Corporate holiday giveaways

BY THIS time, most business enterprises must have sent their Christmas gifts to their clients, customers or people who helped them, one way or the other, this year in their business.

Next to the 13th-month pay that employers are obliged to give to their employees, sending holiday greetings through presents to the people mentioned is considered standard operating procedure in the business community.

This process follows the social pecking order. The nature or price of the gift is directly proportional to the level of influence the recipient enjoys in the business hierarchy.

Although titles are helpful in deciding what to give, it is essential the gift giver knows who really controls the levers of power in the management room.

The executive whose signature sets things in motion in business transactions gets the most valuable gift. Those under him would have to content themselves with gifts of lesser value or, as some Scrooge businessmen do, a lunch or dinner treat with the rest of the staff.

Regardless of how it is done, what matters is the people with whom the company dealt business with during the year gets a token of appreciation for services or favors rendered.

Food baskets

Finding the gift that pleases or fits the person to whom it is given can be difficult if it involves people who (almost) have everything in life or can afford to have them without breaking the bank.

Giving branded or signature personal items is risky. It’s possible the intended recipient may have them already or they’re not the kind of products the recipients would like to have or be seen with. Taste, after all, is relative; what may be sophisticated to one may be tacky to another.

Worse, if the supposedly high-end item turns out to be a fake or a cleverly produced Made in China knock-off, the recipient would feel insulted and consider the gift an affront to his social standing, rather than a gesture of goodwill.

To avoid these possible gaffes, it is considered safe to gift people who supposedly have everything in life with baskets of imported food products from prestigious boutique shops.

Lately, food baskets have become the go-to choice as gift for people who do not have the time to shop and just want to get over this holiday ritual as soon as possible.

It helps there are food baskets in the market today that fit the gift-giver’s budget and, in some stores, the buyer can choose the products to put in the basket and the manner it is wrapped.

Promotions

Today’s holiday gifts or giveaways have, aside from conveying the season’s greetings, become advertising or promotional materials.

The logo or brand name of the business is prominently displayed in the gifts. It’s the first thing that catches the attention of the person who sees them. Don’t think of removing it if you are averse to the idea of looking like a walking advertisement material because it is done in indelible ink or paint.

Gift givers cannot be faulted for trying to shoot two birds with one stone, so to speak. They want to get the most out of the money they spend for the gifts.

Although T-shirts, umbrellas and bull caps remain the favorites, corporate giveaways in recent years have become imaginative and in tune with the times.

When iPads were the rage some years ago, a lot of corporations gave as Christmas presents leather covers and protective materials for these gizmos with, of course, their logos prominently displayed.

When “selfies” (or taking photos of one’s self or in the company of others through smartphones) became popular among practically all age groups, selfie sticks were on top of the list of giveaways.

This year, accessories related to the operation and use of smartphones and other Internet-based gadgets, such as power banks, miniboosters and other similar materials, are the popular choices for corporate Yuletide presents.

Recognition

For some business establishments, the Christmas gift-giving ritual sometimes raises a “moral” problem. In this season of giving, shouldn’t those who have less in life, rather than those who can afford to get the good things in life, be the recipients of gifts?

The millions of pesos spent for presents to people with whom the company did business during the year could be used to help alleviate the living conditions of the poor and homeless, or victims of natural calamities.

Unfortunately, the reality on the ground demands that the clients or customers who contributed to the company’s bottom line have to be made happy during this season because doing otherwise could have adverse consequences on the business in the future.

The middle ground often resorted by companies that find themselves in this moral conflict is to donate the amount allocated for gifts to a particular recipient to a charitable institution and inform him that the donation (without specifying the amount) was made in his name.

Many companies did this some years back when the country was hit by natural calamities that rendered thousands of Filipinos homeless and destitute.

The action drew mixed reactions from the intended gift recipients. Some appreciated it, others felt they should have been consulted first before the gift was shifted to the institution.

There is no right or wrong in the corporate gift-giving process. At the end of the day, it is the corporate culture or the values of management that decide it.

For comments, please send your email to rpalabrica@inquirer.com.ph.