Custom Corporate Gifts & Holiday Business Gift Buyers Guide

“Corporate gifts” is a broad term. It’s really an all-encompassing phrase that can mean anything from custom holiday gifts for your employees or co-workers to promotional products that you distribute at trade shows and conferences. At Merchology, we specialize in supplying your favorite retail brand corporate gifts with your added company logo. This guide outlines some popular business gifts, occasions in which corporate gifts are exchanged, and how to customize these items to make them special. Be sure to check out our corporate gifts budgeting guide to determine how much to spend on corporate gifts for your team too! Happy shopping!

Popular Corporate Gift Brands

Brands matter, even when giving gifts! At Merchology, we're all about Your Logo + Brands you Love. Here are some of our customers' favorite corporate gift brands, so you can rest easy knowing your gifts come from the best.

              

              

What Are Some Common Corporate Gifts?

A corporate gift can be just about anything, but they should always be appropriate, be in line with your business’ values, and fit the occasion. If you’re looking for corporate gift ideas on an individual level, then you might want to look for something that fits the individual personally. However, if you’re looking for business gifts on a larger scale, like for your whole company or as giveaways, then we’ve got some great ideas for you below.

MerchBoxes

MerchBoxes are the corporate gifting go-to. Choose from one of our turnkey themes, or create your own! The MerchBox combines all of your favorite products, stellar logo design and can be directly shipped to each of your recipients.

Bluetooth Speakers

Bluetooth speakers are one of the most popular corporate gifts for one reason: everybody wants them! These really check the box for any corporate gift giving occasion from holiday gifts to performance rewards and everything in between.

Custom Tumbler Cups

The versatility of a tumbler cup is a truly beautiful thing. Need to keep your drinks cold? Done. Need to keep them hot? Done. Need something durable and scratch resistant? Done. All that’s missing now is your engraved or printed logo.

 

Wireless Headphones

Take your music on the move with these custom Bluetooth headphones from your favorite brands. Wireless headphones are ideal at the office, at the gym, on the plane, and much more. That’s why they’re some of the most popular executive gifts around.

Custom Bags & Luggage

Chances are some of your colleagues are traveling over the holidays and nothing would make their trips easier than some brand-new luggage. These custom logo backpacks, totes, messenger bags, and suitcases are also great for business trips and company outings.

Custom Notebooks & Journals

Ramp up your notetaking game with the highest quality notebooks and journals with your printed or debossed company logo. Personalized notebooks are perfect for new hire onboarding gifts, holiday gifts, or as promotional giveaway items.

Engraved Moscow Mule Mugs

Think outside the box with these personalized Moscow Mule mugs. These copper libation holders can be custom engraved with your company logo or custom designed for a remarkably unique corporate gift idea.

Portable Chargers

Another great corporate gift from the electronics category. There’s nothing worse than leaving home and realizing that your battery is almost dead. These custom power banks make sure you always have a backup plan and are perfect for traveling.

Custom Water Bottles

Everyone should have a go-to water bottle for the office. Not only is it a great way to stay hydrated, but it also greatly cuts down on plastic bottle consumption. Plus, by adding your logo your employees will spread your brand wherever they take their water bottle.

Personalized Golf Balls & Golf Accessories

Custom golf balls are a super popular item for employee performance prizes and sales awards. Each golf ball is printed with your corporate logo, so you’ll know exactly which ball is yours when you’re looking for it in the rough!

Custom Coffee Mugs

The gift of caffeine is a great gift indeed! A customized coffee mug with your printed or engraved company logo is the perfect item to include in your corporate gift set or new hire welcome package.

Items for the Home

Corporate gifts don’t need to be items limited to the workplace. We’ve got you covered on a wide range of custom housewares and tools with your corporate logo including coasters, multi-tools, knife sets, bottle openers, flashlights and more.

Embroidered Blankets

The gift of a warm blanket is especially appreciated around the holidays. Add your custom embroidered corporate logo to cozy blankets to keep your team warm all winter long.

Candy and Snacks

They say that the way to someone’s heart is through their stomach for a good reason. Candy and snacks have always been a hit for corporate gifts, and now you can take it up a notch by adding your company logo to the packaging and labels of your favorite candy and snacks!

Corporate Apparel

We could go into great detail here and explain why every possible item of clothing could be an ideal corporate gift, but we’ll save you the time. Shopping for holiday gifts? Check out our custom sweatshirts and jackets. Looking for gifts in the summer? We’ve got the perfect t-shirts and polos for you.

Custom Hats

Personalized hats are one of the most popular corporate apparel options when it comes to gift giving because you have the option of purchasing adjustable hats, so there’s no need to track down sizes! Check out our Custom Headwear Buyers Guide for more info!

