What better way to show your appreciation for your customers than to send them a customer appreciation gift on special occasions? Your competitors may try to win customers back with old “thank you” emails. You, on the other hand, can make a lasting impression.
The problem with gifts is deciding what to send. You cannot choose something that is too expensive or something that may be considered worthless. When choosing gift ideas, you must tread a fine line between cost and utility.
How to Market Using Gifts?
While the obvious goal of a customer appreciation gift is to show you care, it also serves another purpose: it promotes your online store. Customers should feel happy and appreciated, but it would also be nice if they recommended your store to their friends.
There are a few things to consider when using customer appreciation gifts as a marketing tactic.
Discounts vs. gifts
Using discounts and offers to increase sales is common practice in e-commerce. The question is how a discount compares to a gift in terms of marketing impact.
To answer this question, you must consider two factors:
- How frequently you offer discounts: The perceived value of a discount depends on how frequently you offer it. Customers may be uninterested in another discount, no matter how large, if you have frequent sales and offers.
- Value and terms of the discount: A steep discount with liberal terms may end up costing you more than a gift. Customers may be turned off if the discount is too small and the terms are too restrictive.
Surprisingly, consumer psychology research shows that people prefer to get more rather than spend less. A gift may have a higher perceived value because it provides more.
Of course, this only applies if you tell your customers you’re giving them a gift.
Explicit vs. Hidden Gifts
Should you inform customers about the gift or keep it a surprise for them?
Each approach has advantages and disadvantages. Informing customers ahead of time may persuade them to make a purchase, especially if they perceive the gift as a “deal.” Simultaneously, it deprives you of the customer delight that comes with a surprise gift.
What approach you take will be determined by your goals for the gift. Choose a surprise gift if your goal is to delight customers, build loyalty, and increase word of mouth (including social media).
If you want to use gifts as an incentive to buy more, tell customers about it right away.
Gifting to a Subset of Customers vs. Gifting to all Customers
Another conundrum is deciding who to gift – some customers or all of them?
The obvious disadvantage of gifting to everyone is the cost. You may not reap many benefits from gifting people who are inactive on social media or are unlikely to recommend you to their friends.
At the same time, only gifting a few customers may make them feel special at the expense of other customers. Customer B may be perplexed as to why Customer A received a gift while he did not. This can lead to resentment for your brand, which is the opposite of the purpose of gifting.
A better strategy would be to target your top 20% of customers. These are either customers who use social media or customers who fit your ideal customer profile. Because you want more of these customers, targeting them can produce better results.
Increase the Impact of Your Gifts
There are a few things you should keep in mind to get the most out of your customer appreciation gifts:
Customers are more likely to buy when there is a “mystery” involved in the purchase. Keeping the gift hidden can help in this situation.
Customers who receive something unexpected and free are more likely to shop again. As a result, it may be worthwhile to lose money upfront on a sale by making a gift. You can compensate by making additional purchases.
Giving away a freebie generates immediate word of mouth, especially if the gift is the customer’s first interaction with your brand. Thus, in addition to your top customers, you can target first-time buyers when giving away gifts to make a good first impression.
Concentrate on customers who are active on social media or have a history of sharing your products. Encourage them to post pictures of their gifts on their favorite social network.
Instead of giving a gift, consider donating to charity on behalf of the customer. According to research, charitable donations outperform practical gifts, especially when the original purchase was frivolous.
These are just a few ideas for making the most of your gifts. Your next task will be to choose the appropriate gift. We’ll go over some gift-selection guidelines below.
How to Choose Customer Appreciation Presents?
A customer appreciation gift is typically something physical, useful, and in some way related to your business. Its goal is straightforward: to thank customers for their patronage. The quality of the gift will determine whether it elicits a “wow” or an “eh.”
When choosing a customer appreciation gift, you must adhere to several guidelines:
◾ It should have perceived value:
Above all, the gift should have perceived value. Even if it is inexpensive, it must meet a customer’s need or appear valuable to the customer.
◾ It should be beneficial:
A good gift usually serves some practical purpose. Souvenirs and trinkets that serve no purpose are quickly forgotten. Every time the customer uses a useful gift, it will remind them of your company.
◾ It should be simple to store and transport:
No customer wants to deal with an unwanted gift that takes up too much space in their home. You also don’t want to deal with the hassle of transporting a large gift. Always opt for something small and convenient to transport.
◾ It should be long-lasting and durable:
A perishable or easily destroyed gift will quickly lose its value. Avoid fragile items or anything that could spoil in a few weeks.
◾ It should be business-related:
An ideal gift is business-related in some way so that it reminds the customer of you. If you own a fashion store, choose a fashion accessory rather than a macroeconomics book.
Conclusion
Keep your customer personas in mind when choosing gifts. Consider: what would someone in this demographic enjoy? A cheap gift card to a discount store, for example, would not work if your target customers make more than $200,000 per year and live in a wealthy suburb.
Make demographics the focal point of your gift-selection process, and you’ll never go wrong.
We at RewardPort offer you an amazing number of rewards that your customers can redeem across multiple categories. MCOG (My Choice of Gift) is simple for your young users to use and tends to make a profit and redeeming points a breeze.
