Why the best corporate rewards don’t come in a box—they create stories worth telling.
Summer isn’t just a season—it’s a state of mind. A time of warmth, reconnection, and meaningful moments. It’s also the perfect window for brands and businesses to show appreciation through gifting. But savvy HR leaders, marketers, and culture-driven founders know that not all gifts are created equal. The ones that make a lasting impression, build loyalty, and elevate your company’s values? They’re not things—they’re experiences.
Science backs it. Memory supports it. And culture demands it.
Let’s explore the psychological foundations of why experiences outperform material gifts—and why summer is the ideal time to make your message of gratitude unforgettable.
The Happiness Equation: Experiences vs. Things
According to a widely-cited 2014 study by Cornell University psychologist Dr. Thomas Gilovich, experiences provide more enduring happiness than material possessions. Why? Because experiences contribute more significantly to our sense of identity. They become part of who we are—not just what we have.
Here’s the twist: material items might bring a quick spike in excitement, but the feeling fades as we adapt to having them. Psychologists call this hedonic adaptation. A new phone or branded swag quickly becomes part of the background. But an experience—like ziplining through a rainforest or dining in the sky—lingers in the mind, gets retold in stories, and gains value over time.
Even the anticipation of an experience releases dopamine, the “feel-good” chemical. In contrast, the joy from anticipating a material purchase tends to be shorter and less emotionally potent.
Summer and the Psychology of Pause
Summer is psychologically primed for memory-making. It sits between the hustle of Q1 and the sprint toward the holiday season. It’s a season marked by holidays, long weekends, travel, and relaxation—a natural moment of reflection and reset.
In organizational culture, this makes summer a golden opportunity to reward, recognize, and rejuvenate your team. Not with a product that gets shelved, but with a gift that creates a personal highlight reel.
When you align your gratitude with the emotional energy of summer, your message resonates more deeply. You’re not just giving a perk—you’re giving a memory.
Memory is Story, Not Stuff
Neuroscience tells us that our brains are wired to remember emotionally charged events more vividly and accurately. These “flashbulb memories” form when experiences trigger strong emotional engagement—often through novelty, joy, or surprise.
Material gifts rarely tick those boxes. Experiences, on the other hand, are immersive. They involve more senses, stimulate dopamine and oxytocin, and invite social interaction. They are the stuff of Instagram stories and dinner conversations.
And here’s the magic for business leaders: when your brand becomes the catalyst for those memories, it earns emotional equity. Employees remember not just the event, but who made it happen. Clients associate your name with joy, not transactions.
Social Currency and the Power of Sharing
Experiences are also more socially shareable than material gifts. A Patagonia backpack might earn a few compliments—but paragliding over the Alps? That’s a conversation-starter.
According to Gilovich’s research, experiences promote stronger social bonds because they are more likely to be enjoyed with others and talked about afterward. This is gold for employee engagement and brand advocacy.
When your gift becomes a story—shared over lunch, on LinkedIn, or around a campfire—you gain organic amplification. Your brand’s values are reinforced not by slogans, but by lived moments.
Why Tinggly Is the Smart Choice for Experience Gifting
Tinggly makes the science of experience gifting beautifully simple—and scalable for businesses. Here’s why our platform is built for high-impact summer rewards:
- 100,000+ curated experiences across 100+ countries, from Michelin-star dining to bungee jumping and luxury hotel stays.
- No expiration date, removing pressure and aligning with flexible summer schedules.
- Environmentally positive gifting: every gift plants trees and offsets 200% of CO₂ emissions. Gifting that reflects your ESG values.
- Custom-branded options for eVouchers or physical gift boxes.
- Tiered collections and gift cards to suit every budget and recipient type.
Whether you’re appreciating remote workers across time zones or impressing global clients, Tinggly lets you give a world of choice, with none of the waste.
Business Outcomes That Go Beyond the Gift
Giving experiences doesn’t just feel good—it performs. Experience gifting has been shown to:
- Increase employee engagement: A Deloitte study revealed that companies with high recognition culture have 31% lower voluntary turnover.
- Boost morale and productivity: When employees feel seen and valued in meaningful ways, their sense of purpose grows.
- Strengthen client relationships: A unique, thoughtful gift is more memorable than another bottle of wine or logo tote.
- Reinforce brand differentiation: Especially in crowded B2B categories, how you reward and recognize sets your brand apart.
Experience gifting transforms your appreciation from a transaction into a transformation.
This Summer, Don’t Just Give Thanks—Give a Story
Summer is short. But the right experience can make it feel infinite. This season, go beyond the generic gift card or company swag. Give your team, your clients, your partners a story they’ll relive every time they tell it.
Because the science is clear: we don’t remember what we owned—we remember what we lived.
Make your gratitude memorable.
Make it sustainable.
Make it experiential—with Tinggly.