Yes, Most Ad Agency Christmas Giving Is Ineffectual

OK. It’s 2023 and what a wonderful year it has been. yMucho agency leaders are thinking… huh, shouldn’t we do something cool for our clients? Like, deliver a bit of ad agency Christmas giving. But, um, no, do not do that. So in honor of my magical anti-gifting thought and advice, I offer MY annual Christmas gift rant (or better yet, a strategic approach to giving).

It is that time of year again.

It is the time that many an ad agency decides that it is a great time of year to add to the upcoming ad agency (and universal) Christmas giving clutter. OY – Am I being Grinch-like? You bet.

Does your ad agency send out Christmas cards or gifts or online trinkets (or other creative ideas) to clients — even prospects? I call this practice stupid silly. Strong words? Sure. but, why am I saying this?

Look, I have nothing against season’s greetings. But, after working at a couple of mega agencies (including my own) and watching dozens/hundreds of agencies send out very “creative” Christmas (Chanukah, Kwanza, etc.) cards and gifts during the late-December season, I have to say this is very ill-timed even highly-inefficient outreach.

Silly gifting is wasteful in three critical ways:

• Bad timing. From a marketing point of view, you are sending out stuff into a high-density environment. You are gifting what you might think is special something/message just when everyone else is… from other agencies to families to friends. Crazy. A savvy client might even question your giving into the pile on agency holiday marketing barage.
• Most clients don’t care. They are not looking for your card, e-thing, or gift. I know this. Even after my agency got smart and switched to a, LOL, Chinese New Year gift, I got very limited thank yous from clients even long-term clients. YIKES! Little feedback when we sent out rather unique art directed + artfully etched fine-wine bottles that celebrated each Chinese new year’s animal. I still think it was a cool gift. Even avoiding the Christmas season, we still got very limited thanks. One year, I was so pissed off at being impolitely ignored, I asked silent clients why they (I am talking about serious clients like our NIKE AOR client) did not thank us. Their belated tail between the legs “thank you” response when I asked if they even got the gift was unfulfilling.
• Back to inefficient. Finally, how much time do you think the average agency spends on thinking about, planning, art directing, and producing holiday “cards” and gifts? Too much! I think that this stuff has become an agency joke. At best, it yields some agencies a bit of press. See what I mean aqui. Here is an example from The 2016 Drum article: Agency Christmas round-up: Cards, charity initiatives, chatbots and creative hangover cures

A quick idea…

If you want to look creative via gift-giving – and say thanks… I suggest being a bit more strategic. Get past the Christmas rush.

Why not celebrate a different holiday every year to look different without the major effort that stresses out your creative department. Unless, of course, it is the only time they can kick some creative butt.

By the way, Happy Holidays.