Applications for Corporate Gifts

A corporate gift or business gift can be given to express many things. It can mean “congratulations”, “welcome aboard”, “Merry Christmas”, “check out our brand”, “great work”, or simply, “thank you”. Here are a few common occasions in which corporate gifts are exchanged.

Corporate Holiday Gifts

This is the most popular application for corporate gifts. The holidays are the perfect time to give back to your employees or colleagues and thank them for all the hard work that they’ve done all year long. Common corporate holiday gifts and Christmas gifts include apparel, electronics, drinkware, bags, and gift baskets.

Promotional Giveaways

Don’t show up empty-handed to your next trade show or recruiting event! Be sure that your team has plenty of promotional products and giveaways with your logo to give out to people that visit your booth. The most popular promotional products include pens, notebooks, USB flash drives, speakers, water bottles, and bags.

Performance Rewards & Incentives

These corporate gifts are usually given as a prize at the end of an internal competition or as a reward for meeting certain team or individual goals. Some companies will include these in their employee of the month programs as well. Popular performance awards include custom electronics, luggage, golf balls, and drinkware.

New Employee Welcome Gifts

There’s no better way to make a new employee feel at home than with some sweet welcome gifts. Plus, you can use gifts like notebooks, pens, water bottles, and coffee mugs to make sure they have everything that they need for day one. Check out our New Hire Welcome Gift Buyers Guide for more ideas!

Employee Recognition & Appreciation Gifts

You don’t always need a reason to give back to your employees. Maybe you want to recognize a team member for some exemplary work. Or maybe you just want to show your entire staff that you appreciate what they do on a daily basis. These types of gifts can be anything from apparel to electronics and everything in between.

Corporate Gift Customization Options

At Merchology we can add your corporate logo to 60,000+ products from 200+ brands using more than 10 different decoration methods, so your customization options are just about endless! Here’s a quick look at some of our most popular decoration methods when it comes to corporate gifts.

Embroidery

Embroidery is the most common product personalization type at Merchology. Custom embroidery is used to add your corporate logo or design to hats, polos, sweatshirts & hoodies. Learn how the commercial embroidery process is performed here.

Pad Printing

Custom pad printing is the most popular customization method for electronics and accessories. The chief benefit of pad printing as a personalization option is that it can be done on just about any shaped surface. Pad printing is often used on custom notebooks, golf balls, drinkware, and electronics. Learn how pad printing is performed here.

Screen Printing

Custom screen printing is a classic decoration method that can be used to add your company logo to just about any flat material or product. Silkscreen printing is most commonly used on custom t-shirts but is also commonly used on custom activewear, journals, and promotional pens. Learn how screen printing is performed in our step by step guide here.

Laser Engraving

Laser engraving is our customization method of choice for items made from metal. Our most commonly chosen laser engraved products for corporate gifts include custom stainless steel water bottles, tumblers, mugs, and pens. Bonus fact: laser etching can also be performed on apparel as well! Learn how the laser engraving process works here.

 

Other Decoration Methods

Aside from the customization options you see here, we also offer heat transfer printing, debossing, digital printing, vinyl transfer, hot foil stamping, applique embroidery, and 3D puff embroidery. If you’re not sure which decoration technique is right for your application head over to our complete Custom Decoration Methods Guide for a breakdown of each personalization type.

Where Can I Place My Company Logo?

Custom logo location options entirely depend on the product you are personalizing. Popular company logo placements based on the product you are customizing are included below, but more logo placement options are available upon request.

• Speakers: front, back, side, or top.
• Headphones: right or left headphone, top band.
• Portable Chargers: front, back, side, or top.
• Notebooks: front of the notebook, band wrapping, interior pages.
• Candy & Snacks: on the wrappers, labels, or packaging.
• Pens: either side of the pen.
• Drinkware: just about anywhere on the item.
• Quarter Zips & Full Zips: left chest, right chest or sleeve.
• Hoodies: left chest, right chest, center chest, or sleeve.
• Polo Shirts: left chest, right chest or sleeve.
• T-Shirts: left chest, right chest, center chest or back.
• Vests: left chest or right chest.
• Hats: front, left side or right side.

Next Steps

Now that you've got some awesome corporate gift ideas and know when to give them it's time to start shopping! If you waited a little too long to place your order and you need your corporate gifts before the holidays or your event, check out our collection of Quick Ship Gifts that can be decorated and shipped in a matter of days. Still planning your company party? Refer to our Company Holiday Party Planning Guide for some great tips. If you have any questions about ordering your business gifts don't hesitate to contact us for more information! Finally, be sure to check out our Buyers Guides Page for more insights on how to pick the right merch for your business.