Personalizing the gifts you give can be a big game-changer.
If you are still preparing Christmas presents, this study could well help you complete your Santa bag… Researchers from the University of Bath in England reveal to us what is the best way to please our loved ones during the Christmas holidays.
Gifts that increase the recipients’ self-esteem
“Gift giving is an age-old tradition, but in today’s world, personalization has become a powerful way to make gifts stand out”, said Dr. Diletta Acutimarketing expert at the School of Management at the University of Bath.
In his searchcarried out with French and Swiss colleagues, and entitled “You designed that yourself for me?” Vicarious pride in customized gift exchange” -You designed this yourself for me? Vicarious pride in the exchange of personalized gifts- she explores why personalized gifts are so popular with recipients.
For this, four experimental studies were carried out:
– In the first, 74 participants offered clothes to a friend, some of which were personalized. Gift liking was assessed by asking recipients to change elements of the gift that they did not like. It turned out that recipients of personalized gifts changed fewer items of their outfit than others, indicating greater appreciation.
– In the second, the researchers showed 134 participants videos of the t-shirt selection process: the first highlighting the personalization of a gift, and the second showing a selection of gifts made by surfing different websites . Results, appreciation was higher for the personalized gift, regardless of the effort and time spent by the giver.
– In the other two studies that were conducted online with a mug and a wristwatch as gifts, researchers also found that personalizing the items increased liking and boosted the recipients’ self-esteem.
“The results showed that when choosing a gift for the holidays, personalization can be a game-changer. But it’s not just about selecting a customizable option: you also need to communicate that effort to your recipient”, explains the specialist.
Christmas gifts: personalization must be explained to the recipient
“By explaining why you chose certain elements of the gift or explaining the thought that went into creating it, the recipient will appreciate it even more. Indeed, this extra effort will help him feel the pride you felt in your choices, which will make the gift even more meaningful”, analyzes the expert. The study also shows that people receiving personalized gifts take much more care of these gifts than their other gifts.
