Diederick de Koning is one of the founders of Gift Campaign, a company specialized in customizing advertising items that arrived in Portugal in the second quarter of 2020, in the middle of the pandemic. In this interview, Diederick tells us about the history and evolution of his company, the difficulties experienced by the sector over the last year and how he managed to adapt to survive this profound global crisis.

Let's start at the beginning: how did the idea of creating the Gift Campaign come about?

Gift Campaign is a company specialized in customizing advertising gifts and promotional items dedicated to all types of companies: from multinationals to small and medium-sized companies. We have all kinds of merchandising options, such as notebooks, pens or reusable bottles, three of the best-selling personalized products.

The idea of creating the company came while working at a multinational in the corporate gifts sector, where I spent ten years, and I detected that the sector was growing and that there were ample opportunities for innovation on the online platform. I started talking to colleagues in the same area, and finally decided to launch my own project alongside Oriol Badia, my current partner and co-founder of Gift Campaign.

As we both live in Barcelona, we chose this city to establish the company's headquarters. Furthermore, the Catalan capital offers ideal conditions for entrepreneurs and has an excellent multicultural wealth, which is ideal for expanding internationally. And the proof of this is that we currently have a presence in four more markets, in addition to Spanish: Italy, France, Portugal and recently we also arrived in the Netherlands.

Why are promotional gifts so successful?

The success of personalized gifts is related to several fundamental points: first, the law of reciprocity, which states that recipients of a gift normally feel the need to return the favor to the person offering it. Then comes the economic part. Especially when purchased in large quantities, these products are quite cheap and allow you to organize a marketing campaign with a considerable impact at a low cost, while also having a high return on investment.

And then there is the surprise factor, given that, depending on the advertising gift chosen, it generates a great impact on the customer when receiving something unexpected. Finally, it is important to mention the advertising component. And it is that these personalized objects generate a lot of visibility for brands, especially when they are items that are used regularly, such as a bottle, a mug or a ballpoint pen, to give just a few examples. Furthermore, they contribute to creating a positive bond between the person and the company.

How has the company evolved since its creation?

We started our personalized USB memory page in Spain as we considered it to be one of the star products in terms of advertising. As it worked very well, a few months later we launched an online store dedicated exclusively to selling pens for advertising and then mugs. Finally, we created the website with the Gift Campaign brand where you can find a wide variety of product categories, such as bags, bottles, key rings, backpacks and much more.

When we felt that the market was solid in Spain, we began the company's internationalization process. First we landed in Italy, then in France, Portugal and this year we arrived in the Netherlands, as I mentioned previously. At the beginning of 2020, we had a very high growth rate. Obviously, after the emergence of COVID-19, we have not been able to improve at the same rate as before, but I would say that we have maintained a sustained pace.

In terms of our online catalogue, we have added new products every month since the launch of the website and, currently, we have more than 20,000 customizable items.

Changing times in the sector

How have you dealt with the changes caused by Covid-19? What measures did you take to adapt to the new situation?

The current context is very complicated because the scenario changes with each passing day and we have to constantly adapt. The pace at which everything changes is very fast, but we have managed to adopt some measures to help both our employees and customers.

Since the beginning of confinement, the entire Gift Campaign team has been teleworking. Each employee can count on the equipment they had at home at home and, in addition, as everything is in the cloud, we can access all our content and systems remotely.

From a sales and catalog point of view, we have added new health and protection products for coronavirus, such as certified masks, with or without the possibility of customization, bottles of hydroalcoholic gel, acrylic separators, disposable clothing, mask straps and key rings anti-contact hygienic products, among other possibilities. One of the most recent innovations are antibacterial products, which include a specific treatment to reduce the proliferation of bacteria. But, as you can imagine, personalized masks (reusable and disposable) are the star product of this new section.

In the current context, the scenario changes with each passing day

What impact is Covid-19 having on your sales?

We noticed a significant reduction in sales due to the cancellation of events (such as fairs and congresses), the closure of some businesses and the uncertainty caused by this situation. Fortunately, we have maintained stable sales in recent months, which allows us to maintain activity without many problems. And this is largely due to the aforementioned introduction of new categories of anti-contagion products and the diversification of markets, due to our presence in less affected countries at certain times.

