As we start to enter the Autumn and many clients start early planning for the “giving season” towards Q4 its never to early to think ahead to what your clients will be looking / asking for.
This area of our market has traditionally been dominated by alcohol, hampers, vouchers and lifestyle products to reward behaviour / loyalty during the year. Before we look into what the Tech world has to offer this season however let’s examine the concepts behind this behaviour and put it into a context so we can all choose carefully and get the max return from this peak season for our marketplace.
Like many aspects of business life giving & receiving gifts around Q4 is linked to influencing consumer behaviour and on closer scrutiny we see the “concept of reciprocity” is directly linked but what is this?
Looking at the definition In psychology, reciprocity is a social norm of responding to a positive action with another positive action and so rewarding kind actions. As a social construct, reciprocity means that in response to friendly actions, people are frequently much nicer and much more cooperative than predicted by the self-interest model; (Wikipedia)
This makes sense in our industry as companies / brand owners and employers want to reach out and create that positive feeling with a positive action such as giving a gift that then will create another positive feeling towards them for the following year be that a colleague, prospect, client or supplier. It’s this action and return positive brand / company loyalty that drives this season and why companies / brand owners think carefully about what will provoke and drive this positive feelings.
This is where we believe promotional technology can be very beneficial to your clients as the useful, quality and long lasting impact of a tech gift delivers exactly this feeling. Getting this right though is not easy as the wrong gift, poorly executed with the wrong ‘back story’ or thought can have the opposite feeling to that intended.
That’s why the concept recently launched of “Only give what you would want to receive” is so important to bear in mind when suggesting and planning your clients campaign ideas…
This concept is never more true than around the giving season where the investment in reciprocity should be carefully considered as the negative feeling of receiving a gift that does not meet the target audience’s expectation can have the opposite effect to that intended.
Promotional technology and lifestyle gifts provide your target with the right mix of useful, quality, responsible and products which fit their digital lifestyle / footprint.
So what will be trending and filling this objective this Autumn / Winter… lets take a look at some concepts. Tech giants like Apple have led the way with electronics which change / improve our way of living, the way we work, travel and communicate.
Trends over the last 12-18 months have shown clearly that items such as anti lost trackers for our keys, luggage or even pets are again hot - led by Apple’s AirTag which is now a must have for many.
Wireless magnetic charging is changing as all the major brands start to adapt their phone designs to allow for this - the Qi2 standard will become the norm for this over the coming months and this will become a universal gifting idea to suit all consumers - allowing them to charge devices quicker and more conveniently.
Audio products are always very popular lifestyle gifts and with more retail brands accepting the need to use more sustainable materials this will feature strong this season with a close eye on speakers, headphones and earbuds particularly.
Gifting in technology is always a good time to reconsider budget. Many clients now start to reduce the qty of gifts and focus on higher end gifting for their key customers. Sometimes the budget for these can be very substantial which is again where a well chosen technology gift can really make the perfect choice. In this area we are seeing growing demand for items such as micro wireless printers, projectors and of course retail brands often demonstrate to the recipient the “thanks” being offered and build that positive feeling.
Technology whether it’s for use in the home, office or while travelling is the must have merchandise this Autumn and when considered in its context of “ what would you like to receive “ can be the “go to” gifting experience this winter.
For help or advice about how promo tech can be used in your next campaign, get in touch with the team @ DTI - contact 0844 875 7624 or sales@desktopideas.com.
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