The Christmas gift story begins with the desire to give to people who’ve helped you along the way this year. For smaller businesses this can be quickly seen to with a few crates of beer or chocolates off the supermarket shelf, but for businesses growing a brand, it’s time to sit down and think about your clients and how they will feel receiving a gift from you. The warm fuzzy feeling going on around giving has got to fit with your brand.
To make it simple, you shouldn’t pick gifts that conflict with your brand and what it stands for.
To make it simple, you shouldn’t pick gifts that conflict with your brand. If your brand is all about Health and Well-being, you probably wouldn’t select Chocolates and Wine. Why ever not? Because these foods are, sadly, associated with indulgence and excessive eating.
Selecting who to give to… We always recommend including your team members (whether they know about the Christmas gift idea or not, it will still be a surprise that they’re included in receiving it) along with your Top Customers and Top Suppliers. These 3 stakeholders, or whatever you like to call them, are supremely responsible for keeping your business up & running. Remember them, at least once a year.
And on this point, it doesn’t have to be at Christmas, some companies are now jogging the gift into January, to keep it separate from the overdose of gifting that comes at Christmas. That said you don’t want the gift to look as though it’s a last minute idea, or purchased only in the sale, and potentially lose impact.
Really your gift should epitomise your brand.
Are you known to be generous, crazy, funny, fast, innovative? Is your brand smart/sleek/chic and brilliantly mod or a steady/seclusive/mature/luxurious commodity?
Really your gift should epitomise your brand. For this you need to think about how others see your brand. Are you known to be generous, crazy, funny, fast, innovative? Is your brand smart/sleek/chic and brilliantly mod or a steady/seclusive/mature/luxurious commodity?
Then think about your customers, what gift is fitting for them personally (consider – would they actually use this?) and are there any gifts that would get turned away. Some companies do have strong gifting policies in place, preventing potential bribery in the form of “gifts” in exchange for contracts, even enforcing staff to return gifts or request that they are collected (making for an embarrassing phone call, instead of a pleasant thanks).
This is where the Mince pie pack has proved popular because it’s a fun and non-offensive office sharer, sits by the coffee machine and everyone gets one. (We firmly believe it beats most of the list below for originality and share-ability!)
Another thing, where we use the term “Top” Customer – this refers to people who have placed bigger orders with you. The gift should really be proportionate to orders placed. In the case of Customers or Suppliers, you need to be thinking about the contacts and companies where you want to strengthen the relationship for longevity. Which companies are core to your business, and which companies do you want to keep your brand front of mind into the future.
Back to the topic of “What to give”… Anyone can use Google, but we believe the Top favourites list is covered off well with the list below.
Top Christmas Giveaways for Corporate companies
- Chocolates
- Wine
- Hampers
- Plants
- Notebooks
- Calendars
- Phone charger
- Pens
- Mugs
- Bobble hats
For more advice on promoting your brand through on-brand gifting (What to gift and What not to gift!), reach out to our team of expert advisers on 020 3011 0211, or via our Contact us page.
Merry Xmassive!
As we enter 2020, Consumers are becoming increasingly conscious of brands: Luxury, earthy or otherwise; with scrutiny of packaging being high on the agenda. First impressions count has never been truer.
They’re balancing their own values with sustainability, asking questions like: Will this product, service or luxury be available to generations to come? What is the long-term prognosis? Can this packaging be recycled or reused rather than wasted on rubbish heaps that we’re seeing in the news; or worst still, the scam of joining rubbish dumped off-shore.
Undoubtedly packaging still has it’s place: for Protection in delivery (delivering without damage), Presentation of the brand (for enhanced value, gaining an emotional connection and communicating with the consumer) and Security (so it reaches the consumer without being tampered with).
Balancing the protective packaging side of delivering products with over-protection and increased waste is an all-time belly ache for Packaging designers. Too much protection is seen as over-gilding and wastefully filling up our bins.
Presentation of the brand is all about making the core-values of the company align to the delivery of the product. Earthy products can’t come in plastic.
Security is going to depend very much on what, the weight, and how you’re delivering.
Whilst the large part of what we do is produced on paper that is FSC approved, we realise that for companies who promote sustainability and recycling as part of a strong core ethical belief, it is increasingly important for this to be crystal clear in all communication, not least in delivery to the consumer.
