After losing a speech competition that I really wanted to win, my trip back home to my family was bleak. I was hoping that I would be able to walk through the door and proudly show my trophy to my wife and two children. This time there was no trophy; He returned home empty-handed. As I walked through the door, my six-year-old son came up to me and handed me a trophy he had made for me. Constructed of cardboard and colored with a yellow crayon, my son had written “Best Dad Trophy” in large letters.

As he handed me the gift he had made, he said, “I wanted to make sure you got a trophy, Dad.” This gift remains one of my most treasured items proudly displayed on my desk. It was a different kind of gift; It was a gift from the heart. Gifts, and the act of giving gifts to those we care about so much, continue to be one of the best ways to reach those who do business with us and those we want to do business with. This fact is indisputable, but it is rarely practiced in the course of everyday business. There’s no better way to schedule appointments, keep the sales process moving, and make a personal connection with those who support our business than by giving gifts; yet few of us do. Why? We don’t give gifts often enough because we’re looking through cloudy eyes. Look at the reasons why we don’t give gifts as a regular part of our daily business from the eyes of an innocent six-year-old:

Perceived challenge: Not enough time to give gifts

Sure, we’d all like more time, but if you were to look at this perceived challenge with a fresh eye, you’d quickly see that we’re wasting a lot of time, too. We approach gift-giving like it’s time-consuming, it’s not. Instead of wasting those ten minutes before an important meeting, reach into your drawer and “gift someone.” If you were to add up all the little blocks of time you lose throughout the day, you’d have several hours a week that just aren’t used. They’re not being used because it’s not enough time to start a new project, but it’s still valuable time that can be used to increase the volume of “touches” you have with those who “can tell you yes.”

Perceived challenge: gifts are expensive

Gifts are only expensive when you look at them with worn-out eyes. See gifts through the eyes of a six-year-old and you can magically redefine what a gift is. As they reminded me, a gift is valuable when it comes from the heart. Now, you’re not going to create a cardboard trophy with the words “Best Customer Trophy” written on it in crayon. However, take a moment and consider why that gift was so valuable. It took time, creativity and energy to produce it. These three valuable components made the gift valuable, not to mention the fact that my son thought enough of me to put his time, creativity, and energy into creating a gift for me. You have these three things inside those wasted ten-minute blocks of time that, until now, weren’t being used to grow your business. The adult version of my son’s cardboard trophy is a handwritten card.

The art of the handwritten card has power because you are telling your customer or prospect that you value them enough to take time out of your day to write them a message. In the same way that I received my cardboard trophy, your customers will literally be delighted that you took time out of your busy day to thank them for a conversation you had, that you were glad they were still your customers, or that they are grateful for the opportunity to earn your business. These handwritten gifts are inexpensive and more valuable than most gifts you can send. The beauty is that you can send them frequently, and you’ll instantly realize that you occupy a coveted place in their mind: the top of their mind. As you create and protect this space at the top of your mind, you will receive all the benefits that come with this esteemed position. Perhaps the easiest thing to understand is that you will receive the phone call when it is time to make a purchase. That’s something you can walk in the door with and show off to your family!

How can I make sure I’m set up for success?

You now have the ability to let the team of handwriters at Market By Hand handle all the work for you. We have created a system that allows you to send real handwritten cards, either on demand or at a predetermined time. You can test the system yourself absolutely free. Just go to www.marketbyhand.com, sign up for a free trial account and you’ll instantly earn free credits and free postage to send a trial card. Whether you send the cards yourself or the experts at Market By Hand send them for you, we sincerely hope that you fully understand and use the power behind these simple and effective marketing techniques. Trust me, your checkbook will thank you.