11-04-2020
Virtual Event Gifts Are Worth Sending and Here are 6 Reasons Why
FILED IN: Client & Corporate Gifts, COVID-19, Education, Virtual Events
Posted By: Jamie Kutchman
In addition to wedding welcome gifts, client gifts, and employee appreciation gifts, a bulk of our overall business is corporate event gifting. When Covid hit earlier this year, all of our corporate events came to a screeching halt and then quickly began transitioning to virtual events. This meant immediately coming up with creative virtual event gift ideas and then pivoting custom gift designs from gifts that make sense for recipients to receive and use in-person to gifts that make most sense for use and enjoyment at home and/or during the virtual event sessions themselves. Fast forward to now, with many months of virtual event gift box designs under our belts, we are more convinced than ever that these are definitely worthwhile and serve a purpose. Virtual event gift boxes are not merely a Plan B. They're the new norm and impactful in their own significant way. Here are six reasons why...
OFFERS A SNEAK PEEK
Chances are that this year it the first year your event has even been handled virtually and so recipients may question what the virtual version will be like and whether or not it will measure up to the in-person events you've hosted in the past. When you send a custom gift box ahead of the virtual event, it's an opportunity to let invitees know that you take the event seriously as well as to offer a glimpse into the aesthetic and overall vibe of the event! You may even consider offering the meeting agenda in the gift boxes to get attendees excited and looking forward to the content you have planned for them!
ENCOURAGES REGISTRATION
Much like offering a sneak peek, choosing to curate virtual event gift boxes and send them to recipients ahead of the event, this really does encourage registration. It lets attendees know that the virtual experience is taken seriously and will be worth their time. It also makes them feel special because chances are they weren't expecting a gift to arrive in the mail and so they're more likely to rsvp 'yes' when given the opportunity, especially when you allow the gift to serve as the actual invitation itself!
MAKES IT EXPERIENTIAL
There are some really creative ways to use gifting to tie into the event itself. For example, one of our clients had a mixologist lined up to do an online tutorial during part of the virtual sessions. The gift boxes we created contained all of the contents the recipients would need to follow along with the mixologist to create their own cocktails. Crystal tumblers, mixers, branded aprons, a mixing spoon, linen coasters and more. It really took the gift box to a whole new level by tying the gift contents directly to the online programming, resulting in a well-rounded experience above and beyond "just a gift box". In other examples, we've inlcluded things to wear so all attendees can be seen wearing them on screen all at the same time during the online sessions, resulting in a feeling of togetherness.
SHOWS THAT VIRTUAL IS VALUABLE
Because you don't have to book transportation or hotels or event venues to plan a virtual event (i.e. effort and expense), there may be some people who think that the experience isn't as valuable or impactful or important. When a well-curated and on-brand gift shows up ahead of an event, it immediately communicates to the attendees that this event is taken seriously by the organizers and that, while it will inevitably be different than an in-person event, it won't be any less worthwhile.
ENCOURAGES RSVP'S
Along the same lines as my point above about how people may not view virtual events as impactful due to the perceived lack of effort and expense required to put it on, they also may think that their RSVP doesn't matter as much because the show will go on whether the log in or not. You can combat this notion with a thoughtful and well-curated gift box. Once this arrives in the mail, the recipient immediately feels that they matter and therefore, in turn, their RSVP will be noticed if it's missing. It's especially smart to use the box as a reminder to RSVP by a certain deadline by including language inside instructing recipients how and when to RSVP. Even if this info has already been mailed or emailed, it doesn't hurt to request it again via the gift box.
COMBATS ZOOM FATIGUE
Earlier this year when virtual events were new and different and not all businesses had figured out how to transition from in-person to virtual and may have opted to cancel or postpone, getting attendance was likely a little easier. Fast forward to late 2020 and people are on Zoom non-stop, not just for events, but for literally everything. Between zoom hangouts with family and friends and zoom meetings with co-workers and clients, people have reached the point of zoom fatigue. With virtual events becoming the normal, your event may seem like "just another zoom event" and you obviously don't want that! By sending a gift box ahead of the event, it allows your event to stand out from the crowd and potentially wake people up from the zoom fatigue. At least for your event anyway!
Are you looking to outsource the design and delivery of your virtual event gifts? For more information on our Custom Gift Design Service, reach our here. We'd love to hear from you and see if outsourcing your virtual event gifts to us is a good fit! If you're interested in DIY, here's advice on what to gift when events cancel, postpone, or pivot to virtual!
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