Corporate Gifting: To Brand or Not To Brand?

To brand or not to brand? That is the question. 💁

When it comes to corporate gifting and swag, a common dilemma folks face is whether they should add brand elements (like a logo or website) to the items they give out. They want to know which one is better. We’re here to tell you…it depends. 

To help us understand how to make more informed decisions around corporate gifting and swag, we phoned our friend Lex Winship, who is passionate about brand and sustainability. Lex is the current Head of Brand at recruitment software company Loxo, former Marketing Manager at Real Threads, an eco-friendly custom apparel company, and a certified swag aficionado. 

Read on to learn how you can make more informed decisions to pick corporate goodies that make an impact and align with your brand values!

The positive impacts of corporate gifting

Of course, we love gifting here at Loop & Tie. But maybe you’re still on the fence about it, wondering…

• With as many employees as we have, isn’t gifting expensive?
• Do people want gifts from their employers?
• Will gifting provide a positive return on our investment?

Valid questions! When done well, corporate gifting can influence sales, boost customer retention, and increase employee engagement.

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Gifting works so well because it creates a meaningful connection with the recipients. Gifting is the feeling of appreciation turned into action. 

Whether you simply want to show your appreciation for the giftee or have larger goals in mind, thoughtful gifts that resonate can turn transactional relationships into deeper personal experiences. 

Business-to-business relationships are human-to-human relationships, right? Right. 

So sending quality gifts is a valuable way to meaningfully invest in those human relationships. At the end of the day, when recipients feel understood, seen, and appreciated, the gift does more than create positive brand affinity—it nurtures trust and long-term connections.

This brings us to the big question we posed at the beginning: should you send branded or unbranded corporate gifts?

How to decide between branded and unbranded swag

Hey, we’re not anti-logo over here! We love good branded swag as much as the next company. But we also believe there’s a time and a place for branded gifts versus unbranded gifts.

‍Some common misconceptions about branded swag:

• Recipients will use the items in their everyday lives
• Branded gifts equal instant brand awareness and thus, brand affinity
• It’s what brands are “supposed” to do

While branded gifts can help increase brand awareness, branding is far more than slapping a logo on the side of a product. There are times when adding your company’s logo is appropriate and other times when a logo is better left off your gift. 

“The best case for branded swag is for new employee onboarding or employee appreciation — but even then I would say that there is a way to get more creative with how you do so. Same when it comes to customer appreciation or business development.” – Lex Winship, Director of Brand at Loxo

There aren’t any hard-and-fast rules for branding gifts, but you will want to keep in mind factors like the strength of your relationship, the purpose of the gift, and whether the giftee is a customer or employee. 

Timing is also especially important! If you send branded swag too early in your relationship, the giftee probably doesn’t have an emotional connection to your brand (and a t-shirt won’t make them love you.) If you give branded swag too frequently your recipients might get tired of it–especially if it’s all useless stuff. And, finally, if you don’t give any branded swag or gifts, you might miss out on an opportunity to build mutual evangelization. 

To help out, we made this handy decision tree to help you make smarter choices about when to add a logo 👇

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The real value of a gift for the recipient lies in its thoughtfulness and quality. The value for your brand lies in the strategy - or the “why” - behind your gifting initiative. 

Bad news: lots of corporate gifts go to waste

Corporate gifts have a reputation for being wasteful, and that reputation isn’t completely unfounded. While thoughtful gifting can be used strategically to build lasting relationships, thoughtless gifting doesn’t have the same benefit. And, unfortunately, many companies are unknowingly using thoughtless, wasteful gifting practices. 

Did you know that…?

🚮 54% of recipients have discarded at least one corporate gift without ever using it

Yikes! This means that just over half of the folks receiving company gifts aren’t getting any value from the items they receive. If the goal of gifting is to establish brand affinity and/or show appreciation, this implies that most companies have failed the assignment. It shows how detached corporate gifting initiatives are from the recipients. 

Plus, the fact that they’d rather trash it than keep it should send shivers up your (and your CFO’s) spine! Lighting ~50% of your budget on fire might be just as effective. 😬

🚮 40% of company swag ends up in landfills

Wasteful gifting practices aren’t just bad for business – they’re bad for the earth. 

The U.S. generates a whopping 292.4 million tons of municipal solid waste every year. You don’t want to add more waste to that number, do you? 

So, you can see why we advocate for more thoughtful gifting. It’s better for businesses, customers, employers, and the world. 

