Let’s start with a provocative question, why send cards and/or gifts to clients on Christmas? If you are in business, you want everything you do for your clients to stand out. The same applies to the gestures of appreciation that you make.

As a professional speaker, I have learned that the uniqueness of the gift and the unexpected timing is what clients remember and appreciate the most.

Here are 7 top tips for turning ordinary things/events into extraordinary business returns

1.	Just before Mothers Day, handwrite a good note to your female clients recognizing them for being exemplary mothers. You may include a moving poem or an article about your mother. Do the same for male clients during Fathers Day (customized for men).
2.	Fresh food, straight from your garden to your clients’ tables has its magic. From July to early October, I deliver fresh tomatoes, onions, bell peppers, cabbages, carrots, collard greens and cucumbers to my Boise, Idaho clients without booking an appointment. I have never been told to come tomorrow.
3.	Nothing proves more to a client that your relationship goes beyond business transactions than your genuine interest in their well-being. Visit or call a client when he/she or their loved ones are sick. Send them a congratulatory card or gift if they get a new certification or graduate from college. Clients never forget this kind of touch.
4.	Sponsor events your clients are attracted to. Children and women programs, generally speaking, have special appeal. People want to do business with those who care about the programs they are concerned about.
5.	Write an article of your client’s great workplace or business practices and have the local newspaper in your client’s hometown print it. This is huge.
6.	Give a memorable gift. My tribe, Kamba, in Kenya is well known for woodcarving. When I present wooden letter openers to clients with a simple description on how it’s carved, from what tree and what it symbolizes has opened doors of opportunities. Unique items are kept as a constant reminder to clients of good deeds.
7.	Give an item that connects the client with your business. The coach of Boise State Football Team presented me with a coach’s uniform and autographed football and selected me as their Homecoming Grand Marshal after I worked with the team to win conference championships and bowl games—that was the best pay the team could have ever given me.

Unlike presents given during the traditional seasons, where recipients feel compelled to reciprocate, what you get is a THANK YOU note, more businesses and referrals. You can't complain.