Small Items that are Suitable for Table Gives at Year End Functions

By Kim Vermaak 27 September 2014 When organising a function, you need to have smaller sized gifts that are easy to transport. If it is a gala evening, you would also need something that is upmarket that adds to the prestige of the evening. These are some of my favourite items that are below R 200.00. Maglite SOLITAIRE AAA PRES

I love the Maglite brand, it is a quality brand that is respected in the outdoor and leisure market, but I have used them for years particular with power outages. It is a good safety item for both men and women to have on hand. The Solitaire is slim, stylish and compact and operates on one AAA alkaline battery. Simply rotate the head of the Solitaire to switch your unit on and off or to focus the beam from a spot to flood light. Twist - Spot to Flood. Spare Lamp in Tail Cap. Aluminium Alloy Casing. Compact & Lightweight. Innovative Extended key 1m lead allows the light beam and keys to be used together in the same direction. Stock is usually not held in large quantities, but there are various colours, so if you are willing to hand out a mix of colours, there are great compact gifts that easy for an event coordinator to carry and pack on tables. Wine accessories in a bottle shaped container

For wine lover, this is a compact and funky design that is well received. Wine accessories in a bottle shaped container – consists of a pourer, bottle opener and drip stopper. It has a magnetic closure. On the plus side, there are usually very good stock levels, but you have to know that your market does not have any religious objections to alcohol, although there are current some very good non-alcoholic brands of wine and champagne on the market, minimizing your risk. USB Car Charger

This little item is a great and convenient gift. It is life saver when your phone, tablet etc. runs out of battery and you really need to communicate. USB car charger for your camera, smart phone or MP3 player! It is also available as a Car charger with 2 USB connections for hassle-free charging of smart phones, tablets and cameras. Wooden meteorological station "Zurich"

The Wooden weather station with clock, hygrometer and thermometer is a super upmarket gift for your exucutive clients. Business card case "Mainz"

For a business person’s function the Business card case "Mainz" is very practical as this business card holder has two separate compartments (for 10 cards each), so that you can easily separate your own cards from the ones you receive. These are just a few of the many corporate gifting items that can be used for table based gifts. For more ideas visit our website www.belleregalo.co.za or e-mail us on info@belleregalo.co.za

Practical Gifts for Conferences and Exhibitions

The adage meetings mean business might sound like a cliché, but it’s the absolute truth of the matter. Networking at events lays the groundwork for excellent business deals. Some of them are even singed at the venue. While there is strong growth in website and other digital marketing, people do feel safe when dealing face to face with people. You get to see if the person’s smile is genuine, if their handshake is form and get a better understanding of the person that you will be doing business with. Here are some ideas to enhance the experience of the visitors and delegates at your conference or exhibition. Name cards on lanyards meetings are vital. Sticker badges say “tacky, unprofessional.” They will disappear for good when the sweater is put on or removed, and they can’t and won’t be transferred to new garments on the following day. We have all heard of presenters who have had their entire hard drive was wiped just as they are about the present at an events. Memory sticks or USBs not only give you the opportunity to give a small conference gifts but they also allow you to add the presentation to the USBs, so that the conference delegates can re-print the notes afterwards. In addition, they make excellent back-ups for presentations. If you have the budget you can have a custom USBs moulded into the shape of one of your products. This definitely sets you apart from the rest. Business card holders are not often thought of as many people believe that delegates have their own business card holders. But I have fund it invaluable to have an extra card holder as this allows me to put the business cards of all the delegates that I would like to keep cards of. This practical corporate gift that you can use again and again. If you have a refreshment stand, why not handed out a free coffee mug or branded glass at the stand. If this is a bit above your budget, then have disposable branded coffee sleeves to put around your disposable cups, this will show off your logo and attract more people to your stand. Notebooks are a terrific conference and exhibition gift as they allow delegates to take notes of the stands that they likes or people that they want to reconnect with. I have often written a note on the back of a card in the hope of looking at it again and have forgotten where I put the card, so a notebook would be great way to relook at the notes made at the event. By the end of an exhibition all the shopping bags that countless companies hand out, start to dig into my hands and so one of the best exhibition gifts that I receive was a luggage spotter handle. They make holding a whole bunch of shopper bags filled with catalogues, so much more comfortable. At another exhibition that I attended a stand sold trolley bags with their logo on. People flocked to this stand to relieve them of their stock. Some exhibitions do not allow the sale of products, but perhaps you can arrange for your top clients to stop by and get their free trolley bag or you can have an hourly lucky draw for conference bag. Over a 3 day conference you would only need 25 trolley bags for a competition. These are add onto the normal conference gifts such a conference bags, conference folders, pens, stylus pens, trolley bags There are so many conference gift options to choose from, but the ones mentioned in this article solve some of the practicalities that need to be take care of at an event. For more information about corporate gifts for conferences and exhibitions, contact Belle Regalo on info@belleregalo.co.za or call us on (011) 593 2450 or 082 948 7461.

