custom executive sets

Customized Executive Sets are a strategic lever for retaining key accounts, accelerating C-level relationships, and strengthening internal culture. In this practical guide from Lemon Creativo, you'll find criteria, steps, and metrics for implementing them with governance between Marketing and HR.

Beyond the gift itself, the goal is to drive indicators: KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) such as response rates in strategic accounts, NPS (Net Promoter Score), referrals, and ROI (Return on Investment). When B2B merchandising is designed with intention, the impact far exceeds that of generic premium corporate gifts.

Key recommendation: Define shared purpose, audience, and KPIs between Marketing and HR from the outset.

To ground this approach, let's consider a common situation in growing organizations.

A regional manager receives a generic gift along with five other brands: it ends up in a drawer. A month later, a curated set arrives with his name on it, useful travel tools, and a contextual message about the current project: he responds the next day. The difference wasn't the monetary value, but the relevance and timing.

Key recommendation: prioritize relevance and utility over volume; context multiplies perceived value.

Problem and impact

Purchasing dispersion and a lack of clear criteria often result in stock stranding, misaligned experiences, and low recall. In benchmarks of similar programs, well-executed personalization can increase the initial response rate in target accounts by 12% to 30% and raise post-delivery NPS by 8 to 15 points compared to generic mailings.

Furthermore, when executive packages aren't integrated into the sales and talent calendar, critical windows (onboarding, business milestones, renewals) are missed, impacting expected ROI. The lack of standardized metrics makes it difficult to optimize and justify budgets.

To address these frictions, we recommend formalizing selection criteria, scheduling shipments, and measuring results with a simple dashboard.

Key recommendation: Document a playbook with selection criteria, a schedule, and minimum metrics per campaign.

Practical solutions

Below is an actionable checklist to professionalize your customized executive sets.

Step 1: Define your target and audience. How to do it: Define whether you're looking for conversation starters, loyalty, or internal recognition; segment by role and context (travel, remote, onsite). What to measure: response rate, scheduled meetings, and recipient satisfaction.
Step 2: Co-create the brief between Marketing and HR. How to do it: Unify the message, tone, and visual guidelines; integrate gift policies. What to measure: Brief approval time and number of iterations.
Step 3: Select the mix with personalized branding. How to do it: Prioritize utility (mobile office, travel, writing), sustainable materials, and presentation; combine 3–5 coherent pieces. What to measure: % reported usage and brand recall over 30/60 days.
Step 4: Design the unboxing and logistics experience. How to do it: premium packaging, a card with a contextual message, and tracking; define post-delivery TTR (Time to Response). What to measure: average TTR, logistics issues, and on-time deliveries.
Step 5: Production and quality control. How to do it: Pantone color tests, pre-samples, and finishing checklists. What to measure: rework rate, first-time approvals, and brand compliance.
Step 6: Timing and Orchestration. How to do it: Align emails with campaigns, business milestones, and employee welcome kits during executive onboarding. What to measure: Milestone achievement and key audience coverage.
Step 7: Measure and learn. How to do it: short post-delivery survey, NPS/eNPS (Employee Net Promoter Score), and opportunity tracking. What to measure: NPS/eNPS, leads or referrals generated, and estimated ROI.

To ensure continuity, institutionalize a quarterly review cycle with data and learnings.

Key recommendation: Run a pilot of 50–100 units, measure, and scale with data-driven adjustments.

Mini-case

Case in point: A B2B SaaS company with 60 key accounts unified purchasing with Lemon Creativo. It defined two paths: C-level prospecting and executive onboarding. Results in 90 days: response rate in target accounts increased from 19% to 33%, post-delivery NPS increased 12 points, and time to first meeting decreased from 14 to 9 days. In talent, the onboarding eNPS increased from 48 to 60.

To replicate it, start with a narrow segment, a clear objective, and a shared metrics dashboard.

Key recommendation: Focus on a high-value segment and scale only after validating metrics.

FAQ

Q: What is the MOQ (Minimum Order Quantity)? A: Depending on customization, from 25–50 units for standard lines and 100–150 for special developments. We offer preview samples to verify finishes.
Q: Production and delivery times? A: Typically 10–20 business days after artwork approval; express options are available upon request. We establish a Service Level Agreement (SLA) with milestones and traceability.
Q: How do you ensure brand consistency? A: Pantone color control, digital and physical proofing, and batch quality checklists. Custom branding validation before mass production.

Key recommendation: Incorporate pre-production samples and acceptance criteria into the order.

In short, personalized, well-designed, and measured executive sets transform gestures into commercial and talent results. Lemon Creativo can assist you with curation, production, and end-to-end logistics.

Request your quote and samples within 48 hours.

Key Recommendation: Request a proposal with three variants, target metrics, and a delivery schedule.