The influence of giftology on business relationships

Giftology is defined in the subtitle of the book of the same name: The art and science of using gifts to stand out from the crowd, increase referral rates and build customer loyalty. The author, John Ruhlin, was the world’s leading authority on corporate gifts and owner of the world’s leading dating agency. His company provides gifts for all occasions. The goal of gifting is to grow business by showing customers and clients so much love and appreciation that they will make recommendations without asking. And who wouldn’t want that?

Ruhlin’s name may sound familiar if you’ve followed my work. Over the years, I’ve used his expertise around the holidays to ensure your gift to a client or employee is meaningful and memorable. (Think your clients really love the fruitcakes you give them?)

Ruhlin died earlier this month at just 44 years old. His family, friends and clients are devastated by his loss. He made everyone feel like they were one of their best friends and hundreds of those “best friends” attended his celebration of life.

I want to honor his genius and share with you at least once more (probably more often) some of his best Giftology lessons. Here are five of Ruhlin’s laws for corporate gift giving:

1. Give gifts outside of the prescribed times. Of course, many people and companies send gifts to their favorite customers around the holidays. Consider sending gifts outside of the prescribed times when many people are expecting them. When was the last time you showed your affection to a customer and sent them a gift on Valentine’s Day? Perhaps an anniversary gift based on the day the customer first did business with you?

2. Stop putting your logo on your gifts. If the gift is special and meaningful, you don’t need a logo to make your customers remember who gave it to them. Even if the gift is exquisite, having a logo on it makes it eye-catching.

3. Whatever it is, make it personal. Ruhlin was the best Cutco knife salesman in the world. (Really!) One of his favorite things to do was personalize knives by engraving the customer’s name. (The large butcher knife Ruhlin gave me is engraved and reads: Handcrafted exclusively for Shep and Cindy Hyken.) Essentially, he didn’t put the company logo on the knife, but rather his customers’ logos or names.

4. Don’t give food or alcohol as a gift – basically anything that is consumable. There are several reasons for this. First, once the customer eats or drinks it, it’s gone. Second, maybe the customer doesn’t like what you bought them. Third, maybe the customer is on a diet or abstains from alcohol. Unless you know the customer loves a particular food or drink, don’t make the mistake of giving such an impersonal gift. And finally, once it’s consumed, it’s often forgotten.

5. Gift cards are often impersonal. Unless you know that the gift card is for a customer’s favorite restaurant or store, stay away from a generic gift card. Like groceries, gift cards are consumable items. Once they’re used, they’re gone and often forgotten.

Ruhlin has shared many more ideas with us over the years and given us some gift-giving guidelines to consider. Of course, there are always exceptions to every rule, but if you really want to make an impression, find a way to personalize the gift. That’s what makes it unforgettable.

In closing, there was more to John Ruhlin than just poisonology. He can also teach us a personal life lesson. John was a loving husband and a great father to four beautiful girls. He worked hard and partied hard, and he made sure to take time away from his business life to give his family 100% of his attention. I remember calling him during these breaks from his normally busy life. My calls were answered by an assistant who told me that unless it was a life-threatening emergency, he would not call me back until he returned from his trip.

Perhaps one of the best gifts he could give us was the reminder that life is precious and short. Take time to be with the people you love. Nothing is truly more important than that!