Research suggests that showing appreciation through gifting can have a meaningful impact on professional relationships. Here is why.
Professional relationships often begin when someone offers you their time, trust or support. It could be a customer referring new business your way, a colleague staying late to help, a mentor offering advice, or a client giving up valuable time to take your call.
When those moments happen, saying “thank you” is expected, normalized and something we should always do. But because we say it so often, it can fade into the background like white noise.
In contrast, showing gratitude through gifting adds a level of thoughtfulness that is often overlooked. It tells someone, “I really noticed what you did, and it mattered to me.”
This isn’t just about making a nice gesture. Research on gratitude, mutual support and relationship-building helps explain why showing appreciation with gifts can have a real positive impact. Let’s take a look at what the research says.
1. Showing gratitude makes people more willing to help again
In a series of experiments published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, researchers Adam Grant and Francesca Gino found that thanking people for their help increased their willingness to help again. One reason was that being thanked made people feel that their contribution was socially valued.
That can matter a lot professionally.
Think about someone who introduces you to a potential client. You thank them, acknowledge the value of what they did and make them feel appreciated. The next time they come across an opportunity that fits you, they are more willing to make another introduction.
The point isn’t to give someone a gift because you expect something back. It’s that genuine appreciation can help create a cycle where people want to continue supporting each other.
2. Gifting encourages customer loyalty and increased spending
A 2026 study in the Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science used two real-world field experiments along with five additional experiments to study unconditional customer gifts.
The researchers found that receiving a gift increased feelings of gratitude, which in turn contributed to customer loyalty and increased spending. Interestingly, they also found that higher-value gifts produced only a relatively small additional benefit compared with lower-value gifts.
In other words, the gesture itself can matter more than how much the gift costs.
For a professional relationship, that could mean showing appreciation after a major project is completed, at an important milestone, or when a client has continued to put their trust in you.
A thoughtful gift isn’t a guarantee that a client will spend more or stay with you. But the research suggests that making customers feel appreciated can contribute to loyalty and stronger ongoing relationships.
Read the customer gifting study
3. Gratitude can encourage positive word-of-mouth
Research published in the Journal of Marketing Theory and Practice found that feelings of gratitude were associated with greater positive word-of-mouth. In this study, people who felt grateful were more likely to have positive conversations with others about their experience.
A separate 2007 study published in Psychology & Marketing found similar results. Researcher Isabella Soscia found that gratitude predicted both positive word-of-mouth and repurchase intention.
That’s especially relevant in professional networks.
A client who genuinely appreciates the way you’ve treated them may be more likely to mention you to a colleague. Someone you’ve worked with may think of your name when a friend asks for a recommendation. A professional connection may be more comfortable making an introduction.
That’s how one relationship can lead to another.
This doesn’t mean sending someone a gift buys a referral. It means creating genuine gratitude can contribute to the kind of positive experience people want to talk about.
Read the repurchase and word-of-mouth study
The takeaway: make appreciation visible with gifts
When someone gives you their time, trust and support, showing appreciation with a gift is a tangible way to reinforce how much their help meant to you.
The research points to several meaningful outcomes, including greater willingness to help again, stronger loyalty, increased spending and more positive word-of-mouth.
Of course, gifts alone don’t create strong professional relationships. Trust, reliability, mutual support and staying connected are what build them over time. A thoughtful gift helps make your appreciation more visible.