Corporate gifting is well and truly on the rise. The market reached an all-time high last year and is expected to continue growing at an accelerated compound annual growth rate of 8.1% through 2024.
Let me tell you a quick story. We recently worked with an entertainment industry client, sending out over 1000 employee gifts. Over the next 6 months employee turnover rate in that department was at an all time low of 6% from 11% (which is the lowest in the industry). That's pretty good when you consider how much investment and time it takes to train a new employee.
Here's another little nugget for you: Giving gifts makes you 3x more likely to book a meeting and increases deal sizes by 2.4x.
And if that's not enough: We've had clients who see a 21% increase in referrals and a 15% conversion rate from those referrals. And it isn't just us. It's the whole industry of corporate gifting that is making a difference, not to mention gifts that are personalized and custom branded gifts for corporate events.
As the corporate world becomes increasingly remote, digitized, and disjointed, companies are finding it especially important to reward and recognize their employees. And corporate gifting is a proven strategy for strengthening and cementing relationships – not only with your valued employees but with your clients and potential clients as well.
So what does a corporate gifting service actually look like in practice? And how can it help your business thrive? Let’s dive in!
What is a Corporate Gift Service?
A corporate gift service is one that handles different types of corporate gifting for your business, whether that be employee gifting, client thank you gifts, holiday gifting, gifts for specific events, or all of the above.
An excellent corporate gifting service will take the burden of finding the perfect gift off your company's shoulders and ensure that your gifts are thoughtful, impressive, and always on-brand. Ideally, you want to find a corporate gifting service that can handle all the details and logistics for you, so that you don’t have to stress about curation, packaging, branding, personalization, or on-time delivery.
For best results, many companies choose to go the custom route with their corporate gifting. That way, they can ensure the gifts they buy are personalized and in line with their company branding. Here at Bestowe, for example, our corporate gifting specialists work one-on-one with our partners to curate customized, tastefully-branded gifts that meet their specific needs and goals.
How Corporate Gifts Delight Customers and Employees
The good news about corporate gifting is that it’s truly a win-win for your business and the recipient (whether they’re a client, employee, or partner). Rather than view gifting as an unnecessary expense, you should think of it as an investment in your company relationships. A carefully selected gift can also help reinforce your branding and company culture.
When it comes to your internal relationships, rewarding and recognizing employees with thoughtful gifts can help improve engagement and increase company loyalty. In the long run, this can help minimize employee turnover, which saves your company time and money. Employee gifting has become increasingly important since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic and the subsequent increase in remote work. And as employees slowly return to the office, gifts are being used to welcome them back and boost morale.
For external relationships, corporate gifting can help you recruit new clients and convert more incoming leads. It creates an additional touchpoint and opportunity for communication. According to the psychology of reciprocity, giving gifts to potential and existing clients can help cement your relationship and make them more likely to continue supporting your business.
As an added bonus to your business, certain gifts can even qualify for tax deductions. With all these benefits in mind, investing in a professional corporate gifting service can really pay off!
Choosing Between Corporate Gifting Companies
First and foremost, we recommend that you look for a gifting company that specializes in corporate gifting and has corporate experience, as corporate gifting really is a niche in the wide world of gifting. Look for a list of their corporate partners or partner logos on their website. More specifically, look for previous experience with other businesses in the same industry.
Once you’ve narrowed down your search, do your due diligence and read reviews online or ask for testimonials from their corporate clients. Next, schedule a one-on-one consultation to gather more information about how they do business and to explore your options. It’s a good idea to request a detailed corporate gifting quote from a few different companies to compare your options and help you make a decision.
Another thing to look out for is a gifting service that takes sustainability seriously. With each passing year, sustainability becomes more and more important to your employees and clients; now more than ever, they want to receive eco-friendly and socially conscious gifts.
Our Fresh Twist on “Business Gift Baskets”
When you think corporate gifting, certain images might pop into your mind— like those corny gift baskets overflowing with food, wrapped up with cellophane and a big red bow. But today’s corporate gifts can look vastly different; they can be modern, tasteful, and luxurious!
Here at Bestowe, we’re constantly innovating and reimagining what corporate gifting looks like. We’re doing everything we can to make corporate gifting more sustainable and locally-minded. We carefully source the items in our gift sets from small-batch artisans and local businesses. And we package everything using natural, biodegradable materials.
We offer both custom and ready-to-ship gift sets to fit almost any occasion and budget. To help you visualize the possibilities, here are a few of our most popular employee and client thank you gifts:
- A Little Thank You: This gift set features a luxurious candle, some Dom Perignon champagne gummy bears, and a festive matchbook. It’s sweet and simple– a versatile welcome gift for a new client or celebratory gift to ring in a new year.
- Work Wellness: This gift full of wellness items is a great way to recognize that hardworking employee who deserves a bit of extra self-care. These superfood latte mixes will keep them happy, healthy, and energized!
- Home Office Upgrade: This gift is the perfect morale (and productivity!) booster for employees who work from home.
- Creative Brainstorm: This gift set– with a sketchbook, vibrant colored pencils, and other fun goodies– will help get your employees’ creative juices flowing. Inspired employees will be much more motivated and enthusiastic!
- Compliment Your Kitchen: The delicious, small-batch items in this gift set, like high-quality olive oil and beautiful fruit crisps, certainly won’t go to waste. It’s another versatile gift suitable for employees and clients alike.
- Tea Times & Coffee Breaks: Everyone deserves a little break from time to time! This gift set will encourage your employees to take a bit of time to themselves– and in doing so, help lower the risk of burnout.
Shop This Gift Box
If you’re looking for an engaging gifting experience to go along with big conference, anniversary shindig, or product launch, we can handle large-volume custom gifting for any size event! You can either choose one of the gifts sets above or work with our gifting experts to create something totally unique.
Your New Corporate Gift Supplier!
If you’re ready to surprise and delight your employees and customers with thoughtful, unique gifts, talk with a Bestowe corporate gifting consultant about your options. We’ll help you come up with an inspired gift that brings your brand to life and exceeds your expectations!
“Bestowe made a gifting experience feel as amazing behind the scenes as it did for those receiving it. Catherine truly delivers a delightful end-to-end experience, from taking your idea and bringing it to life within your budget, to the presentation of the shipment and the final unveiling of the gifts. In a corporate world where swag is normal, the unanimous consensus was that this was the most thoughtful and beautiful gift package they have ever received.” - Maria Kim, Google
If you still aren't convinced about sending out corporate gifting that goes beyond the swag gifts and throwaway gifts from yesteryear, contact us and we'll walk you through it or get more stats from Postal.
