With Thanksgiving upon us, we at ReminderMedia have been thinking a lot about the importance of gratitude.

By showing your clients how much you appreciate them, you can build good feelings and keep your business top of mind.

Keep reading for five effective strategies you can use to say thanks to the people who matter most to your business.

Send a handwritten thank-you note.

In the age of social media and hastily-written text messages, a handwritten thank-you note is arguably more powerful than ever.

That’s because handwritten notes take more than a few seconds to put together. Your clients know you’re busy, and they understand that you can’t spend all day writing out and mailing personal notes. The extra effort reminds your recipients how much you appreciate them—leading them to appreciate you more in return.

Of course, presentation is important. Rather than simply jotting down your thoughts on a scrap of paper, you’ll want to write them on a card. Save yourself a trip to the store by downloading our free printable thank-you cards and gift tags.

Donate to a charity they support.

Your clients are more likely to support your business when they feel that your values are in alignment with theirs.

When you’ve worked with someone in the past, they might already have a good sense of what your values are. But, as with most things, actions speak louder than words.

You can make a strong impression by supporting a charity that’s close to your client’s heart. If you don’t already know what that charity is, don’t be afraid to ask! Let them know you’re planning to participate in Giving Tuesday and that you’re on the lookout for some great organizations to support.

If the charity allows donations in someone else’s name, donate in your client’s name. After you’ve made the donation, let them know. Say something like, “Thanks again for telling me about X! I’ve made my first donation in your name, and I’m hoping to support this great cause again in the future!”

The great thing about supporting a charity is that you don’t have to spend money to impress your clients. Another thing you can do is to spotlight a different client’s favorite charity every week on your social media accounts. This will let people know about your values while also drawing attention to some great organizations.

Make a gratitude call.

Kim Angeli retired from the insurance industry at the age of 44, after selling her business at a 600 percent profit. She credits her success to the power of gratitude and building relationships.

Today, Kim is the founder and CEO of Grateful Box—another great way to show appreciation for clients—and a highly sought-after gratitude coach. She teaches the importance of following up regularly with past clients and other people who are supporters of your business (e.g., family, friends, and your sphere of influence).

The key to these follow-up conversations is that they can’t always be focused on business. Instead, you should implement what Kim calls “gratitude calls.” Call the people who matter to your business and let them know how much you appreciate them. Thank them for their support and let them know you’re available if they need anything.

The beauty of this approach is that you get people more invested in your business by making it clear to them that you value them far beyond the transaction.

Take them out for a cup of coffee.

A phone call is nice, but you can make an even more powerful connection by getting in some valuable facetime.

Each month, try to schedule some time with a different client in your database. Take them out for a cup of coffee or tea—or, if they’d prefer, maybe a more “adult” beverage.

As with the gratitude calls, the goal of this meeting isn’t to beg someone for a referral. Instead, it’s to legitimately catch up with this person while letting them know you are glad to have them in your life.

By regularly having these kinds of meetings, you’re letting clients know you care about them. This makes their overall experience better. It also keeps you top of mind for whenever they might need your business again (or for when they know someone else who does).

Send a copy of your magazine.

While all these follow-up activities are useful in their own way, it’s also good to have something in place that’s a little more turnkey. For ReminderMedia customers, that comes in the form of a bimonthly magazine, branded around your business.

American Lifestyle and Start Healthy magazines are high-quality print publications that give value to recipients and keep businesses top of mind with their most important contacts.

A 2016 GfK Readership survey found that 38% of American Lifestyle recipients referred a friend or family member to the person who sent them the magazine, while 53% of readers were influenced to work with the sender again.

But one of the best things about these magazines is that they work so well as part of a larger gratitude strategy. With each issue, you get organic opportunities to call recipients and ask for their thoughts about a particular article or recipe. You can also bring promotional copies to coffee appointments, or spotlight a local charity on your magazine’s back cover.

To learn more about gratitude strategy—and how ReminderMedia can help—check out our recent webinar with Kim Angeli, How to Grow Revenue with Gratitude.

Whichever ways you choose to give thanks to your clients, remember that it’s important to keep the spirit of gratitude going all year ‘round. When you do, you’ll see your clients return that gratitude exponentially with referrals and repeat business.