The Number One Mistake Clients Make With Client Gifts
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Time to read 2 min
“But ... how does it help my brand if I’m sending someone else’s product?”
The short answer? Because that’s what makes a client gift feel like a gift—and not a transaction.
Funny enough, another question I hear all the time is: “How do we make sure our client gifts feel genuine, not promotional?”
And my answer to that one is easy: Don’t just send generic branded swag and call it a gift.
When you send something that's all about your brand, it's not actually gifting - it's marketing. And while there's nothing wrong with marketing (I'm a career marketer - I love marketing!), the issue lies with framing what's ultimately a promotional effort through a lens of generosity.
That is the number one mistake I see brands make when it comes to client gifts.
To be clear: I’m not anti-swag.
In fact, my company creates branded merch for some of the world’s best brands.
Swag can absolutely be part of a great client gift—if you approach it intentionally.
Thoughtful . . . or an afterthought?
If you’re sending branded merch as client gifts, make sure:
1. It’s something people actually want.
Think: durable & modern duffel bags, high-end drinkware from brands they'll recognize, tech accessories they'll reach for everyday. Not: a foam stress ball with your logo on it.
2. It’s part of a larger gift experience.
Branded items can shine when they’re paired with thoughtful, non-branded pieces that show you’re thinking about the recipient—not just your own logo.
3. It fits the occasion.
Client welcome kits or prospecting gifts can (and probably should) include a few branded items. Bereavement gifts? Not so much.
It’s easy to get caught up in your own branding—especially when your marketing team has spent months perfecting the new logo or Pantone palette.
But gifting isn’t about you. It’s about surprising and delighting someone else.
Let me put it this way ...
Would you ever give a friend a set of wine glasses with your initials monogrammed on them?
No? Exactly.
Most swag is about you. Client gifts should be about them.
I’ve received a handful of promotional products I’ve actually kept—but always because they were well-made and genuinely useful. I still have two oversized canvas totes from years ago. Despite the giant logos, I bring them on beach trips because they’re sturdy, roomy, and look decent. But let’s be clear: I use them despite the branding, not because of it.
On the flip side, I still have client gifts from partners that had no branding whatsoever, and I remember exactly who gave them to me and why - because they were thoughtful, well designed, and premium (by the way, "premium" doesn't have to mean "breaks the bank".) Client gifts are no different than personal gifts: at the end of the day, people will remember thoughtful gifts you gave them for their birthdays, holidays, whatever -- and you probably didn't put your name on them.
That doesn’t mean you can’t showcase your brand.
You can.
Just make sure the recipient still feels like the main character.
The next time you’re building out a client gift, ask yourself:
Would I actually want to receive this?
Does this feel personal, useful, or memorable?
Is there anything in here that feels more like an ad than a thank-you?
If you can answer those honestly—and make the client gift feel like a gesture, not a grab—you’ll already be ahead of most brands.
Kyla Brennan, R/A Founder
This post was written by our founder.
Kyla is the founder of Rare Assembly. Previously, she founded a multimillion dollar marketing firm that she ran for 8 years, including after its acquisition by The New York Times in 2016. During that time, she worked with hundreds of the world's best brands and saw firsthand just how far a good gift can go in the business world.