Trash the Trash! It’s Time For Eco-Friendly Corporate Gifting

What is corporate gifting without stiff t-shirts, junky sunglasses, and other trinkets stamped with your company logo? Rhetoric aside, a smaller carbon footprint, solid morale, and more trust may be the answer.

When it comes time for a biz to spotlight and reward the contributions of its staff, stakeholders, or customers, ‘swag’ tends to be top-of-mind. Does this pop culture version of corporate gifting fulfill its purpose, planting positive buzz around a brand? Let’s ask the bees, trees, and employees.

Cheap Corporate Gifts: Is It the Thought That Counts?

Showing appreciation to the humans with a hand in your brand is a time-honored tradition, and—at first glance—it can seem that the thought is what counts. Turns out, that sentiment is context-specific, as cheap corporate gifts are often taken as anything but thoughtful.

Only 21% of corporate gifts are deemed worthy of use, and an unbefitting gift can do more damage to personal and professional relationships than presenting nothing at all. While it may not be possible to personalize every corporate gift pack you dish out, you CAN choose a widely palatable item that aligns with your company’s ESG values and conveys that you truly ‘give a shift’ about your workplace and the world.

For instance: If your company’s claim to fame is cultural anthropology or allyship to the creatures of Earth, handing out shoddy umbrellas will show that you are hypocritically unwilling to do your cultural research and totally cool with creating unnecessary waste. Giving an umbrella to a Chinese person signals that you want the relationship to end. Eek!

Fetid Frugality: The Planet Pays the Price You Saved

Speaking of waste and bad taste… A dinky gift not only severs the connective tissue between what you say and what you do, sending strategic partnerships and valuable relationships down the drain, but it also leaves 40% of the gifts themselves in a landfill where they gunk up the air and work against your avid environmental advertising.

Don’t make haste— Consider these three things before handing out corporate gifts for staff or other stuff that could go to waste!

• Does your recipient even want that sh*t?

While it is tough to know whether or not a gift will be welcomed, appreciated, and impart the appropriate message, it’s smarter to sincerely consider these aspects than to be sorry. You are better off skipping the gifts altogether and showing you care through your actions than sending an unsolicited barrage of unwanted junk. Mental health PTO and healthy snacks on hand, anyone?

• Is your logo cute enough to cut through?

Rather than swamp your swag in your well-worn logo without a second thought, brand your corporate gift baskets like a Patagonia product: center the whole thing on the features it provides. Otherwise, it’s apt to be written off as an obvious marketing ploy. 

• What are you—er, your gifts—made of?

Why would someone hang onto a crappy plastic bottle when they already have a stainless steel canteen? To make your recipient feel special and simultaneously polish your image, offer something likely of higher quality than what they already possess and that can be composted or recycled should it end up at the dump… or else your company’s perceived value could end up there, too. 

Out of the Giftbox: Experiences Are the Best Eco-Friendly Gifts 

The business sustainability statistics are in! Over 95% of millennial employees expect their employer to make eco-friendly moves, and Gen Z is predicted to be the first generation to prioritize purpose over salary.

Rather than play Russian roulette with sustainable gift ideas, why not offer a purpose-driven, eco-friendly experience instead? An immersive event will not only show you care without contributing more trash to the planet but also build comradery and serve as a brand awareness campaign. Even better, demonstrate your commitment to Earth and affiliate appreciation by commissioning a branded art installation.

When it comes to effective corporate gifting for employees, stakeholders, and other strategic partners, ideas are only step one—execution is another story. To make a wholly constructive impact on your brand image, your bottom line, and the health of our planet, strong concept development and art direction are essential. Step two? Pour Curmudgeon Group’s piquant cocktail of artistry, strategy, and bravura into the mix.