When I was first introduced to the book Giftology by John Ruhlin during a Second Nature sales kick-off a few years back, I didn’t really know what to expect. Andrew Smallwood and Scott Stollwerk wanted the team to read the book so that we could gain a better understanding of the impact of being intentional with gifting. I didn’t realize then how much this book would change me.
Giftology is all about strategic and intentional gifting - gifting with a purpose. This book aims to change the way we look at giving gifts. Too often gifting is seen as something habitual and unintentional. But Giftology really provokes you to think about how we can turn a gift into not just something we give….but to really make it into a lasting moment. The book talks about strategic business gifting as well and how we can stop giving gifts to clients and prospects that are meaningless, have our logo on them, and have very little thought or intentionality behind them. The goal with strategic business gifting is to turn a prospect into an active loyalist. Meaning, they love your business so much that they’ll be a huge advocate for the business and will naturally talk about it with others without prompting.
When I think back to Andrew’s introduction, I see exactly how Giftology fits with the way we do business at Second Nature. We are all about making a positive and lasting impact. We always ask ourselves how can we be better? How can we up our game and standards, and truly stand out from other organizations?
Giftology fits in with each one of our core values at Second Nature.
- Relentlessly Resourceful: How can we be better at gifting? Especially at trade shows. Can we have intentional swag versus the standard items people typically grab and then forget about right away?
- Drama Free Zone: Giving a gift shouldn’t be about us…it should be about the recipient. How will they feel receiving something so thoughtful?
- Bias Towards Action: How can we use strategic gifting to not only gain clients but active loyalists?
- Performance Mindset: Strategic gifting helps close business.
- Humility In All That We Do: It takes a lot to truly take ourselves out of the gifting picture and learn about the recipient so that the gift serves its intended purpose.
- Integrity First: We need to think about the gift and thoughtfully consider what our purpose is for sending it. Will the recipient feel valued?
- Shatter the Status Quo: Nothing goes further with a client than a super thoughtful gift
John Ruhlin’s book has really made me think about the ways I select and give impactful gifts, and has helped me to understand the true power of making a gift into a lasting moment.
Have you read Giftology yet? Or have you received a gift that’s made an impact on you? Let me know what you think in the comments below!
Topics:
October 18, 2024
