The holiday season has felt a little different since 2020. However, the importance of holiday gifting is one thing that has stayed the same.
With some of your contacts working remotely, it’s now more difficult to schedule a lunch with a key client or grab a drink with a prospective partner.
But “different” doesn’t have to mean “daunting” —you can still express your gratitude to all of these connections from the comfort of your couch.
In this post, we’ll share 4 techniques that you can use to appreciate your key connections before Q4 culminates, including:
- Why personalized gratitude is impactful for your relationship-building efforts
- How the simple act of saying “Thank You” can go a long way
- 4 different ways to top off 2023 with personalized gratitude
Why Practicing Personalized Gratitude is Impactful
It’s no secret that we all love receiving a gesture of appreciation that’s personalized to our individual interests, hobbies, or needs. In fact, according to a study conducted by McKinsey, today’s consumers don’t just buy ubiquitous products or services—increasingly, their spending habits revolve around making unique and meaningful purchases.
This shift from generic to customized shopping can be applied to your holiday appreciation strategy. It starts with practicing personalized gratitude.
You might be wondering: what, specifically, is personalized gratitude? It’s expressing appreciation in a manner that is specifically tailored for the individual, group, or entity that you’re acknowledging.
Consider that every time you interact with a current customer or prospective partner and don’t share something that’s customized or relevant to their personal interests, you miss an opportunity to build the relationship further, or earn their loyalty.
Since we’ve all made a variety of adjustments as the year’s unfolded, this holiday season is the ideal time to take a moment to reflect on your interactions with prospects, clients, and employees to ensure that you execute thoughtful appreciation before the new year is upon us.
How Saying a Simple “Thank You” Leads to Large Returns
Personalization doesn’t have to be pricey. One way to bring a smile to a prospect or customer face is by simply saying “Thank You” to demonstrate how much you value the relationship.
Take note that when individuals are singled out and shown that they’re special, the likelihood that they’ll respond more favorably to you increases dramatically. And, new research has proven that recipients of emailed expressions of gratitude feel much more “ecstatic” than expected, so your “Thank You” notes will be equally effective when shared via email.
What’s more, a study conducted by Harvard Medical School endorses expressions of gratitude by claiming that when appreciation is displayed and communicated, people rise in three areas:
- They feel more valued.
- Their emotional connections are strengthened.
- They develop personal loyalty.
These outcomes build sentiments of reciprocity. So when you practice gratitude in your professional exchanges, that same type of reciprocity will enhance your business’ growth.
4 Ways to Top off 2023 with Personalized Gratitude
At Thnks, our team of gratitude gurus recognizes that practicing personalized gratitude results in long-term relationship gains!
To help you customize your expressions of appreciation this holiday season, our team has crafted four top tips to take into consideration:
1.) Try Sending an Experience
Just because we may be spending more time indoors doesn’t mean that we aren’t looking for activities to keep us from being “bored in the house.”
Try sending something experiential to your prospects or customers such as:
- A Holiday Movie Marathon – to help them get into the holiday spirit.
- 1 Month of Holiday Hits – so they can shamelessly blast Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas Is You” on repeat.
- A Holiday Happy Hour Bundle – so they can have their own holiday party while at home in the absence of standard celebrations.
2.) Personalize Your Gestures
Take a moment and ask yourself, “What do you know about your prospects or customers on a personal level?” If you’re struggling to generate ideas, try answering the following questions:
- What do you know about their family or family members?
- Do they have any pets?
- Have they mentioned any hobbies or passions during your meetings?
- Do you know where they grew up, or where they’re currently residing?
- Is there something in their Zoom background that divulges more about them or their personality?
Sharing personalized expressions of appreciation is always easier if you’re able to pinpoint shared similarities and passions.
3.) Keep Your Messages Customized
One way to practice personalized gratitude this holiday season is by customizing your messages for each of your recipients.
Be sure to include your recipients’ names, and if you can, reference topics or tidbits that you’ve discussed or learned in the process of establishing these relationships.
However, if these connections were recently initiated, try chatting with them over the next few weeks to get to know them better. Then, kick off the new year by sending them an expression of appreciation that’s aligned with the insights you’ve garnered.
4.) Send Something Essential
Just because you may be practicing “personalized” gratitude, doesn’t mean that your gestures have to be “expensive.”
Consider sharing expressions of appreciation that will help your contacts cover essential aspects in their everyday lives, such as:
- An Amazon Holiday Shopping Spree – so they can treat their family, or themselves to some new goodies.
- A Peppermint Surprise – for the contact who’s always caught with a large cup of caffeine in their hands.
- Hot Chocolate for the Team – to keep your employees’ motivation high as Q4 heats up.
Appreciating your Prospects and Clients this Holiday Season
With the days getting darker as we head into winter, appreciating your contacts will guarantee that they stay smiling during the 2023 holiday season.
Making little investments in these relationships will go a long way to ensure they feel valued, and will sustain these connections further throughout 2024.
Click here to check out our top 3 Appreciation-Infused Customer Engagement Tips To Crush Your Numbers This Holiday Season and Beyond.
Thnks makes it easier to incorporate personalized gratitude in order to grow, maintain, or develop your professional relationships. In a matter of seconds, you can search for the perfect gesture, personalize a note, and send it off via SMS or email. Interested in learning more? Sign up for a demo!
