We took a poll around the office this year to see what we should be sending our key clients and customers as a holiday gift, a token of our appreciation for giving us their business during the year. This is always an important gesture in a family run company like ours, but I feel it’s especially important during tough economic times when every gesture can make the difference between keeping or losing a customer who might be thinking about cutbacks.

While in previous years we’d had Flowers Delivered, gift certificates or decorative Plants for the offices we deal with, we wanted something a little different this time. A nice Rose bouquet, a bright centerpiece for their reception desk or decorative Plants like a Christmas Poinsettia are always appreciated for the way they brighten up an office, but we wanted something with a little more personal impact for each of the employees at these offices. Gift certificates were considered again, but in the end we decided those were not only impersonal, but we suspected that a few people at the offices kept the certificates for themselves instead of passing them around to everyone. So, if we weren’t going to have Flowers Delivered, wreaths, a Rose arrangement (or Flower Arrangements in general), we were quickly running out of options.

Then one of our sales people mentioned being in an office when Gift Baskets had been delivered. She said she’d never seen such a rush of people as they all streamed over to reception to unwrap the basket and help themselves to the variety of goodies packed inside. That seemed like a good idea so that’s what we decided to go with. I had my assistant check local companies that offered baskets, but she came back with the suggestion that I check out 1-800flowers.com instead. She’d used them before to have Flowers Delivered and was impressed by their range of products and fast delivery times. I found dozens of different Gift Baskets in all sorts of different themes. They were all attractively packaged and included everything from chocolates, cheesecakes, candies and other treats to meats, cheeses, jams and preserves and of course there were also many fresh Fruit Baskets and even spa-themed packages. I have to confess, I ordered a wine tasting basket for my wife that included cheese, crackers and some savory red wines. The staff decided that every office revolves around the snacks at reception, so we ordered Lindt Chocolates baskets for each of our customers. No poinsettia Plants this year… The response we received has been great. Everyone appreciates the fact that the baskets mean there’s something for everyone in the office, a little pick me up for each of them through the week.

After seeing the Gift Baskets our clients had received, the staff held another poll and told me that they’s like the same thing for themselves as a holiday treat.