The downsides of using swag ineffectively are wasted money for your company and the toll that more unnecessary STUFF being created takes on the planet. It’s contributing to a culture of waste that’s so harmful on a larger scale.” - Lex Winship, Head of Brand at Loxo

Ideas to reduce waste and send better corporate gifts

Minimize logos and branding

One negative side effect of only giving branded swag or gifts is that most people (even employees) don’t want to be a walking billboard for your brand or simply do not care for company logos on their stuff. 

The good news is that you don’t have to abandon branded swag completely. There’s a middle ground that lets you maintain a brand presence without compromising the gift’s quality. Instead of slapping a logo on your gifts, consider more subtle touches, like including a minimalist logo or using custom-branded packaging. 

Also, think about what would make your gift desirable and useful for recipients and design it with that in mind first. Then incorporate your logo or company name unobtrusively. This shows that the recipient’s experience isn’t an afterthought behind branding – it’s the main event! 

Take this example from Lex, who works in the recruiter space. If they want to show love to a superfan, which gift would do a better job?

1. A mug with Loxo’s logo on it
2. A mug that says “Today’s candidate outreach is powered by my 14th shot of espresso” with a tiny Loxo logo on the handle

Option B will be more memorable, get used more often, and spark conversation. 

🎁 Loop tip: All paid users can customize their gifting emails, redemption page, and domain. Premium and Enterprise customers can customize sustainable packaging for a more personalized brand experience. 

Send higher-quality gifts

Another way to ensure your gifts leave a positive impression is to choose high-quality, useful gifts. 

Instead of sending your customers and employees yet another flimsy tote bag, boring stress ball, or scratchy t-shirt that will end up in the back of their closets (or the closest thrift store), give gifts that people will actually want. Yes, even if you can’t put your logo on it! 

This goes back to intentionality and thoughtfulness for the recipient. Ask why you’re giving them a gift or swag, and what you want to accomplish with it. 

For example, say your product aims to make work less stressful for users. You want to send a gift to current customers to show appreciation. 

You could bulk buy some branded stress balls and end up with thousands to give away at conferences, in swag bags, and to staff.  Or you could do something different, like send high-quality yoga mats and a month of free classes – because you give users the tools to de-stress. 🧘

With the second option, you’re creating an experience and providing a gift the recipient can use for a long time. Gifts that are practical and resonate with the recipient’s needs are more likely to be appreciated and remembered.

“In my view, branded swag/gifts should be used very strategically, and with clearly defined goals. If you’re sending it just because you “feel like you should,” you’re likely not going to do it as effectively as you could.” - Lex Winship, Head of Brand at Loxo

Let your recipients pick their gift

Most of us aren’t mind readers, so even though we could spend hours brainstorming a great swag item, designing it, and shipping it off to our best fans…there’s no guarantee the giftee will love it.

That’s why Loop & Tie uses a “choice-based” or “collection-based” gifting approach. With this simple gifting model, senders select a collection – or custom-build a collection – for their recipients. The recipient then gets to browse through items in the collection and redeem what they want most. 

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Some of the biggest benefits of collection-based gifting are:

♻️ Only spend money on items you’ll use

♻️ Recipients get a say in what they choose

♻️ The redemption experience is fun and memorable

♻️ Fewer items end up in landfills

See how collection-based gifting is good for the giver, the receiver, and the earth?

Where can you find high-quality gifts that stand out?

Whether you’re sending branded gifts or going the unbranded route, you want your budget to go towards items that last. But how?

Here’s a list of ideas for finding and sending quality gifts:

• Ask your giftees what items they’d like to receive. If you want to know what your recipients care about, ask them! Then come up with one or two gift options that will make everyone happy.
• Partner one-on-one with small makers. Find crafters and artisans locally or internationally to make your gifts in small batches. This reduces waste and supports small businesses.
• Look for vendors with B Corp Certification. This status indicates the vendor demonstrates high social and environmental performance, exhibits transparency, and has made a legal commitment to accountability for stakeholders. 
• Work with a trusted gifting provider. There are so many options for corporate gifting that you might get overwhelmed. Gifting solutions providers (like us!) can connect you with reliable vendors to ensure you’re getting the best quality gifts. 

Even though corporate gifting programs have a reputation for being wasteful, there are big and small things you can do to minimize the negative impact on the planet.

Thoughtful gifting is better for everyone

So, should you send branded or unbranded gifts? Yes…and no. (Don’t you love how the answer is always “it depends?”  😉)

Regardless of whether you’re including a logo or leaving it off altogether, there are steps your business can take to prioritize meaningful connections, improve the gifting experience, and stay true to your brand values. Loop & Tie offers a sustainable, choice-based gifting solution that aligns with these principles, helping businesses foster deeper relationships while minimizing waste and maximizing impact.

Do you want to enhance your corporate gifting strategy? Let’s talk. 

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