How to Choose Year End Gifts

Very often people are unsure of what to give out for year-end gifts. Especially if it is either the first time that the gifts are being handed out or if so many gifts have been handed out that you are now at a loss of what to give as year end gifts. A good starting point is to ask yourself some questions. 1. Are the majority of your clients men or women? Some companies chose to have our unisex corporate gifts, however to get the true benefit of the corporate gifts it is a wonderful to have a more personal approach. So for example if you are handing our conference bags, why not hand out a ladies laptop bag as a conference bag for the ladies and a unisex conference bag for the men. 2. What is the lifelong value of the client receiving the corporate gift? If this corporate gift is an appreciation gift for the business that the client has given you over the years, then consider carefully what you want to give as a corporate gift. The gift needs to have longevity, so that it can be used frequently and each time the corporate gift is used, your company will be remembered. 3. Are there any budget constraints for your corporate gifts? Instead of giving out a lot of cheap gifts, rather segment your clients and hand out gifts only to the top 25 or 50 clients depending on what you are able to afford. It is better to hand out quality gifts to the few that are the most loyal to your company than to not hand out corporate gifts at all. For ideas on corporate gifts, contact us on info@belleregalo.co.za or visit us on www.belleregalo.co.za

New Laptop Bags as Corporate Gifts

Good quality, protective laptop bags are an ideal corporate gift if budget is not an issue. A laptop is like a travelling business, so their value is not just the cost of the laptop, but all the intellectual property and energy that goes into your business. A sad reality is that many people neglect to do backups, so the damage or loss of a laptop is actually immeasurable for many. I recently came across a wonderful laptop bag range that is the ultimate in laptop protection. The New Samsonite PRO-TECT range offers optimum laptop protection thanks to the unique Thermo-formed cushion lining of the case. This innovative foam cushioning system provides ultimate shock absorption. Its unique wave shape also allows for laptop cooling in the bag. It is not just a corporate gift, but the ultimate in laptop bags in terms of protection. If budget is an issue there are a number of medium and low cost laptop bag options for your clients. For woman’s Day, my favourite laptop bag is the Ladies Stylish Laptop Handbag. It is a striking and well-designed bag that looks like a handbag and not a laptop bag. I personally feel that there is a great security element as it is not a bag that looks like it should have a laptop in it, which makes women less of a target when using this bag. it makes a great corporate gift for women.

• 19cm PU Carry Handles • Raised Detail • Metal Zipper & Accents • Branding Plaque • Media Tablet Compartment • Padded Laptop Compartment • Inner Division With Zip Pouch • Inner Zip Pocket • Cotton Lining For lower budgets there is also the Imitation Neoprene Laptop Case. It is a wonderful lightweight option and has a very favorable price.

• Holds 15.5" Laptop • Padded Handles • Adjustable/Removable Padded 4 cm x 122 cm Shoulder Strap • Reverse Main Compartment Zip • Front Zip Pocket So no matter what your budget is for laptop bags, Belle Regalo has a range of ideas for you. For more laptop bags or other corporate gifts. Happy shopping!

