Easter Baskets For Clients and Referral Partners - Business Networking and Relationship Building

It's almost Easter, and all those massive Easter egg and Easter candy displays in the stores suggest yet another interesting opportunity for strengthening your business relationships. Read on and find out how to use it the right way.

As you know, little tokens of appreciation are always appreciated, and some of that delicious candy that's available right now can be turned into very welcome gifts.

But there is the rub. Not everyone celebrates Easter. Neither does everybody indulge in chocolate and sugary sweets. So you should make sure you know the intended receiver of your gifts well enough to know whether such goodies will indeed be welcome.

If you have referral partners, you probably know each other well enough to know whether or not they would appreciate being on the receiving end of a little basket with cream-filled chocolate eggs. There are a variety of reasons why they may not be, or why an alternate version of that basket would go over better.

First, there might be religious reasons. Maybe they would prefer kosher chocolate gold coins, for example.

Or there might be health reasons. Diabetes is rampant these days, and while people may not want to discuss it in so many details, more and more people would appreciate sugar-free versions of the seasonal delicacies. And they're available. It just takes a bit of an extra effort to find them.

What about your clients and customers? They will enjoy a token of appreciation as well, and any kind of holidays make for a good excuse for giving such gifts.

Obviously, you may not be as familiar with your clients' and prospects' dietary habits or religious backgrounds, but don't get carried away with worrying about it. It's the thought that counts, after all. And chocolate bunnies, marshmallow peeps, and similar seasonal items are probably generic enough for most people to enjoy. And if they don't eat sugar themselves, they probably have family or friends who do.

Still, it won't hurt to ask. Get together for lunch, if appropriate, and bring it up in the conversation. You may learn something important about your client or (potential) referral partner. And if it's a bit late for this year, why not have that lunch anyway and make a note of what you find out -- after all, the next holiday season will be here before we know it.



Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Sue_Clement