In brief, it is possible to produce Sustainable Presentation Packaging solutions for companies who promote and believe in a sustainable earth.
Are you looking to be more aligned for 2020? Reach out and Contact us
The #HARIBOShareTheScare Halloween box was a Spooktacular PR drop designed to showcase the frightfully good HARIBO range during the countdown to this hugely popular occasion.
With its creak and boo, it certainly delivered a hair raising smile this Halloween.
The HARIBOO box designed by HARIBO looked just like a trick or treat door. But, it was the inside that held all of the surprises this Halloween – with its ghostly creak and a delayed boo.
Just as you would imagine, the recipients reacted with a sweep of social content.
We’re all ready for our ‘Trick or Treat’ callers this Halloween thanks to Haribo – “We’ve got some Yummy little treats to hand out” – wrote Christine – Mummy of 3 Diaries; “Spooktastic delicious yummy sweets!” wrote ET (Eileen Teo from home), “My fave kind of PR packages!” wrote Con Con @Nagginsnnotions, “Thank you Haribo UK for our amazing #HARIBOShareTheScare box Bring on the Trick or treating!” – best Magazine on Facebook.
Just see what Grace at “Eats Amazing” performed with the pack
Have you got a product or service that you need to Share on Social? Don’t stay scared, step over and Contact us
From our family to yours… the Advent Calendar was made for Warburtons to dish out to PR teams.
Designed to take sliced white, wholemeal, pancakes and crumpets, within 5 compartments, the pack was baked to keep Warburtons front of mind through the busiest season of all.
Each pre-cut flap had room for a marketing message and within it lay the bread product, fresh from the bakery, and sealed to keep it fresh in delivery.
PR activity is enriched with creative presentation to inspire bloggers and journalists to comment and promote your products.
Discover what Kelly the Domestic Goddesque, Jenny at the Gingerbread House, Emily Foran, Angela Cheung, Helen on Crazy Kitchen, Cheryl on Madhouse Family Reviews, Pippa and Eileen Teo (ETS), have all been blogging about … Playing ‘Pure Imagination’ from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and jam-packed with ingredients to perform Warburtons Pancake Possibilities, this PR piece blew up a storm of pancake blogging in time for Shrove Tuesday with a pack that literally popped pancakes, off each corner …!
Popcorn staged the design and BoxcoUK set about the inner workings to cut the frame for all the ingredients, the spinning wheel and the popping pancakes, sprung loaded and tethered from the corners. The finished product was a work of art, produced at breakneck speed, robust enough to deliver ‘From our Family to Yours’ across the country, keeping followers of Mumsnet and other domestic (family orientated) blogging sites busy talking pancakes.
To quote Jenny, Mum-blogger at the Gingerbread House…
“My children absolutely loved opening the Magic Pancake Box which played Pure Imagination from the original Charlie and the Chocolate Factory film every time the lid was opened. The box was a very special full sensory fun packed pancake kit, which helped keep my children entertained during half term and also gave us some new ideas ahead of Pancake Day on March 4th”
Recipes included Chilli Jam & Lime, Granola & Shaved Coconut, Dried Banana & Cinnamon, Chocolate & Popping Candy, Feta Cheese & Mint Leaves, Marmite & Mascarpone and Pancetta & Pistachio…all served up on a Warburtons Pancake!
Mateusz of Popcorn Design comments
“Everyone that has had their box so far loves it! Warburtons are getting a brilliant response. We commissioned BoxcoUK to design the inner workings of the Pancake Possibilities pack, an idea we could only dream of beforehand – Thanks again for all your hard work!”
Colin from the Design Team at BoxcoUK
“This was a PR stunt, a pack that popped pancakes and sang ‘Pure Imagination’ every time you opened it. This pack was distributed to a selection of active bloggers. Going forward, a marketing piece that talks (or sings, or plays a video) every time you open it, is something that I can see there’s going to be a lot more call for. People want something to hold, talk about, send round the office, blog & tweet about.”
For great ideas and highly effective marketing communications that work, call BoxcoUK on 020 3011 0211 and speak to Ronnie Devine or for delicious bakery all year round visit Warburtons www.warburtons.co.uk