In questo articolo
Winter is approaching. This means that the Christmas holidays are just around the corner, and it’s time to start thinking about Christmas gifts.
No, we are not talking about gifts for your family to exchange under the tree, but about corporate gifts that every business should distribute to its employees, partners, and clients.
A gift is always received with joy and gratitude, but corporate gifts also have specific purposes in terms of business marketing: they are in fact very important for enhancing the image of a business!
Let’s explore together what these gifts are and why you should also use them for your company.
What are corporate gifts, who are they intended for, and what purpose do they serve?
On the Treccani.it website, there are two definitions of the term gift:
"A present, gift (usually of modest value) offered as an expression of esteem, respect, or gratitude."
"An object or product offered as a gift by a company for promotional or advertising purposes."
The terms expression of esteem and for promotional purposes perfectly encapsulate the objectives for which a company should give gifts on certain occasions: to show gratitude to those who chose them, but also to better promote their brand.
As mentioned earlier, gifts are very important because they can help achieve specific goals. Here they are.
1. To improve corporate engagement
"Take care of your employees because they will take care of your company," declared Richard Branson, English entrepreneur and founder of Virgin Group.
The company is like a machine made up of many gears that only work if the individual components operate in synergy, actively collaborating.
Take advantage of the holiday season to show your gratitude to those who work for you: with a gift, you can symbolically thank those who dedicate their time and energy to your company every day. It’s an opportunity to increase corporate engagement and build a deep connection with your collaborators who, thanks to the gift, will feel appreciated and more involved in the company’s reality.
2. To build customer loyalty
A satisfied customer is a loyal customer who will return in the future. Customer satisfaction regarding a product, service, or company is summarized in marketing by the term Customer Satisfaction, and it is now an essential lever for investment.
The gift symbolizes your attention towards customers who trusted you: it shows that you appreciated their choice and wanted to reward them for preferring you over others.
A custom gift branded with your logo, whenever used, will recall the image of your company in the mind of its owner and remind them to come back to buy your products.
The advantages of customer loyalty are numerous. Here are some:
- Cost reduction: convincing someone who has already bought from you to return is simpler and more cost-effective than acquiring new customers.
- Positive word-of-mouth: it is one of the best methods to build an image and increase sales. Satisfied customers are more likely to speak well of your company and recommend it to their loved ones.
- New sales opportunities: loyal customers not only return often, but tend to spend more because they already know and trust you.
- Competitive advantage: the happier people are, the more they speak positively about your brand and return to you, reducing sales opportunities for your competitors.
3. To launch a new product or service
Have you launched a new product? You could give your customers a free sample to use at home and recommend to their friends and family. Such a gift would once again help word-of-mouth.
You can do the same for a service you intend to launch soon: you could give a demo to your partners and, based on their reactions and feedback, even understand if there are details to improve before the official launch.
4. To highlight a particular initiative of your company
With certain corporate gifts, you can let your followers know what you are doing, the philosophy of your company, or if you have undertaken particular social initiatives.
For example, you can communicate your involvement in social, humanitarian, or environmental causes by making a donation to charities in the name of your employees and suppliers, or by adopting a tree or a koala for each customer who chose you!
Corporate gifts for clients: did you know they are tax deductible?
Representation expenses, which include all costs incurred by a company to promote itself, start relationships with new contacts, and strengthen existing ones, are deductible.
Expenses for gifts purchased and intended for clients are governed by the former D.M. 19.11.2008, implementing art. 108, paragraph 2 of DPR no. 917/86 (TUIR), and are deductible in various ways:
- 100% deductible if the unit value of the gift does not exceed €50 (this applies to a single gift, but also, for example, to a Christmas basket containing various food products);
- If the unit value exceeds €50 or in the case of gift vouchers for services (such as free cinema or theater tickets), the expenses are deductible within a “deductibility ceiling” equal to:
- 1.5% of revenues and other income, up to €10 million;
- 0.6% of revenues and income, for the portion exceeding €10 million up to €50 million;
- 0.4% of revenues and income, for the portion exceeding €50 million.
Gifts to employees, on the other hand, are not considered representation expenses but fall under the employer’s liberal disbursements to employees.
5 ideas for your corporate gifts
Whether the recipient is a client, employee, collaborator, or supplier, there are endless ideas for a corporate Christmas gift.
Beyond the gift itself, it is important to choose the most suitable packaging, as this is also an integral part of the gift.
Our advice is to use custom fabric Christmas bags with your company logo! A charming, alternative, and ecological choice to make your company more sustainable and your gift even more memorable.
Now all that’s left is to find some ideas to use for the upcoming holidays. We’ve gathered a few for you.
1. Artisanal gastronomic specialties
Christmas baskets and seasonal gift packages are always present in December, but you could offer alternative containers to the usual wicker or cardboard boxes: fabric bags! Ideally, reach out to an artisan bakery or pastry shop to gift bags of sweets and chocolates, always appreciated, even by children.
Alternatively, you can choose a pandoro or panettone to enclose in a valuable fabric panettone holder or opt for bottles of oil or DOC wine packaged in a velvet bottle bag.
Finally, if this year you decide to gift cured meats and aged cheeses, you might choose burlap bags or small burlap trunks—sturdy and rustic in appearance, perfect for these products.
2. Charity gifts
A charitable idea is perfect for Christmas. You can opt for a donation to charities or adopt a tree or endangered animal on behalf of your clients, employees, or collaborators. In these cases, associations usually send postcards or certificates to be delivered directly to the gift recipients.
3. Free versions of your company’s products
As mentioned earlier, you can give a demo, free trial, or sample product. Discount coupons are particularly useful because:
- they encourage customers to also purchase less popular items by taking advantage of excellent value for money;
- they boost sales of off-season items that might otherwise remain unsold.
In these cases, the gift becomes a tool that encourages customers to buy, increases loyalty rates, and reduces potential warehouse stock.
4. Office and desk items
An organized and well-equipped desk can enhance productivity! You could gift a succulent plant to brighten up the workspace or choose a classic planner for the upcoming year.
Alternatively, you could select a mug for office use and fill it with packets of hot chocolate, coffee beans, or a selection of Christmas-scented teas.
5. Scented decorations for the home
Did you know Christmas has its own scent? It is a fragrance composed of ginger, cinnamon, orange, vanilla, and anise!
Various types of candles and potpourri sets that recreate this scent are available on the market.
This year, you could place these scents inside pure linen bags that can be placed on a shelf to scent a room or tucked into a drawer or wardrobe.
Alternatively, a Christmas plant can bring a pleasant fragrance to the homes of your collaborators. You might add a fabric plant holder to hang from the ceiling as an accessory.
If the plant is small, you can use a small and charming red burlap Christmas bag.
Choose made-to-measure fabric packaging for your corporate gifts
You focus on choosing the gifts, because we can take care of the bags for your corporate gifts! We have been dedicated for over a decade to creating premium fabric packaging.
