Who, what, when and how much to give to your insurance clients
Should you give gifts to clients during the holiday season? Business gift giving can be a challenging task, coming up with a great idea that won’t break the bank year after year. And then there’s always the question, where do you draw the line? Who gets a gift and who doesn’t – and do any of them know each other so that it could backfire on you?
Why give top insurance clients a gift?
The answer seems obvious: We do so to show our appreciation to those clients who’ve added significantly to our bottom line. It’s a human touch – a personal touch – a way of saying “I appreciate your business and our working relationship.” There’s another bonus to business gift giving, whether you do it during the holidays or at other times during the year: it helps keep your agency top-of-mind with your clients. You may choose to present a gift just after they’ve renewed – or wait until just before renewal time.
Steps to creating your holiday gift strategy
Create a budget – and stay within it. You may want to include in your holiday gift giving budget amounts not only for clients, but also for employees and significant third-party vendors.
Create a list of gift recipients. Write down every name. In the crunch of buying gifts, it’s easy to overlook someone important, and chances are they’ll be good friends with someone who received a gift when they didn’t. Oops. Then, once you study your list, jot down appropriate amounts next to each name. Tally’em up. Reduce the amounts or jettison a name or two if you’re overbudget; otherwise, you’ll need to increase your budget. Make these decisions ahead of time – not while you’re in the middle of shopping. As you may know from past personal experience, it’s easy to go way over budget.
Tailor gifts to your clients’ interests. Find out what sports, hobbies or pastimes your clients enjoy. Does she play golf? Look for a golf-themed gift. Does he have photos of his dogs? A gift certificate to a local pet store or an array of home-baked dog treats from Etsy would be perfect. Does he have a penchant for red wine or Mexican food? Think back over your meal times with the client, and you can probably pinpoint a favorite food or beverage. If you can’t recall, it’s perfectly okay to contact an assistant or associate. When you make your gift thoughtful and personalized, based on the client’s preferences, she will remember you as well for your attentiveness.
Related: Insurance agency email tips during the holidays
Reconsider the timing. Remember that some of your clients may not celebrate Christmas; if they don’t, then it may be better to give a gift at another time of the year. And if you’re just now in the process of landing their account, it’s probably better to wait until they’ve signed on the dotted line; otherwise, it can be interpreted as trying to buy their business.
Count the cost. An inexpensive gift can make you look cheap, so now’s not the time to give away pens, mousepads or notepads emblazoned with your logo. At the same time, giving a lavish present could be embarrassing or look as if you’re trying to gain brownie points to score more of their business.
Be appropriate. When giving a gift to a client of the opposite sex, avoid anything that could possibly be construed as even slightly intimate. “Sometimes a gift given in innocence can be taken the wrong way,” said Lydia Ramsey in “The Etiquette of Gift-Giving in Business.”
Opt for a charitable donation. If you’re a commercial lines producer, it’s likely your client has a webpage that talks about their charitable work, so you can choose to donate in their name. If you’re a personal lines producer, simply choose a local charity and give in your client’s name. Then send a holiday card, as we discussed in an earlier post that says in lieu of a holiday gift, you’ve donated to XYZ charity in their name. “That way,” as Ramsey says, “everyone wins. A charity is served, and no one has another unwanted gift to deal with.”
Related: Your quick guide to sending business holiday cards
Make your presentation festive. Every marketer knows the presentation (or the packaging) is often as important as what’s inside. It sets the tone and says “You’re special,” so don’t scrimp on your gift wrapping, even if you’re handing out gift cards or gift certificates. Choose extravagant-looking envelopes and find someone with calligraphy skills or at least very nice handwriting. Then add a personal note inside.
What are some well-priced ideas for business gift giving?
Your gift-giving doesn’t have to break the bank, either. BusinessNewsDaily.com assembled a list of 12 items, all under $200, that make great client gifts. Their list included Edible Arrangements to share with the client’s staff, a Kindle reader for the client who either has a long commute or travels quite a bit, and one-of-a-personalized-kind gifts from Etsy.com. If you have quite a few personal lines clients to gift, you might consider ordering a case of wine that has a custom-created label with your logo on it, from Personal Wine. Just make sure that if your logo appears on any of your gifts, it’s understated and not blatantly sales-y, Ramsey reminded.
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Additional resources:
Business Gift Giving Etiquette and Mistakes to Avoid
When to Give Business Gifts and Who to Give Them to