This holiday season make sure your corporate goodwill isn’t lost in the blizzard of others’ well wishes. I’ve got some tips that will make your end-of-year client gifts stand out like a hot fire on a snowy night.

First, consider Timing. Get a jump on the competition by sending your client gifts out at the beginning of busy holidays. A mid-November gift that will aid recipients in managing the stress of the holiday season is thoughtful and interactive – thus ensuring repetitive use. For example, send an aromatherapy candle in a votive holder etched with your logo. A note urging recipients to keep the gift on their desks to relieve holiday tension shows a caring corporate philosophy. Or, for the practical-minded, gift an “organizational holiday kit.” This might include an embossed “gift recording” book, a shopping-list notepad, stamps for holiday cards, etc.

Such kits, when they’re gathered in a pretty basket or imprinted gift box, illustrate my second principle of stand-out gifts: Packaging. Presents with panache are noticed. You can use velvet bags, funky lunchboxes (screened with your logo) and little tins to add a sense of value and fun to any package. For a more traditional look, did you know we can inexpensively create wrapping paper and ribbons customized with your logo? This “dressing” will not only be useful during the holidays, it will remain handy for your gifting programs all year long.

Speaking of programs, stir expectation among your recipient list by starting an annual tradition with Limited Edition Series. I’ve known companies to have die-cast replica ornaments created of local landmarks to then be “branded” with their logo and dated with an imprint of the year. Each holiday season, a new ornament in the ongoing series is gifted.

Lastly, gifts that are High Quality will be appreciated and used more. If you send a nice cashmere scarf to your top clients and your competitor sends a cheap synthetic version, which company stands out impressively? Whatever your price point, think quality not size. A smaller but better gift will out-shine a larger, lower quality option.

Give me a call and we’ll put these principles to work for your holiday gifts.