The holidays can be a stressful time for some marketing teams tasked with running the company’s holiday gifting programs. Many businesses consider the holidays a vital opportunity to recognize and thank employees, customers and partners with gifts and rewards. But managing holiday gifting programs is not for the faint at heart! There are recipient lists to be made. There are addresses to be collected. And then there is the race against time to get gifts selected, purchased and mailed before looming deadlines for mail delivery. All of this planning, managing and tracking can put a lot of undue strain on your team members who may be already stretched with their regular responsibilities in the final quarter of the year.
So this year, consider a dramatically faster, easier and more efficient way to spread the holiday cheer – with e-gifts. E-gifts like Amazon.com e-gift cards and Hulu Subscription are now available from a variety of top retailers and services. With their instant electronic delivery, global reach and easy customization, e-gifts have taken business gifting to a new level. In fact, according to a 2016 Incentive Magazine survey, more than 67% companies plan to use e-gifts like gift cards to thank customers.
Here are the 6 reasons you will love sending e-gifts this holiday season:
1. Abundant Choice and Value
You no longer have to settle for sending mundane gifts like cookies or trinkets of questionable value. Thoughtful and exciting e-gift cards are available in virtually every category including the perennial holiday favorites - shopping, dining, music and entertainment. And it is possible to buy e-gift cards such as Panera and iTunes for as little as $5. With so much choice and flexibility there is an e-gift out there that can match every recipient preference and sender budget.
2. Instant, electronic delivery
Marketers love that they can deliver holiday gifts right to their recipients instantly via email. Electronic delivery means that there is less room for error compared to snail mail. And you no longer have to worry about delivery lead times and mailing deadlines. E-gifts are guaranteed to arrive on time for the holidays, every time.
3. Global reach
With the every expanding global economy, many businesses must find a way to thank employees, customers and partners around the world. Sending physical gifts can be prohibitive due to delivery charges. In addition, address errors causes delivery delays and embarrassments. E-gifts like international gift cards or virtual Visa prepaid cards do not suffer from these costs and issues. You can gift an Amazon.uk gift card to an employee in London with the same ease and speed as sending an Amazon.com gift card to an employee in Chicago.
4. Tailor the gifting experience
Pierre Corneille once said, “The manner of giving is worth more than the gift.” E-gift delivery can be personalized to create a memorable gifting experience by adding your business's branding and messages.
5. Integrate into marketing systems
If you use marketing automation systems Marketo e-gifts can be integrated into your marketing flow. This allows you to take advantage of your marketing systems customer segmentation, email templates and campaign processes.
6. Gift claim tracking
E-gifts can be tracked every step of the way to their intended recipient. The occasional delivery errors due incorrect or outdated email addresses can be detected and immediately corrected. Delivery monitoring gives you the peace of mind that your gifts have been delivered and claimed by recipients.
It is easy to see why so many businesses find e-gifts more suitable for their needs than physical gifts. Now that you know why e-gifts are a great leap forward in business gifting, it’s time to consider upgrading your holiday gifting program.
Happy gifting!
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