Year End Function Gifts

Sadly many people leave the decision of their year end function gifts to the last minute and the gifts is one of the items that leave a last impression as it is the item that most enduring besides the memories. So rather in corporate gift planning with all your other event planning right at the beginning to avoid disappointment closer to the function. Here are some aspects to consider when planning for your year end function gifts. Theme of Gifts When planning for the year end function gifts consider providing gifts that can be used on the staff or customers on their holiday or in their home. Gifts of this personal nature far more appreciated than desk based gifts which are items that can only be used at work and while work is an important part of life and the basis of your relationship with them, no one wants to think of work at the end of the year. In the summer months people like to go for braais to the beach, have socials with friends and generally soak up the good weather. Ideas for the outdoor theme are picnic blankets, portable braais, cooler bags with braai kit inside, a stunning new gift is the big game folding cooler which is a large cooler that has a stand and can be filled with your favorite beverages. Amount of Space on the Table If you are planning to out your gifts on the table, you may want to consider smaller items that do not take a lot of space off the table. No one wants to have the gifts in the way of their crockery as they are just an irritation. On the other hand at some functions guests can also take more than one gift if one of your guests does not arrive and if the gifts are small then no one will notice an additional gift slipped into a handbag. Nice gifts are small in size are: The Icon Range of Carol Boyes Salad Servers; The Icon Range of Carol Boyes Sugar Ladles; Carol Boyes Bottle Opener, Carol Boyes Coaster Sets, ceramic coffee mugs, photo frame, key rings, notebooks, wallets and purses, pens and pens sets, sunglasses, book lights. Packaging of Gifts Gift wrapped gifts always look smarter than a gift left on the table. A lot of companies want to gift wrap in their corporate gift wrap. But first chat to your event coordinator about the colour scheme of your function and then purchase your gift wrap to tie in with the event theme. If your gifts are going to be wrapped and stored before the function, then only use fabric ribbon, as paper ribbon tends to bend and crease whereas fabric ribbon stays looking fresh for longer. Although ribbon with the wire inserts are beautiful for on the day gift wrapping for stored items a normal satin ribbon is better as the wire also bends if stored after wrapping. If your budget allows for it boxes with lids save you a lot of time in terms of gift wrapping. If you are branding ribbon please do allow for manufacturing time. Lead time of Gifts Take into account that your branding house will need time to create an artwork approval, have it signed off and book your branding production space, print, cure and repackage. As it is now peak season for the corporate gifting industry and over 50% of annual turnover for the industry is done in the last four calendar months of the year, you know that you will be competing for production space with many other companies. Handing Gifts out on Departure If your gifts are larger or you are concerned about security a very nice idea is to hand gifts out upon the departure of the guests. This is great for security, as then you are ensuring that each guest only one gift, which is important if your gifts are of high value. Handing gifts out upon departure also works well for large gifts that would not be able to be placed on the table. Large gifting items that can be handled out upon departure include: Sally Williams Gifting Hampers, Indestruktible luggage gifts, braai gifts, duffel bags, outdoor blankets, cooler bags, Carol Boyes ice bucket. For more idea please visit our website www.belleregalo.co.za Useful links for gifts ideas. Try these links for end of the year gift ideas. Carrol Boyes Range: http://belleregalo.bcgshop.co.za/carrol%20boyes/Products.aspx Sally Williams Hamper Range: http://belleregalo.bcgshop.co.za/sally%20williams%20hampers/Products.aspx Leisure and outdoor gifts: http://belleregalo.bcgshop.co.za/leisure%20and%20outdoor/Products.aspx Good luck for your year end function.

How to Choose an End of the Year Gift

Around this time of the year, people start looking at end of the year gifts.
What are some of the things that you have to bear in mind for the end of the year gifts?

1. Who are you clients?If you client is a CEO who is office bound most of the days you may want to give an end of the year gift that has a relaxing element to it. Great end of the year gifts, may include a stainless steel Braai set, books,
If your client is a secretary, you may want to consider a more personal end of the year gifts, like a pamper set, teas set

2. Affordability of the end of the year gift.
Consider what you can afford for end of the year gifts. It is better to short list your client list so that you can spend a bit more on top level clients than do a blanket gift for all clients regardless of their spend.
You could for top end clients buy a mini fridge cooler/warmer and for your lower level clients and personalised coffee mug as an end of the year gift.

3. Look at the life long value of the client.
For clients who have or are capable of spending a lot with you consider how much that clients will be worth to your company between 1 to 5 years from now. Don’t give out a cheap pen as an end of the year corporate gift when they are actually worth a waterman pen end of the year corporate gift.

4. How appropriate is the end of the year gift?For conferences it is normal to give our pens, folders etc, but for a year end gift if you are going to do a folder, make it a genuine leather folder or a leather luggage item. If your client is into waste management or any other environmental service consider giving them eco friendly gifts as corporate gifts.
If your client is in advertising or design or even Public relations, well then you had better do your homework before you send out an end of the year gift.

5. Are there religious implications for the end of the year gift.
If your client’s religion prohibits alcohol, don’t give them custom wine as you may end up offending your client. Also if you do give out drinking glasses, make sure that you know if there are religious preferences before giving out wine glasses as end of the year corporate gifts.