Make it Last
Flowers, wine and gift baskets are nice, and clients tend to love them, but flowers wilt and wine and gift baskets are consumed. When choosing your gift, make it something that will stick around.
Maybe a gift that has an everyday use, such as:
- Car charger for their electronic devices.
- Tasteful home décor for the first time home buyer.
- Housewares.
Something practical, such as a subscription to home-themed magazines that match the style of their home. While individual magazines have a shelf-life, they will arrive every month, a constant reminder of your service. Here are some examples:
Outside the Box: If your client buys during a holiday, consider a themed gift. A normal candy dish will likely sit, unpacked and unused. But a candy dish shaped like a Christmas tree or Easter egg has a good chance of being filled with M&Ms at least once a year.
Make it Personal
While vases, coffee mugs, and housewares last, they may end up in the back of a cabinet or packed away in the attic or basement if the client doesn’t care about them. Personalized gifts have more staying power.
Know your client.
- Sports fan? Give them a team-branded coffee mug, cooler, or even the jersey of their favorite player.
- Wine connoisseur? Give them a wine service set.
- Smoker? Give them a high-quality lighter.
- Exercise fanatic? Give them a sports MP3 player that straps to their arm.
- If a couple, buy two gifts: One for each client.
Engrave your gifts with your client’s initials. This is relatively inexpensive, and takes your gift to another level of personalization.
Outside the Box:
Name a star after them... just kidding!
Make it Profitable
These are confusing economic times for everyone, and the greatest gift you can offer your client is the continued service of a Real Estate expert. Regardless of what gift or gifts you choose, don’t let your relationship end with a magazine subscription or an engraved wine decanter. YOU can be the greatest gift your client can receive, and your attention allows them the opportunity to reciprocate with referrals and repeat business.
Give the
gift of information only a Real Estate professional can provide.
- Subscribe your client to your monthly newsletter, summarizing the latest real estate information from subject matter experts such as NAR’s chief economist Lawrence Yun and TREND’s own Dave Davis.
- Send your client comparable properties once or twice a year to keep them up to date on how their market is progressing. Good news or bad, most modern consumers appreciate information and honesty.
- Ask you client to join your social networking pages to continue the relationship.
Keep the gifts coming. Instead of just offering one gift, offer several gifts over time. By giving a $10 gas card here or a sporting event calendar there, you will keep yourself in the mind of your client while showing them your value.
Outside the Box: As a real estate professional, you have access to innumerable sources for Real Estate, Mortgage and home ownership information. While a listing or buying contract may end, the partnership between you and your client continues.
- Combine information and resources you provide, and present them to your clients as a “Continuing Service Package” that doesn’t last for months, but years, and through multiple transactions.
- Offer this package at no extra charge.
- Include this service as a part of your listing presentation.
- Your referral building is now an added value to your clients and customers.
Those are just a few of the ways that you can “Rethink the Gift”. What do you give your clients?