VO-BB - 20 YEARS OLD!

Jon Morss · Guest

It's been some time since I have posted here, but I thought this was the best place for this question.

I have a client that has booked me for their entire TV/Radio campaign with the potential of up to 70 spots for the year and I wanted to send them a thank you by means of a gift basket or something like that. Is this a strange practice, or something that other folks do for a great client?

Does anyone have a standard practice they use to thank clients?

I would be interested to know what you all do.

Thanks .

Moe Egan · Posted: Fri May 01, 2009 9:38 am Post subject:

Gifties rock.

Send something you'd like to get yourself.

I send NH themed baskets, and a select few get a nice bottle of sumpin sumpin when the occasion calls for it.
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bobsouer · Posted: Fri May 01, 2009 7:11 pm Post subject:

Jon,

Sounds like an excellent idea to me. Moe's suggestions are right on the money.
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Lee Gordon · Posted: Sat May 02, 2009 2:07 am Post subject:

This may be a very cynical response, but when I hear the words "Radio/TV campaign" and "potential" used in the same sentence, the smoke detector in my butt goes off. I think the idea of a thank-you gift of some sort is excellent, but if it were me, I would hold off until at least some of that potential had become reality.
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mcm · Posted: Sat May 02, 2009 7:32 am Post subject:

I had the exact same reaction as Lee, except my smoke detector is actually above my hed...

Hatch the chicks first, then count 'em.

Drew · Posted: Sat May 02, 2009 7:44 am Post subject:

Sage advice.
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Jeffrey Kafer · Posted: Sat May 02, 2009 11:02 am Post subject:

Same thought as Lee and MCM. Wait until the checks clear and then use some of that dough to buy them a gift.
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bobbinbeamo · Posted: Sat May 02, 2009 1:04 pm Post subject:

"Thank you for you business" never goes out of style. Of course, what everyone else says I agree with.
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Jon Morss · Guest

Thanks guys. I knew this was the best place to post this question.

I do appreciate the concern regarding the potential amount of work the client has forecast and they really only gave me a commitment of around 5 spots per each of their 7 markets with the possibility of going to 10 spots per market. I have already recorded and have been paid for 4 out of the first 5 spots with the 5th spot to come soon. Personally I feel I can trust the client so I do feel comfortable with them. Since this was my first real regular client and not a one shot thing, I felt it might be cool to send a nice thank you.

Thanks again for your thoughts and concern. It has been well taken.

Jon

davidmonteath · Posted: Sun May 03, 2009 3:42 pm Post subject:

I go to a garage every week, I fill my car or my bike with fuel and I pay for it. Where I live there are at a rough estimate 8 filling stations within about a 3 mile radius. I could go to any of them, I have one in particular that I go to because it is convenient, no other reason, I don't get points, they don't have a particularly cute assistant.....its just convenient for me and it does what I require of it, supplies fuel.

Would I still go to it if it sent me a bunch of beer or chocolate or just knew my name? Honestly, probably not......I would find that too much, if anything, too intrusive.

I don't send clients gifts or presents, if they are friends outside of work then I do, but my work is a transaction, they want me to do something and I do it in exchange for money, they understand that and so do I.

I think and its only my opinion, that if you go down the route of sending a thank you gift when you work for them, you send out the wrong signals. Hire me again so you get some goodies etc.

My clients hire me because I turn in the work on time, to a high professional standard and to budget.

Say thank you politely and move on to the next job.
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Philip Banks · Posted: Sun May 03, 2009 4:04 pm Post subject:

A blanket policy only works when you have a cold bed. Should you send anything? Why do you want to send something? If your motivation is to buy more business then it may or may not work. If you just want to brighten up an otherwise dull Tuesday then that's no bad thing.

A few months ago I jumped on a plane and took a team of producers out for dinner .....Because I could.

Interesting to note what my agent gets from me. 15%. No card, wine, choccies, flowers, nuttin. Equally interesting, there are VOs who I like very much as people but wouldn't let them read my shopping list yet I have been able to get high profile jobs for VOs who I think are total Gobsh*tes. Funny ole world.

Mandy Nelson · Posted: Mon May 04, 2009 7:05 am Post subject:

Lee, is that smoke detector hard wired?
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Rob Ellis · M&M Joined: 01 Aug 2006 Posts: 2385 Location: Detroit

I will sometimes send a note or card, but a gift usually not.

Diane Havens · Posted: Mon May 04, 2009 1:43 pm Post subject:

The only time I have ever given such a gift was to a Parisian client, for whom I worked six months on an extensive project. My family and I then went to Paris on vacation some time shortly after that, so we planned to meet at a cafe for breakfast -- I brought him a bag of little somethings American -- a JVC jazz festival CD and a box of Michael Recchiuti artisan chocolates from San Francisco. He treated us all to breakfast. It was lovely.

All others receive holidays cards with my warm best wishes.
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SeptemberDay · Posted: Mon May 04, 2009 1:53 pm Post subject:

I send a little something-something to big clients hoping they'll remember me. And I just sent Nancy Wolfson strawberries because she rocks Smile

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