As the early months of the holiday season have officially entered, many business owners are now slowly planning what to do for their company’s Christmas celebration. Of course, the celebration wouldn’t be complete without the annual company gift-giving. Naturally, every company has its unique way of celebrating the holiday season, including amazing Christmas decorations in the office, among many other festive activities.
Some may organize a Secret Santa event in which each employee will draw a random name and they’ll become that person’s Secret Santa. Others may ditch the whole Secret Santa thing and opt for a random exchanging gift. But other than the Christmas decorations, party, food, games, and your employees’ gift-giving tradition, one of the nicest things you can do for your dedicated workers is to give them their own holiday gifts.
After all, it’s better to be the one giving than be on the receiving end. However, shopping for holiday gifts for your employees isn’t always that easy since they’re too many and you wouldn’t want to burn a hole in your pockets. And so, to make your shopping experience easier, here are six tips to remember when shopping for Christmas gifts for your employees.
You won’t ever go wrong with personalized Christmas gifts. This can be perfect, especially if you have many employees and buying different gifts for each sound too tedious and costly.
With customized gifts, you can make your employees feel extra special, seen, and recognized, especially if it’s something that has their name on it. All you need to do is choose one item you believe is beneficial for them and then have each one customized with their name.
For example, you can order a bulk of coffee mugs, tote bags, or sweatshirts and have each one customized with your employee’s name or initials. You can use a free online design studio, such as the teejunction.com.au page, to help you create designs, add embroidery, or choose fonts for their names. Once you’re done, the product printing company will have them ready before the holidays.
Whether you’re planning to personalize bulky gifts or buy them individually, it’d be better to start your gift shopping early. Buying gifts months before Christmas can save you more money and from the long queues brought by the holiday rush. Plus, some stores may offer discounts for early Christmas gift shoppers.
Even if you think your business only has a small number of employees, there’s a risk that you might miss a name or two during your gift shopping. You don’t want to find out too late when you’ve given out gifts to everyone and noticed there’s one who didn’t receive anything. So, before you shop, list all the names of the people you intend to buy gifts for.
Besides saving you from possibly forgetting names, a shopping list can help you stick to your budget and control your spending. After you write down all the names, you can take note of each person’s favorites or interests and get inspiration from there. Then, you can also set a fixed budget for each one, so you don’t overspend once you start shopping.
Understandably, not all business owners have the time to go holiday shopping from one store to the next. Don’t worry, you can always go online shopping instead and browse for gifts on various websites or online marketplace. Aside from its convenience, some online shops offer bulk order employee present options at discounted prices.
This option may only be applicable if you have a small business with five to ten employees. If you have the skill, time, and enthusiasm to craft your employees’ gifts, you can try to make them yourself. For instance, if you’re a talented baker, put them to practice and create cookie-and-brownie jars for your employees.
Or, you may buy a few baskets and turn them into DIY gift baskets. You just simply fill them with goodies or various products that would fit the person’s interests and wrap them up with a cute ribbon with their name on it. There are plenty of DIY gift ideas on the internet you can try, and they won’t cost you much.
As much as your intentions are good, it’s still important to keep things professional and be mindful of your gift choices. You don’t want your employees to get the wrong impression if they ever receive something too personal, such as undergarments, perfume, jewelry, or alcoholic drinks.
Always consider how your gifts will represent your intentions in the workplace. To be safe, invest in gifts that are gender-neutral or more professional like edible gifts, books, household items, or anything that’ll reflect your thoughtful intentions professionally.
The holiday season should be the time to have fun and stress over the gift shopping experience. Now that you have these tips, it’s time to show your employees just how much you value and appreciate them and start shopping for their holiday gifts as early as now.
