As the year that doesn’t seem to end slowly moves its way toward the holidays, it’s time to look at holiday appreciation and recognition. This year, we can’t express enough, you have an opportunity like no other to make a big impact on the relationships that are key to your business. 

People around the world continue to feel the impact of a variety of different crisis and they’ve likely spent months with limited human interaction compared to last year at this time.  Imagine what a small personal touch from you would do for the relationship you have with that person.

This isn’t a question of should you be working on some type of year end appreciation, this is a question of WHAT should your plan be?  In fact, we’ve already been fielding questions around which upcoming holiday would make a business stand out more.

To help you stay out of indecision and express more gratitude, we’ve taken some time to answer this specific question! 

Consider Non-Traditional Holiday Timing 

More and more businesses are catching on that in order to stand out, it might help to stay out of the clutter of the traditional Christmas Season timing. There are plenty of other opportunities between mid-November and New Years to deliver your thoughtfulness. And you certainly don’t need a specific holiday for this effort. Other options include:

• Daylight Savings End Date
• The Month of November
• Thanksgiving
• Black Friday/Cyber Monday Surprise
• Winter – Early December
• New Year
• Early January – Fresh start
• This year – The year of the unprecedented

Be creative. This is where the story you tell with the gift can really add some value and longevity to the relationship. 

Now, It’s Story Time

No matter which occasion you select as a fit for your business, you want it to tell a story.  The gift should be meaningful to the recipient and it should reflect something that relates to your brand.

The ultimate goal, outside of making the person feel seen and heard, is to make it easy and enticing for the recipient to share what you gave them or how you made them feel. 

At The Expressory, we believe there are 7 key attributes that a gift can have that will increase the likelihood the gift will stick around and be shared.  This year, there are 2 very easy ways you can win on the memorable front. 

Shared Experience.

Does the gift reference a shared experience between you and the recipient?  What did the entire world just experience together???  How can you find a gift that relates to the time we worked from home for 6 months to a year?  Or can it be focused on how we all learned to wear masks?   Could it be related to virtual meetings or schooling?  Remember, you don’t know what everyone has been through, so there is a need to be sensitive in the wording of the message and the gift.

Goal.

Another angle you can take is to tap into the attribute of Goal Achievement.   If your gift references a goal achieved or a future milestone that the person is working toward, this is gold as well.   2020 as a whole could be the theme in this case.  Won’t it feel like a milestone when we move to 2021?  Your gift could reference the future goal of much improved business growth or even brighter times.    So many of us are thinking it and any gift that pulls that shared thought out of us will sit on a desk or serve as a reminder of the better times ahead! 

Appreciation gifting this year should have an especially strong ROI for your business, but it needs to be given its proper thought. You don’t want to miss the mark by giving something that feels like marketing. The giving of appreciation and gratitude have a long-term impact on your loyalty and engagement.  

Not sure what story to tell?   That’s our favorite part!   Feel free to connect with our Customer Experience Team at info@TheExpressory.com and we’ll be happy to work with you on what to give and why!