Who Runs the Best Client Appreciation Programs for B2B Companies?

When people ask me what a client appreciation program should look like, they usually expect me to name a gifting platform. The truth is there are some good ones out there, but most of them work the same way: you pick a gift from a catalog, add a typed message, and click send.

So I put together a roundup of the companies people look at most when they want to thank their clients, what each one does well, and where each one tops out.

Then I'll walk you through how we do it at GhostHandwriter, where every piece is built from scratch, from when it lands to the card stock to what's actually in the box.

Yes, we're on the list. I'll do my best to be fair.

What Is a Client Appreciation Program?

A client appreciation program is a series of thank-yous to the people who already pay you, spread out over the year instead of crammed into December. I've been running one on my own client list for about two years. Every couple of months, around 100 clients and prospects get something small from us with a handwritten note and no sales pitch attached.

It sounds almost too simple to work, but nearly every send brings back a referral, a repeat order, or an upsell. It truly never surprises me how people I've been nurturing for months (or years) come out of nowhere ready to do business.

The programs we built and recommend looks like this:

1. Consistent and timed drops about every 60 days with something useful to stay top-of-mind.

2. I don't EVER sell. It's not even implied. We never add the line "let me know if we can help." or anything remotely that sounds like selling.

3. Everything is unbranded. You'll more likely to use the item if there's no advertisement on it.

4. The item or gift is timed with the season or some other reason (milestone, birthday, anniversary, etc.)

Which Companies Run Client Appreciation Programs?

These are the names that come up most when people go looking for help thanking their clients.

1. Giftology Group

Giftology was started by the late John Ruhlin, and if you've read his book, you already know the philosophy: give something nice that they'll actually use, and keep your logo off it. The company is a premium relationship agency that has run year-round gifting for brands like the Chicago Cubs and Wells Fargo. It's a great fit for bigger companies with a budget to match, since the approach leans toward high-end items. And full disclosure, that book is the reason I started sending gifts in the first place.

2. Client Giant

Client Giant is an automated gifting platform built mostly for realtors, lenders, financial advisors, and insurance agents. Their in-house team sources the gifts, and you sign up for a gifting plan that sends on a schedule. They also say a gift with a logo isn't a gift, which I fully agree with. The tradeoff is that everyone on your plan gets the same curated lineup, and it's designed around consumer clients more than B2B accounts.

3. Sendoso

Sendoso is the biggest name in sales gifting, built for enterprise teams that want gifts to fire automatically from their CRM. If you have a big sales org and someone whose job is managing the platform, it does that well. Just know you're picking from their catalog and running the program yourself, so the strategy is still on you.

4. Alyce

Alyce uses AI to personalize gifts based on what it knows about each recipient. It works best for teams that already have a lot of clean data on their clients. If your CRM is a little messy (no judgment, most are), the suggestions will be too, and the gift is still coming off a menu.

5. SendOutCards

SendOutCards has been around since 2005. You design a card online, pick a font made from your handwriting, and they print and mail it for you, with the option to add a gift from their catalog. It's affordable and easy if you want to send a lot of cards. The catch is that it's printed, and most people can tell a font from real ink.

6. Cutco closing gift programs

If you've bought a house, there's a decent chance a Cutco knife came with it. Realtors and lenders have given engraved Cutco knives as closing gifts for years, usually through a local rep who handles the engraving. They're great knives, but it's one gift at one moment, often with the agent's name on the blade, which makes it a really nice thank-you rather than a program.

7. Tremendous

Tremendous is a digital rewards platform for sending gift cards, prepaid cards, and money, usually by email or text. The platform is free to use, and you only pay for the rewards themselves. The best part is that your client picks where to spend it, so nobody gets stuck with a gift card to a store they never go to. The catch is that it lands in an inbox next to everything else, and some recipients worry it's phishing before they open it. I'm a gift card fan myself (see the Starbucks story above), but that card sat on a desk for a year because it was something he could hold. An email doesn't have the same effect.

How Do They Compare?

Here's how everyone stacks up side by side. Most of these give you a menu to order from, and we're the ones who cook the meal.

What Does a Fully Custom Client Appreciation Program Look Like?

When we build a program at Ghost Handwriter, we start with your clients and goals then work backwards.

• Who are they

• What do they actually use

• What would make them open the box

Then we build the campaign around these answer- from designing the card stock to selecting gift, box, and packing material.

How Often Should You Send Client Appreciation Gifts?

We map out the year with you, and most of our programs land something about every 60 days. I like each send to hit a different sense, so one might be something to eat, the next something that smells good, and the next something they'll use at their desk every day. Your clients won't know that's the plan. But they will be delighted with you more each time.

My favorite trick is to skip the December pile-up entirely and send a New Year's gift that lands the first week of January, when nobody else is sending anything.

What Goes on a Client Appreciation Card?

The card is half the gift, so we don't treat it like an afterthought. We can do a short 4.25x5.5 note, a 5x7 card, or a full letter, with your logo printed or foil stamped, or no branding at all.

For the right audience, we've done black envelopes with gold ink. Every card is written by our machines with a real pen, so it's actual ink on actual paper.

What Should I Say to My Clients to Show I Appreciate Them?

We write the message with you, and we keep it short.

In my experience, a few honest sentences read like they came from a person, and a long letter reads like a form letter. We can use your digitized signature or turn your own handwriting into a custom font that only you get to use, and we merge in each person's name and details so no two cards are the same.

Short, sweet, and believable is the goal.

What Are Some Client Appreciation Gift Ideas?

This is where catalogs fall short. We can source pretty much anything that makes sense for your clients, then assemble and ship it for you. A few things we've sent:

• Tech wipes, everyone has a phone and computer

• Hydration tablets in the middle of summer

• BBQ seasoning right before the Fourth of July

• Cake mix and candles

• Personalized high-end pens

• Tumblers in each client's brand colors, with their logo or name etched

We consider seasonality, food preferences (you may have vegetarians for clients), and practicality. Is it something they would want? Is it something I would want?

Does Client Gifting Actually Work?

A couple of years ago I sent engraved pens with each client's name on them. Nine months later, a prospect who had gone quiet reached out from a new company to tell me he uses that pen every day and thinks of us.

I've got plenty more stories just like this one to prove it works- ask me!

How Do You Pick the Right Client Appreciation Program?

If you want software and you have someone to run it, a platform like Sendoso or Alyce makes sense. If you're a realtor or advisor who wants something on autopilot, Client Giant or a Cutco program will cover you. But if your clients are businesses you plan to work with for years, and you want them to feel like you actually know them, then this is our sweet spot.

As for budget, I usually tell people to spend somewhere between $5 and $50 per item depending on budget and list size. That range reads as generous without looking desperate. (But sending items over $50 for a one-time holiday gift is absolutely acceptable.)

Want Us to Build Yours?

If you want a company to handle your entire B2B client gifting including the mental load of selecting items and interval planning, then holler!