It’s the second month in the third quarter AKA it’s August. If you have kids you’re probably thinking about “back to school”. If you’re chasing the “endless Summer” you’re probably thinking about all the last minute getaways you can squeeze in before it’s too late.
But, if you’re like me; you’re excited to start talking with your clients about holiday gifts!
For most of us, the holiday season brings joys because we get the opportunity we always wanted with our clients.
We get to plan in advance, the budget is a little larger, and our clients are initiating the “how do we want them to feel” conversations.
Throughout the year we try to get our clients to plan in advance. We wish the budget was a bit larger so we could do some creative packaging or decoration method. AND we try to have the conversation about how do you actually want the recipients of your swag to feel when they receive your branded merch. However, as we all know sometimes we just don’t have time.
This all changes with holiday gifts.
Employee recognition and client appreciation are not just buzzwords. This is the time of year that most put a little more effort into their swag projects. Let’s make the most of this and start the conversation now so that we can be just a tad bit less stressed come December 1st.
Email Blast
Admittedly, this isn’t the best approach, however, this is a good place to start. It is only August and the majority of end users just aren’t ready to have this conversation yet. But, you know what, this is a good first step to plant the seed and let your clients know “Hey, I will be following up with you about this soon”.
Pick Up the Phone!
You know that laptop you carry around in your pocket? You know it can make actual calls, right?
We’re all so guilty of using our phones to check social media, respond to emails, and fire off texts. How often do you just call your clients though?
Picking up the phone to simply “check in” and see how Summer is going is never a bad thing. You likely know your clients' hobbies and can build a conversation leading to the initial discussion of holiday gifts.
Handwritten Notes
Do you write handwritten notes?
I do!
Not enough though, but I’ll tell you the response you receive from a handwritten note is so much more powerful than from any email you can ever compose. Take this one up a notch and send your clients a swag bag full of recent self promos and/or a teaser of one of your new favorite holiday items.
So that’s it. Pretty simple, right?
As you can see Holiday Gift Sales are important to my business. I’m sure they are to yours as well. If you don’t currently do anything similar to these steps then please try this out. I guarantee you’ll see a boost from last year’s sales. And hey, if you don’t have success with this, then hit me up in the new year and let’s find out why not and tweak this to work for you!
Swag On,
SwagSam
Sam Kabert is the creative director of ValueBP Marketing Group and the creator and co-host of the podcast “WhatUp Silicon Valley!” A risk taker who embraces permanent beta, Sam is leading the transformation of his family-run office supplies business into a promotional products powerhouse. Sam can be reached at Sam@ValueBP.com.