As the paper wrapping from another Christmas and holiday gift giving season are crumpled up and tossed away, it's time to consider the value of the gifts received. As so often happens, the person getting the gift isn't all that excited about it. Often, they take the present to be exchanged for another.
Perhaps, it's time to surprise those hard to please individuals with a post-holiday treat. That should shock and surprise them. The following ideas might even survive the most ruthless gift exchanger. These ideas also have the advantage of working well for birthdays, blogiversaries, anniversaries, business startups, graduations, and any other occasion or special event requiring a gift. Note that Christmas is not the only time for sharing presents with others.
Bloggers to the gift giving rescue!
Bloggers are very generous people. We all know that.
Bloggers help other bloggers, business people, and website owners (often the same people wear all three hats) all of the time. Offering advice, services, and tons of links, bloggers are simply very giving people.
If you are seeking ways to reach out and give something back to the blogging community, perhaps an idea might be to make an unexpected gift to a blogger. The unsuspecting blog owner might be a new blogger, a long time read of yours, or even a blog selected entirely at random.
Some blog gift giving ideas might include:
* A link from your blogroll.
* A link from a post on your blog, describing another blogger's link (similar to what bloggers do every day) on a topic entirely out of your regular blogging beat.
* A review of another person's blog, written and posted on your blog.
* A guest blog post written for someone else's blog.
* Purchasing a product through another blogger's affiliate links.
* A surprise e-card.
* An offer to write a press release.
* An e-mail complimenting another blogger on an especially interesting and informative posting.
* An offer to redesign a blog page for free.
* An offer of an SEO service free of charge.
* Offering to interview another blogger, either in a written post or as a podcast.
* Providing advice to another blogger who requests it, with no strings attached.
These are only a few ideas that could be used to share goodwill around the blogosphere, around the internet, and even around the entire world.
And here's one more idea...
* Give someone a gift of yourself, expecting nothing in return.
Who knows, you might receive the greatest gift of all...
A new friend.
Now that's a gift that will last a lifetime!
