TIPS AND TRICKS FOR BUSINESS SUCCESS AND GROWTH

By Rama Beerfas

November 7, 2009 (San Diego’s East County) - While most people believe that the best time to give holiday business gifts is in the week or two leading up to Christmas, there are several compelling reasons to choose either Thanksgiving or New Year for business-related gift-giving.

Although Christmas is traditionally a time to give and receive gifts in our culture, there are several reasons to choose a different time:
 

1) Many offices close or individuals choose this time to take time off. Your gift won't get to them if they are not there. Worse, if it is a food gift, it may even spoil before it is received.
 

2) Not everyone celebrates Christmas. While a gift of appreciation is always welcomed, the fact is that we don't want to alienate anyone by not recognizing that people do have different beliefs and celebrate those at various times of the year. In light of this, why not take advantage of other holidays throughout the year to show appreciation to your clients, employees, referral sources, vendors and others who have made your business a success over the past year?
 

3) By giving your business gift when everyone else's is delivered, you run the risk of getting lost in the deluge of baskets, boxes and cards.
 

By giving your business gifts either at Thanksgiving or just after New Year's, you are guaranteed to beat the holiday rush of gifts that become a jumble of items and baskets with no one quite remembering what came from who. You will either be amongst the very first gifts to arrive (if not the first), or one of the very last; making you stand out among the crowd.
 

What better time to give a gift in thanks of new business, continued business, loyalty from employees, appreciation of referrals and/or great support and service from vendors than Thanksgiving? The sentiment will be well appreciated at this most appropriate and American of holidays. Since Thanksgiving is about one month before most people's gifts arrive, yours will never get lost in the shuffle, giving you that extra wow factor.
 

Are you afraid that it will look like the recipient was an afterthought on the gift list if you opt for a post-New Year gift? It won't if you treat it as a gift in thanks for their business last year and the anticipation of yet another successful year working together.

Rama Beerfas is the Chief Solutions Specialist of San Diego-based Lev Promotions, offering marketing consulting, promotional product programs, and business holiday gifts. Rama also offers seminars and training in topics related to marketing and customer service. She can be reached at (619) 697-2045 or at rama@levpromotions.com. Please submit requests for column topics to the above e-mail address.  For more Marketing Matters tips, see http://www.eastcountymagazine.org/taxonomy/term/310.