13 Practical Tips for Better Gift-Giving

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Some people might see gift-giving as a symptom of consumerism. However, we know it’s more meaningful than that.

The art of gift-giving is about making the people in your life feel seen and known and loved. Receiving the perfect gift shows how much someone cares for and pays attention to you. Receiving a terrible gift can make you feel distant from that person.

If you have a hard time finding gifts for the people you love, we have some tips and tricks that can help. Hone your gift-giving skills and show your loved ones how important they are to you with gifts that prove you cherish them.

Keep a Gift List on Your Phone

This is definitely our number one tip! When the holiday season rolls around, or you realize your best friend’s birthday is quickly approaching, gift-giving becomes stressful and chaotic — unless you have a gift list ready to go!

Remembering every gift idea you spontaneously have or recalling what loved ones said they want is difficult. Make your life easier, and keep a running list of gift ideas on your phone or in your planner.

It can be a link to something a friend was obsessing over, a general idea like “ski gear,” or even a photo of an item! Now, when an occasion arises, you’ll have a collection of ideas to pull from.

We organize our gift lists by person. It can be helpful to create a section for yourself as a type of wishlist. This way, when people ask what you want, you have some ideas to offer.

Start Shopping Early

The best gift-givers are always shopping for their loved ones. This doesn’t necessarily mean you buy things all year round, but you’re mentally preparing for special occasions. Unless it’s a timely or super trendy gift, you can buy items months ahead of time and store them until the special day arrives.

Just don’t buy things ahead of time that will expire in some way. For example, if your friend is obsessed with a new movie, buying them a related gift that you won’t give them for six or more months might not be ideal. Stock up on timeless gifts that you can give to your loved one at any time.

We like to have a designated area for gifts-in-waiting, usually an underused closet or beneath a desk. If you have curious children, you might need to think of a more clever hiding spot.

Solve Recipeint’s Pain Points (Not Yours)

If you’re in marketing or sales, you know all about pain points. If not, here’s a quick explanation: a pain point is a specific problem your target audience (or gift recipient) experiences. Solving these pain points for your loved ones is a brilliant way to approach gift-giving.

Maybe your spouse always complains about sore feet; get them insoles. Maybe your best friend’s dirty car stresses them out; have their car professionally detailed. Perhaps a coworker is always annoyed with their coffee going cold; gift them a heated mug.

Be careful when taking this approach to give gifting. First, do not gift people things to solve your pain points. For example, if you hate how your spouse never wakes up early, don’t get them a high-tech alarm clock. That’s helping you, not necessarily pleasing them.

Second, gifts can be functional, but they should also be fun. Buying someone cleaning supplies or gifting them an oil change might solve a pain point, but it’s not particularly exciting for the recipient.

Collect Dates and Sizes

To make gift-giving easier, you should collect the clothing and shoe sizes of your loved ones. You can keep this in your list of gift ideas for people, so you’ll always know what size they need when ordering and shopping.

You can add other helpful info to the list as well, like their favorite color or their least favorite color. We even like to make small notes concerning allergies or sensitivities so we don’t get them something that might irritate them.

More important than the sizes and favorite colors are the dates of any important occasion. You should have everyone’s birthdays and anniversaries marked down.

The dates can be added to your gift list beside each person’s name. However, we prefer to add these dates to our calendars and set reminders. We put birthdays into everyone’s contact information and set alerts two or three weeks before the date.

Learn to Listen for Hints and Clues

People constantly tell us what they want, what they need, and what they love. We just have to listen! The best of the best gift-givers are incredible listeners, and that’s where they get all their gift ideas from.

Noting when loved ones make comments that could inspire a present can be tricky and takes a little practice. You have to make listening and translating these things into gifts a habit.

A great way to start is by going shopping with a loved one and paying special attention to what items interest them and how they like to shop. Don’t be creepy! But it’s okay to ask their opinions on things like, “Do you think you’d wear something like this?” or “What do you think about these gadgets?”

With enough practice, your ears will perk up when someone drops a gift hint — whether they do it on purpose or not.

Gift With Purpose

We don’t want to sound mean, but the worst gift-givers are those who buy without purpose or thoughtfulness.

It could be the coworker who always gifts everyone a cheap bar of soap, the friend who always gives you weird romance novels, or the uncle who gives you gross gag gifts like a toilet timer. We’ve all received presents like this, and it doesn’t feel great.

These gifts don’t show any care and don’t serve much of a purpose. While they can be funny, we generally recommend avoiding gag gifts. A pillow with your boyfriend’s face on it might get a giggle, but is it really going to sit on the sofa? Silly gag trophies, clothing, and other items aren’t ideal.