We also believe that the promotional gifts industry will recover quickly once we defeat the pandemic. Companies will need to invest more in advertising and events and conferences will be larger, which are an excellent opportunity for companies to regain visibility and regain market trust. Without a doubt, advertising gifts will be fundamental in the post-crisis recovery, and we will be prepared to respond to the needs of companies at this time.

Companies will need to invest more in advertising after the pandemic

Advertising gifts with new trends

Has there been any change in the ranking of best-selling products? How are sales of the Covid-19 related products you mentioned working?

For obvious reasons, protection and anti-contagion products are currently the best-selling. Demand is very high and has only been affected by the specific situations of each country. For example, face masks are currently mandatory in Italy (when they weren't before), and this change has generated a much greater demand for this type of item in our catalogue.

However, it is important to highlight that other products have also undergone changes. Pens represent a large volume of the orders we receive, as many companies insist that these accessories are used individually, for hygiene and protection, whether among employees or customers, who now take them home with them after signing a document or fill out a form. And there are more and more requests from brands that want to put each user's name on articles, so that it is easy to identify who they belong to. This happens with personalized bottles and mugs, for example. On the other hand, sales of sunglasses and beach bags fell considerably because there were no events in the summer.

With regard to personalized masks, which are undoubtedly the best-selling product in recent weeks, we have several models manufactured in different colors to meet the advertising needs of each client. In our collection you can find masks that allow the logo to be printed on just one side and models that can be personalized across their entire surface with a corporate image. In any case, all of our masks have certificates and approvals in accordance with the laws in force in Portugal and Europe, so our customers know that they are purchasing safe and quality masks.

Personalized masks are the ‘star product’

And the customer profile? Has it changed a lot in recent months?

We sell our advertising items to all types of companies, both small and medium-sized companies and large multinationals. Furthermore, we should also mention certain organizations, such as NGOs or recreation centers, that also use our products to promote events or as corporate material. Likewise, we must mention municipal councils and public entities. Obviously, requested merchandising is not just for gifts aimed at a customer or external user. These items are also often used as gifts for employees, as part of a welcome kit or for use in the workspace on a daily basis.

It is true that in recent months customers have varied and, now, we also find an important sales space in the end customer, due to the need to purchase masks and hydroalcoholic gel. We currently offer the possibility of purchasing these products with reduced minimum quantities, whilst still maintaining competitive prices, so that everyone has the possibility of purchasing on our website.

Evolution of the Portuguese Market

How has the Portuguese market evolved?

Portugal is a market with a lot of potential, because, although Internet usage is currently lower than in other European countries, we believe that in the coming years electronic commerce will develop much more and we want to be here when that happens. There is less competition compared to other markets and we saw an opportunity for growth in this market.

Furthermore, other factors such as the similarity of language and tastes in advertising gifts with respect to Spain, as well as the ease of finding people who speak and understand the culture were fundamental in the decision. We had a good start and growth in this country, which unfortunately was delayed by the coronavirus situation. But the outlook is very positive for the coming months.

How did you establish your online strategy?

Our strategy mainly consists of having a simple and easy-to-use platform so that customers can quickly find what they are looking for. Furthermore, we offer personalized and individualized advice to each buyer, to be able to clarify any doubts and act quickly in the face of possible setbacks that may arise. We also have native Customer Service agents to support each country, as this way we convey greater confidence and peace of mind to the interlocutor.

We constantly work on the user experience, looking for possible areas for improvement and implementing the necessary modifications. Furthermore, our catalog is constantly growing and we update our content regularly, so that our community is always aware of the latest news. Likewise, we constantly study possible improvements to the page at a technical level.

The pandemic forced many businesses to convert to digital

In your opinion, what will e-commerce be like in 2023?

The pandemic caused very big changes in the scope of e-commerce. The positive aspect of this situation is that it has forced many businesses to quickly update and convert to digital, adopting new technologies and modernizing sales processes. But having an online presence is no longer enough. Customers will be increasingly demanding and this will lead to the need to guarantee faster delivery of orders and the quality of products. Therefore, stores must offer fast delivery times and high-quality products that are easily differentiated from those of the competition.

As a note for the future, I don't know if this year or later, I think Augmented Reality could be a good technology to implement in our sector. It would be fantastic to be able to see a personalized product with the brand's logo, having an exact idea of its shape, dimensions, print size, etc. For now we are limited to the computer screen, but I think this could be a very interesting option to adopt in the coming years.