year-old. I’ve also been the recipient of gifts that look like they were wrapped by Martha Stewart. Take my word for it, the feeling you get from each is not equal. The truth is, presentation matters. A well-presented gift shows that the giver spent time putting it together, and the time spent behind doing something for your recipient is arguably more meaningful than the gift itself. There’s nothing more important than showing you CARE about someone, and that requires putting more time and effort into gifting. 

Of course, doing all of this takes time—-arguably the most precious resource in the corporate world. At Willinglee, one of our goals is to simplify the entire gift-giving process by taking the lead on doing steps 1 - 5. Match one of our themed boxes to your recipient’s personality, click a few buttons, and we’ll take care of the rest.

Willinglee makes thoughtful, impactful gifting easy and affordable. So go ahead, get in touch. We’re here to help! That way, you can get back to planning that holiday party you were supposed to have finalized months ago. 😉🎄