Should you buy your clients Christmas gifts?

It’s a reasonable question. Buying gifts for clients at Christmas can be an intimidating prospect that takes time to organise. As such, business leaders should consider which of their clients to buy gifts for in the run-up to the festive season. Fortunately, we’re here to help you not only plan but source Christmas wine gifts that are ideal for your corporate contacts. 

In this blog, we break down the various pros and cons of buying Christmas gifts for business clients, along with the considerations.  

The challenges of buying Christmas gifts for clients 

Buying gifts for clients is very different to buying gifts for employees. This is because a client is someone that interacts with a part of your business, typically to provide a service or to receive goods. As a result, you may not have an intimate knowledge of them as a person, simply because you don’t see them that often. This can be the case even with clients where there is a longstanding and close relationship, depending on the situation. For instance, a client who operates as a third party for packaging your products might not interact with you in person very often. 

Tips for buying client Christmas gifts

Taking the above points into consideration, we’ve put together a checklist to help you buy gifts for clients this Christmas. Giving gifts is a great opportunity to show thanks to your clients and add some personal flair to the relationship. Although, care should be taken not to get too informal. They are still your business partners first and foremost.  

•  Make it personal – your client is unlikely to be blown away by a generic gift that doesn’t speak to their interests or industry. Instead, you should do the research to find a gift that they will genuinely appreciate and get use out of. Christmas gifts are also a great opportunity to take establish a personal line of communication with a client as well as a professional one. 
• Focus on quality – it sounds obvious, but no one wants a tacky gift, especially when they are a client who has contributed to your business significantly. A luxury corporate gift, such as a fine red wine, is a brilliant way to give back to a client who has helped take your enterprise to the next level. 
• Check their regulations – some companies have extensive documents that outline their policy for giving and receiving gifts. Oftentimes, these rules will apply to both internal and external corporate gifting. 

Why you should buy gifts for clients at Christmas

Buying gifts for clients and employees has been shown to be effective for deepening relationships and getting benefits for your business and the ones you work with. Giving client gifts shows that you value what they do, rather than just operating as two ships passing in the night. An order might bring in thousands of pounds in revenue due to the actions of one of your clients. As such, sending gifts serves as a way to give back to valuable clients that have contributed to the growth of your business. 

Gifts can be personalised in many ways depending on the client and their business. It shows you have been paying attention to how they operate and what their preferences are. Getting to know your clients on a personal level, and letting them know you understand them, can lead to you working more closely with them in the future. This can in turn lead to the greater revenue generation. 

Gifts that make a lasting impression can also expand your brand reach. Good Christmas gifts can keep your business at forefront of your client’s mind as they head into the new year. The result is that, as work starts up again and new ventures, are more likely to consider working with you. They may also recommend your product/services to contacts, leading to new clients and opportunities. This is all off the back of one well-thought-out gift. 

Bespoke branded corporate gifts 

Jean Juviniere are passionate sommeliers committed to spreading the joys of fine wine to businesses and their employees and clients. As an experienced corporate gifting company, we know just how important your client relationships are to the health of your business. Making an impression is all the more crucial at Christmas too. That’s why when you book a personal wine tasting, we come to you with a selection of gifting wines which have been chosen based on you and your client’s relationship. If you have any unusual considerations for your client gift, you can contact us directly through the form on our website.