Each year we publish our Guide to the Most Popular Business Gifts for Teams.  We compile this Guide based on our sales and customer feedback, as well as industry-wide data.

We are a distributor of logo imprinted incentive and reward gifts.  Our clients span a wide range of industries, organization sizes, and geographic locations.  The business gifts that appear on our annual list are proven ‘crowd pleasers’.  They are appropriate for most age groups, genders, and professions.

So here are 2011’s winners!

For a full pdf version of this article, click here.   For a paper-saver pdf version of this article, click here.

#1:  Padfolios

Padfolios top this year’s list as most popular business gift for teams because they:

1. Are highly functional and easy to use.
2. Come in two of the most popular price points for business gifts:  $5 – 10 range and $15 – 25 range.
3. Have high quality that makes the perceived value exceed the actual price you pay.
4. Can be either silkscreened (color added) or debossed.

Two popular models are our Economy Plus Padfolio and our 3-Ring Binder Padfolio.

#2:  Paperweights 

Paperweights were the second most popular business gift of 2011 for two reasons:

• Wide variety of styles and materials from crystal to eco-friendly wood.
• Wide variety of shapes, including completely custom shapes.

Our Dome Crystal Magnifier is popular because it magnifies.  Our custom-cast stone paperweights are popular because we can create them in virtually any shape you want.  We can match your logo or mascot, like we did with this salamander shaped paperweight.

#3:  Desktop Toys 

Desktop toys came in third place for top business team gifts.  This category is always popular because people love to give playful gifts as part of a celebration or party.  Our Inspirational Office Blocks with Balancing Bar is a good example.

#4:  Drinkware 

Drinkware is another popular category for both business gifts and promotional giveaways.  There are so many styles of drinkware -  It’s a huge giftware category!  When a customer wants to purchase drinkware, we usually collect their requirements.  Then suggest the travel mugs, sports bottles, ceramic coffee cups, or other drinkware items that meet their needs.  One model that has been particular popular is our Slimline Biodegradable Travel Mug.  Great price point and broad design appeal!

#5:  USB Drives 

USB drives round out the top five business gifts for 2011.  We find these are especially popular when gift givers want to provide data along with the gift, such as class material, meeting presentations, or a hand-crafted Thank You message.  A customer favorite is the Square Twist drive with full color graphic/photo decoration on both sides.  It comes in several memory sizes and seven crisp colors: black, yellow, red, orange, medium blue, white, and lime green (not pictured).

#6:  Frames 

Frames appear for the first time on our list of top business gifts, but their presence is no surprise.  When ordering frames customers often ask for a subtle logo or text decoration, so the imprint doesn’t distract from the photo inside the frame.  HR departments like frames as office gifts because they enable employees to personalize their workspace with home photos.  Gift frames are often made of wood, which provides a great combination of value and style.  Metal, acrylic, and leather frames are also common.  A popular gift is a frame combined with a clock.

#7:  Chocolate 

Chocolate is always on our list of top business team gifts because it’s inexpensive and delivered quickly.  (Our stock shapes and bars ship within 1-2 business days.)  Team-themed chocolate like our Teamwork Chocolate Puzzle Pieces are our most popular…but we can create custom shaped chocolate pieces too!  Around the holidays our Chocolate Dipped Snowflake Cookies are very popular for holiday office parties.

#8:  Bags 

Bags are popular giveaways for events or conferences.  Messenger bags were a popular bag style for 2011.  They typically cost between $3 and $8 depending on materials, construction, and features.

When giving bags as a reward or incentive gift, our clients typically choose a good quality cooler or lunch bag, like this style that converts from a cooler into a small duffel bag.  If the budget is larger, companies may select a computer bag like this computer backpack.  Both bags shown are priced in the $15 – $20 range when on sale.

#9:  Beach Towels 

Beach towels are a big hit for spring and summer business gifts.  Towels are typically classified by the weight per dozen towels.  (14-17 lbs/dozen is a typical mid-weight towel.)  White towels are the most affordable and common.  Surfboard shaped beach towels are memorable gifts for larger budgets.  Cotton prices fluctuate frequently, so quotes must be provided just prior to purchase.

#10:  Apparel  

People love to get free clothing, so apparel is always a favorite business gift.  Items like golf shirts, oxford shirts, t-shirts, sweat shirts, sweaters, and jackets can be decorated with embroidery, silk  screening, and laser etched logos.  Correct sizes are important to make sure an apparel gift is fully appreciated.  When a customer cannot collect sizes for the gift recipients, we can make recommendations on size ratios for the order.  We may also suggest an alternative personal apparel accessory like a scarf or hat.  We also suggest purchasing male and female companion styles, so ladies and men are equally happy with their gift.

#11:  Pens 

Pens wrap up our 2011 list of top business gifts for teams.  Because pens come in a huge variety of styles and price points, they can be used as the main gift or a supplemental gift.  When a pen is the main gift, customers will often choose a laser-engraved metal pen that is giftboxed.  (Prices start around $3/pen and can hit $100/pen for brand names.)

When pens are a supplemental gift or promotional giveaway, customers typically aim for $.40 – $2 range.  One of our favorite pens is shown here.  The writing cartridge is one of the best we’ve found in the price range of $.55/pen for a quantity of 300 pens.