Of course, everyone is different. Maybe your friend group loves pranks, or your dad thinks gag gifts are riotous. You know your loved ones better than we do, but we don’t want you defaulting to gag gifts or making them a habit.

Beyond the silly gifts, you should also avoid giving people items that will just become clutter. Gag gifts, random gift baskets, unnecessary socks, and weird decor fall under this category.

Gift With Emotion

Gifting with purpose is one thing; gifting with emotion is another. If you struggle endlessly to give presents, we recommend tapping into your feelings and using them to drive your gifting decisions.

How does one even do this? It’s all about noticing those emotional moments with loved ones. Is there a memory that always makes you giggle? Are you feeling particularly appreciative of someone in your life? Use these kinds of emotions to inspire your gifts.

For example, if you miss your friend who lives a thousand miles away, gift them tickets to go on a trip together or send them a small photo book of your shared memories.

Think about potent memories and your general feelings toward the individual and try to replicate those emotions in your gifts.

Consider Their Lifestyle

Sometimes, gift-giving isn’t just about what someone might want or like. You should give gifts conducive to people’s lifestyles.

For example, if your cousin is a nomad who moves often, a heavy electric firepit might not be a good gift, even if they love firepits. Maybe your friend is a mom to two rambunctious toddlers, so a luxurious crystal vase is a risky present.

Some gifts simply don’t fit into people’s lifestyles. Just because someone loves skiing doesn’t mean they have room for new skis, or they might live too far from a mountain. Gift people items that won’t become an inconvenience and that they can actually enjoy.

Go beyond Material Gifts

Sweaters and coffee mugs are classic gifts, but don’t be afraid to think outside of the box. These days, people often prefer perishable presents or experience-based gifts.

Perishable or consumable gifts are items that can be used and discarded, meaning they won’t add to the recipient’s permanent clutter collection. Gifts like food, candles, beauty products, and bath and shower products are perfect. They can be enjoyed and appreciated but won’t take up space forever.

Experience gifts are things like amusement park passes, movie tickets, rock climbing lessons, or museum membership. These gifts are not physical items but can dazzle people. They allow the recipient to make memories, check off bucket list items, and maybe try something new.

Furthermore, gifts can also be more sentimental, artful things, such as handwritten letters, homemade videos, or personalized songs. It’s not about the physical item, it’s about the sentiment behind it.

No Solo Gift Cards

In general, we don’t love giving gift cards and certificates as presents. They can feel impersonal and thoughtless.

We’re not saying all gift cards are bad gifts; they can be to a meaningful store or their favorite restaurant. So, if you think a gift card is the perfect present, then we support you. However, we strongly recommend gifting something else along with the gift card.

If you spent big money on the gift certificate, it’s okay for the physical gift to be small. A box of nice chocolate, a bouquet of flowers, a candle, a cute trinket, or a bottle of wine are decent options.

Ideally, you should tie the small, secondary present to the gift card. It’s wonderful if you can gift them something from the same company. For example, you can give someone a Yankee Candle gift card along with a candle you think they’d like.

Don’t Gift for Yourself

Bad gift-givers often make the mistake of giving presents they themselves would want. Just because you want a new Juicy tracksuit, that doesn’t mean your mom does.

If we’re shopping for someone with similar tastes and interests to us, we might ask ourselves, “Would I like to have this?” while shopping for them. But beyond that, you should take your opinion of the gift out of the equation.

You might be a healthy food fanatic, but if your spouse isn’t, get them the salty potato chips they love. Of course, you shouldn’t be gifting bottles of gin to former alcoholics. But the point is the gift is from you, not about you.

Always Attach a Card or Note

What can we say? We’re old-fashioned. No matter how big or small the gift is, attach some sort of note or card.

When we were kids, our parents had to sternly remind us to open the card, read it, and say thank you before tearing into the toys underneath the wrapping paper. As adults, we often relish the kind card more than the gift itself.

Greeting cards are acceptable (hey, Hallmark!), but make sure you handwrite a little something inside, even if it’s just a few words. If you don’t have a card and there’s no time to get one, a small piece of paper with a handwritten note is better than nothing.

Sometimes, we even like to keep these cards and notes for sentimentality, so they might be more special to someone than you realize.

Don’t Neglect Presentation

We don’t want to sound fussy, but gift wrapping is important to us. Casually handing someone an unwrapped gift doesn’t have the same excitement or pizzazz as a gift bag or wrapped box.

The wrapping doesn’t have to be Martha-Sewart-level gorgeous. But tearing into some colorful paper to reveal the thoughtful present is part of the beauty of gift-giving.

It’s not the end of the world if you can’t get a present wrapped in time, but don’t underestimate the impact of pretty wrapping paper or the significance of taking the extra time to present something beautifully.

Featured Image Credit: Dragana Gordic and Shutterstock