While everyone loves presents, people often choose the wrong gifts for their loved ones during the holiday season. Some individuals even refrain from giving gifts altogether, while others may be oblivious that they’ve unintentionally presented unwanted gifts throughout their lives. Companies also make the same mistakes, often producing products their consumers don’t want or give freebies that don’t delight them. Gina Fong, a Clinical Assistant Professor of Marketing at Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management, delivered a talk on “The Gift of Understanding” at Sasin’s Research Seminar on December 14. Drawing on her experience as a professor and consumer anthropologist, she identified three gift categories: the me gift, the generic gift, and the should gift.  

Exploring the Metaphor of Gift-Giving During the Holidays

The Me Gift “Me gifts are gifts the givers want for themselves,” said Professor Fong. An example is engineers producing digital cameras with all the technological features added. But none of the consumers who tried the camera in a product test liked it. One of the comments from a grandmother was: “I take many photos of my grandson, but when he does something cute, there were so many bells and whistles, buttons, and things to adjust that I never got to capture this photo in time,” she said. The engineers failed to understand the customers who only wanted one button to click on. The Generic Gift Professor Gina explained that the generic gift includes cash, gift cards, or items from gift registries. Professor Fong emphasized that such a gift sends the message, “I can’t be bothered to figure out what you like; you do the work.” She added that when a generic gift is chosen for someone, “we lose the chance to connect with them deeply and emotionally.” The Should Gift “The should gift is dripping with judgment. It’s the gift someone gives you because you should be or should do something,” said Professor Fong. One of her students got a power tool as a gift from his wife, which screams, “Please do more chores around the house.” Even consumer products make the same mistakes. “How many times have you tried to operate equipment with instructions that are so difficult to follow?” asked Professor Fong, “IT (Information Technology) is implying that you should be smarter. They will not write instructions that help you operate this technology easily.” The Gift of Understanding “The best gift,” said Professor Fong, “is the gift of understanding,” which is when the gift giver or the business pays attention to what the person or customers really want. The gift of understanding gets loyalty, advocacy, and generosity from the customers. “If we give them a gift of understanding, they are more likely to buy from us again and again and tell others about us,” said Professor Fong, adding that customers are also more likely to forgive their favorite brands if they are willing to repair mistakes. The gift of understanding also delivers unexpected excellence to its audience. An example of this was when Doug Dietz, an industrial designer at GE Healthcare, designed a Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanner. However, when he saw that little children were sobbing before going to the MRI scanner, he developed an MRI machine as a pirate ship. It turned into an enjoyable experience for the children. Understanding Your Customers Besides being a professor, Professor Fong is also an ethnographer who runs her own company, Fong Insight, where she coaches organizations on strengthening their ‘insight muscle’ to deliver unexpected excellence.

“The same skills needed to be a good gift giver are the same skills you need to be a thoughtful and insightful person in your personal life.” – Professor Gina Fong, Clinical Assistant Professor of Marketing, Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management

Combining her skills in ethnographic research and marketing, she works as a consumer anthropologist and watches subjects in their natural habitat. Her job is to go to people’s homes to understand how and why they do everyday activities such as dyeing their hair, cleaning the floors, or cooking with soy sauce. From her job, she learned that some shoppers would refuse to shop in certain stores because their aisles were not wide enough to accommodate their double-wide strollers. She also learned that restaurant menus that are too wide and tall prohibit diners from interacting with their friends, reducing the social connection at the table. Professor Fong said we should all be Joyful Customer Advocates by understanding consumers deeply and advocating for them. Understanding a customer is the same as giving gifts to loved ones. “The same skills needed to be a good gift giver are the same skills you need to be a thoughtful and insightful person in your professional life,” said Professor Fong. Professor Fong gave some tips on how to give the gift of understanding. She said that by giving the gift of understanding, people, and businesses, can develop stronger relationships and improve emotional bonds with people. 1. Increase Your Intellectual and Emotional Awareness Professor Fong emphasized that providing the gift of understanding means a lot of market research. While many may believe it’s simple to know somebody, researching their likes and preferences demands time and resources. 2. Develop the Right Mindset To understand someone at their core, understanding why they do it and who they are, Professor Gina said one must be in the proper frame of mind. She quoted George Bernard Shaw, “Those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything.” If a person is not in the right frame of mind to genuinely see someone for who they are, it is unlikely that you will truly understand that person. 3. Foster Curiosity, Introspection, and Empathy Professor Fong emphasized that individuals must observe others without judgment, a process that requires introspection and the elimination of personal biases. She highlighted, “Empathy is understanding someone without an opinion and getting yourself out of the way.” Professor Fong inspired us with these suggestions, urging us to discover the perfect gift for our loved ones and consumers. Gift-giving transcends merely handing over material items; it involves presenting the gift of understanding.