Final Thoughts

If you need some quick ideas for a business gift, this guide is a helpful place to start.  We’re also available to help you find the best gift for your budget and occasion.  Just call us or request a quote!

Footnotes

Information in this article is valid as of February 2, 2012.  Product availability and pricing may change at any time.  US Dollar prices are used.  Most imprinted orders require a setup charge in addition to per-piece pricing.  Art, shipping, taxes, and other charges may apply depending on the order.  We happily provide quotes that may include unpublished discounts.

Author:  Jennifer Katus, Owner of Promomento

Need a crystal gift for your key contributors ?  Or an eco-friendly gift made of recycled materials for your new Corporate Sustainability initiative?  Finding that gift just got easier at Promomento.  We now give you the ability to search for gifts by material.  We have eight new ‘materials’ categories for our gifts including:  metal, eco-friendly, glass, wood, simulated leather, leather, crystal, and art glass.  Visit our new Gifts By Material page for details.

As the owner of a business gift company, I collect lessons learned about choosing the best business gifts and giveaways.  This article summarizes 10 lessons learned from the most common business gift situations.  These practical tips will help you shop for year-end awards and holiday gifts for your team members and customers.   Read article here….

If  you are having trouble figuring out what business gift to buy your team, here are three questions to help guide you toward an answer.

1.  What’s your budget?  By figuring out your budget before you start shopping, you save time by focusing only on gifts you can afford.

2.  What purpose do you want your gift to serve?  Many business gifts fall into four categories:  fun, ornamental, monetary, and functional.  (Some gifts cross categories.)

• Fun gifts are office toys like stress balls, desktop games, and puzzles.
• Ornamental gifts are things like awards, plaques, and trophies.
• Monetary gifts include bonuses, cash prizes, and gift cards.
• Functional gifts are the largest category.  They include office accessories, personal accessories, apparel, electronics, and a host of other gifts that the recipient can put to use.

3.  How well do you know the recipients’ taste?  If you are giving to a small team and you know each person’s taste very well, then you can select gifts catered to their hobbies and personal interests.  If you don’t know their taste well, we recommend against gifts that require you to know something personal about the recipient.  For example:

• Apparel (you need to know their size and fit preference)
• Liquor (you need to know their personal habits)
• Food (unless you have knowledge of food allergies and religious restrictions)
• Gifts associated with specific religious holidays (unless you are sure they celebrate the holiday).

Here are some types of gifts we recommend if you don’t know the recipient very well.  These gifts are safe because they are things most people use.  They are also semi-permanent…which means they don’t last forever and it’s OK to own more than one of them.

• For functional personal gifts we recommend:
  • Umbrellas
  • Sports/recreational watches (people are more open to the style of a sports watch than a daily watch)
  • Duffel bags and cooler bags
• For functional office gifts we recommend:
  • Desk caddies and sticky note holders
  • Pens and laser pointers
  • USB flash drives
  • Leather or simulated leather jotter pads (small enough to fit in a glove box)
• For fun gifts we recommend:
  • Games that are familiar favorites for the culture.  In America these include checkers, tic tac toe, or dice games
  • Easy puzzles
  • Games with no correct answer like desktop sandboxes and magnetic sculptures
• For ornamental gifts we recommend the following guidelines:
  • Not too big (the award should not take up too much desktop or wall space)
  • Include display or mounting hardware
  • Select universally appealing colors.  In America these are blue, black, red, metallic gold, and metallic silver
  • Select a simple design with clean lines

We also recommend speaking with someone else who knows the team well before making your final selection.  A second opinion can help solidify your selection or provide you with additional gift ideas.  If you would like the opinion of gift giving professionals, we’re always here to help at info@promomento.com or 1-877-628-4646.

Did you know that spring is the best time to order your custom imprinted holiday cards?  This tip surprises many of our customers.  Greeting card companies offer deep discounts for orders placed during the spring…so they can keep their printing presses and staff busy during this ‘down time’.  And we pass the savings onto our customers.

You can save 50% or more on orders placed during May and June, plus get freebies like free return address printing on envelopes.  We can even delay the shipping and billing of your holiday card order until October.

This is a great deal for businesses with a predictable list of clients and partners who receive a card each year.  Small businesses can manage their budgets better by sending custom-imprinted holiday cards to their ‘top 100′ customers, and electronic holiday cards to all other customers.

Here are links to our two favorite card collections:

Traditional greeting cards printed on classic paper styles

Modern greeting cards digitally printed on smooth paper

We can also suggest lightweight, mailable promotional items to include inside your holiday cards.  Contact us for the latest ‘mailable’ inserts.

Chocolate is always near the top of the list of gifts that people love to give and receive.  If you are planning to give chocolate as a gift within the next few months, we recommend ordering it now.  Then store it in a cool, dry place until you need it (but never refrigerate  it).

Once the weather reaches 70 degrees anywhere along the shipping route, we need to send the chocolate on ice via Fedex Air delivery.  Unfortunately that means a ‘warm weather surcharge’ applies to almost all chocolate orders shipped between May and September.    So if you are planning chocolate as a gift, order now!

Teamwork Chocolate Puzzle Piece - A Chocolate Gift Favorite!