The following are speaker notes from Gift Linx Owner/Director Vickie Gregson’s keynote address at SWNG July 2020.
OUR MISSION STATEMENT:
To encourage and assist people to invest in themselves by cultivating a habit of thoughtfulness. As I speak with you this morning I would like you to think about your perspective on gifting – do you see it purely as an expense or could it be an investment?
WHAT IS OUR POINT OF DIFFERENCE?
1) PERSONAL SERVICE – we give your small business the same service, care and attention as our larger clients. You have one person as your point of contact.
2) Our gifts are not mass produced , but put together with a lot of thought
3) And probably most importantly at this time – Australian owned with 2 criteria: Our products are either made in Australia and if we cannot source the item we buy from Australian suppliers
WHAT BENEFITS WILL YOU GET FROM USING OUR BUSINESS FOR YOUR GIFTING?
FROM CONFUSION TO CLARITY When I ask the question “Do you give settlement gifts?” often the answer is “Not well”
FROM INTENTION TO ORGANISATION How many of you have had the good intention to thank someone, or congratulate, thinking of you? – but life gets busy, the window of opportunity shuts and we then regret that we didn’t.
SAVE YOU TIME No more searching on line or the shops or last minute running around
SAVE YOU MONEY We work within your budget. The feedback we get is that we save you money instead of buying last minute
SAVE YOU ANGST We do the work for you – from your to do list to ours
WE WILL ASSIST WITH THAT ONE OFF GIFT - YOU HAVE THE OPTION OF ORDERING COMPLETELY ON LINE
How would it feel, that when an opportunity presents itself you have a gift ready in your office? A gift that you’re confident will impress and show the recipient that you are not only thoughtful and generous, but also the value you place on them.
I was giving my pitch to a gentleman and whilst he thought it was important to show gratitude he asked, “but what is the ROI?”
FACT: U.S corporate gifting is a 22 billion dollar industry.
(Popomaronis, 2014)
Today’s business world is RELATIONSHIP CENTRIC no longer just about the product or service - Building strong ties - Building loyalty - Networking.
Which will ultimately lead to more REFERRALS – that’s the RETURN ON INVESTMENT
OUR PROCESS:
1) We have a chat ABOUT
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who you WOULD like to gift
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Budget
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Branding
2) I put together samples and send photos
3) Show you the samples - tweak any
4) Deliver
AS EASY AS THAT – ORGANISED
THE GIFTS WE CHOOSE PRIMARILY ARE BASED ON THINGS
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THAT WILL BE USED OFTEN
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IMPRESS THE INNER CIRCLE
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WILL BE ON PUBLIC DISPLAY (ENTERTAINING) CREATING CONVERSATIONS ALL OF THIS KEEPS YOU FRONT OF MIND – UNLIKE A HAMPER THAT IS FORGOTTEN QUICKLY.
DO IT WELL - HOW WILL YOU STAND OUT?
With a well thought out gift or something that looks like a last minute, token gift, it’s not the thought that counts if there is no thoughtfulness put into it. Wine is often the go to gift and I have spoken about the appropriateness of it, we have alternatives.
Wine is re-gifted 38% of the time – a wasted gift.
If you want to have an impact you need to hook into the emotional psyche of people, best summed up by Maya Angelou “People will soon forget what you said, will soon forget what you did but not how you made them feel.”
Make those in your business chain feel valued – employees, clients, potential clients, suppliers, couriers and you not only elevate your own reputation, but the ripple effect will be a positive energy around your business.
So there is no denying that gifting incurs an expense – but then so do all marketing tools. The difference is that you are marketing directly to your target. So that relationships are strengthened, your reputation is elevated and YOU are front of mind - that is INVESTING IN YOURSELF
"Sometimes a change of perspective is all it takes to see the light"
- Dan Brown -
References
Popomaronis, T. (2014, November 14). This $22 Billion Industry Is Dying. Meet the Startup Reviving It. Retrieved from Inc.: https://www.inc.com/tom-popomaronis/this-22-billion-dollar-industry-is-dying-meet-the-startup-reviving-it.html