New research by Musgrave has revealed that 86% of Irish SME owners plan to offer gifts to corporate clients this Christmas, an increase of 11% on 2014’s festive season.
The Musgrave MarketPlace 2015 SME Corporate Giving Survey also found that the amount of money being spent by Irish SMEs on client gifts is on the rise; with 28% reporting a higher spend this Christmas than in the last five years.
It also revealed that of those businesses that are giving corporate gifts, 89% do so to strengthen their relationships with clients and that the top choice of corporate gift (according to 52%) is a mixed food and wine hamper.
Alcoholic beverages are the first choice of corporate gift for 32% of Irish SME owners, with 9% saying a box of chocolates is the ideal gift.
The most stressful part of the corporate gifting process for 42% of respondents is finding a suitable client gift while 19% find organising the delivery of corporate presents to be especially taxing.
Almost half of SMEs (42%) prefer in-store shopping when it comes to finding gifts, as they value the option of viewing products in person before purchasing. However, 40% choose to shop both online and in store.
Musgrave MarketPlace Marketing Director Michelle Fennell commented on the findings, “With 40% of SMEs relying on both online and in-store shopping to source their client gifts at Christmas, it’s important to offer a quality shopping experience both online and in-store in order to meet customers’ preferences.”
“At Musgrave MarketPlace we have addressed this need by offering both in-store and online corporate gift options to our clients over the festive season,” she added.
Photo courtesy of Kevin Dooley, 2008
© 2015 - Checkout Magazine by Jenny Whelan.
