by Joe Johnson

Gift giving season is upon us. You’ve finished all your shopping, right? Right?! Okay, so maybe not. But it’s not too late to find the perfect gift.

Musing over some spice cookies and mulled wine, it struck me that excellent gift shopping shares a lot of parallels with excellent customer research, which makes me a bit of an expert on the subject.

So, as my gift to you, here are my top 4 steps to come up with thoughtful and meaningful gifts:

1. Know your audience. The number one thing is to really understand the person you’re shopping for. As a researcher, it is my goal to uncover unarticulated needs so I can figure out how to meet them. You can do the same thing by keeping a running list of observations—things that the person you’re shopping for says, or more importantly, does. For example, say you have a friend who enjoys the occasional glass of wine but is always shoving the old cork back into the bottle. It’s an okay workaround, so she would never think to ask for a wine stopper, but when you give her one she will love it! It’s thoughtful and inexpensive! If you haven’t kept a list this year, that’s okay, just think back to all the moments you spent together.

 

2. Ideate and iterate. It will be tempting to simply ask the person what they’d like to receive, but as is the case with a lot of research, your audience probably can’t articulate the best way to solve their needs (if they can even articulate their needs in the first place). It’s up to you as an impartial observer to figure that out. So, from your list of observations (which doesn’t have to be long), think of things that YOU think will solve your giftee’s needs.  Then you can test out a few ideas by subtly hinting at the idea to observe reactions.

 

3. Collaborate. Still not sure? Crowdsource it! Run your ideas by your giftee’s friends and relatives. Ask them if they’ve noticed the needs you identified, or if they observed anything different. In research, we buddy up for customer interviews all the time for just this reason—different people notice different things, and it helps to bounce ideas off each other. That’ll keep you from heading down the wrong path, like buying a gym membership for your stressed out girlfriend instead of a day at the spa—both can relieve stress, but one obviously is more likely to land you out in the cold.

 

4. Optimize and package. You’ve heard the phrase, “the medium is the message.” Whether you’re a company selling a product or a generous spirit giving a gift, it’s not just what you give, but how you give it. Does your recipient love surprises? Borrow a receipt for something else from a friend and casually leave it around! Pretty things? Don’t forget the shiny paper and a bow! But most importantly, let the person know WHY this is a thoughtful gift—you really care about them and noticed something and wanted to do something about it. It’s like an effective go-to-market strategy—really, honestly, earnestly engage your customer (or giftee) and they’ll love it.

 
And there you have it. As long as you keep your “customer” in mind throughout the gift-giving process, you’ll give the perfect gift every time. And speaking of time, you’d better get going!

Here’s to happy holidays and an excellent new year from all of us at HSG!