Gift giving is an effective means to strengthen interpersonal relationships; it also may initiate and enhance customer–brand relationships. Based on a field study conducted with an international mono-brand retailer of beauty products, a combination of propensity score matching with difference-in-differences estimations, and two experimental scenario studies, this research demonstrates that gift buyers spend 63% more in the year following a gift purchase than a matched sample of customers who purchase for their personal use. Specifically, gift buyers increase their purchase frequency (25%), spend more per shopping trip (41%), and engage in more cross-buying (49%). The sales lift is particularly pronounced among new customers. Identity theory suggests customer gratitude and public commitment as mediating mechanisms. Gift purchase design characteristics (i.e., assistance during gift purchase and branded gift wrapping) influence the strength of the mediating mechanisms.

1. From:
Gift Purchases as Catalysts for
Customer–Brand Relationships
How and Why Gift Purchases Strengthen
Customer–Brand Relationships
Eggert, Steinhoff, and Witte (2019)

2. From:From:
 Gift purchasing is an intriguing consumer behavior with great economic relevance
 In the United States alone, consumers spend an average of $1,851 annually buying gifts
for their family and friends
 By giving and receiving gifts, people create and sustain their mutual interdependence
 Gifts not only create and reinforce social ties but also bond the donor to the gifted
brand
 Gift purchases engage customers deeply with the gifted brand and promote their future
brand loyalty
Gift Purchases Can Strengthen Both Interpersonal
Relationships and Customer–Brand Relationships
Eggert, Steinhoff, and Witte (2019)

3. From:From:
How Does a Past Gift Purchase Impact Future
Sales from the Focal Brand?
Eggert, Steinhoff, and Witte (2019)
$21.59
$70.67
$20.58
$42.23
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
Sales before
(Oct 2011–Sep 2012)
Sales after
(Jan 2013–Dec 2013)
Gift purchase (Oct 2012–Dec 2012)
Personal use purchase (Oct 2012–Dec 2012)
Average Sales
per Customer [$]
 Sales data from an international
beauty retailer
 Comparison of overall sales between
gift purchasers and a matched group
of personal use purchasers
 Key Findings:
- Gift purchase leads to downstream
sales increase of 63%
- Gift purchase positively influences
future shopping frequency,
spending per shopping trip, and
cross-buying
- Sales increase is stronger for less
experienced customers
Sales
effect:
$27.43

4. From:From:
 Brand solves gift purchasers’ salient problem of finding the right gift
 Gift purchasers feel gratitude toward the gifted brand
 By gifting a branded item, gift givers indicate that they deem the focal brand appropriate
 Gift purchasers commit themselves publicly to the brand
 Due to higher levels of gratitude and public commitment, gift purchasers form stronger
attitudes toward the gifted brand, i.e. they think more positively about it and they are
more certain about their opinion about the brand
Why Do Gift Purchases Strengthen Customer–
Brand Relationships?
Eggert, Steinhoff, and Witte (2019)
Gift
purchase
from focal
brand
Future
purchase
behavior
+
Attitude
strength
Customer
gratitude
Public
commitment
+
+
+
+
Attitude toward Focal Brand
Behavior toward
Focal Brand

5. From:From:
 Identify products to position as gifts. Systematically highlight selected products in
marketing communications and offer promotions for purchasers looking for a gift
 Target new rather than experienced customers with gift purchase promotions
 Facilitate customers’ gift selection process to spur their gratitude. For example:
 Train and encourage frontline employees to assist gift purchasers proactively
 Develop advanced online filters to help customers identify an appropriate product
for specific gift-giving occasions
 Use high-quality, branded gift packaging to make the brand more prominent and
thereby strengthen gift purchasers’ public commitment to the brand
Recommendations for Marketing Managers
Eggert, Steinhoff, and Witte (2019)