It's that time of year - Showing Your Gratitude for Your Employees and Customers
It’s the season of thanksgiving and that means showing your employees and customers how grateful you are for them. After all, both groups are essential to your company’s success.
When your employees feel valued, your company will enjoy many benefits, such as increased trust between employee and employer, higher productivity levels, decreased employee turnover, and positive brand reputation. Make them feel valued by integrating these tactics into your company policy:
1. Recognize good work.
Set aside time at a regularly occurring meeting (even if it’s over Zoom) to show appreciation for each other. Allow anyone on your team to recognize someone else for their contribution to the company that week or month. This will help to build teamwork, respect and appreciation within the company.
2. Feed them.
Food has a way of bringing people together. Make it a point to regularly host snacks or meals to make your employees feel appreciated and to strengthen interpersonal relationships within the office. If your company is working virtually, send employees a $5 Starbucks gift card instead, so that they can enjoy a sweet treat on the company.
3. Brag on social media.
Recognize employee birthdays and work anniversaries, as well as their personal and professional wins on your company’s social media accounts.
4. Encourage wellness.
Offer a monthly stipend to join a gym and host self-care events in the office, such as massages, classes, or group fitness events to show your employees that you care about their health and well-being. Many gyms and instructors are also offering virtual classes and would most likely be able to host a special company class for you.
5. Offer educational opportunities.
Allow employees to further develop their skills and education by paying for industry conferences, offering tuition reimbursement, and arranging in-house or online training opportunities.
6. Create a reward system.
Develop a company-wide reward system with tasks that directly benefit the company and incentives that your employees will enjoy—such as gift cards, time off, work-from-home days, education opportunities, and more.
When your customers feel appreciated, they will stay loyal to your brand and will also recommend you to others (can you say free marketing?!?!). Here are a few ways to show them that you care now and all year round:
1. Prioritize customer service.
Good customer service should be at the forefront of everything you do. Make sure your customers know that they are important to you by being easily reached if they have a problem, responding in a timely manner, offering product and service guarantees, and rewarding top customers.
2. Go above and beyond.
Customers will remember that you went above and beyond for them, especially during a challenging time like a global pandemic. Find ways to ease the burden on your customers as a way to say thank you for supporting your business.
3. Check in with them.
Take the time to check in with your customers periodically. This could simply be to see how they’re doing and how business is, or to check in on a particular product or service you offer. Listen to their feedback and make sure that they feel heard—it will make them feel listened to and appreciated.
4. Develop an ongoing customer appreciation strategy.
Showing appreciation to your customers year-round is an essential part of running a successful business, so it is important to develop a formal customer appreciation strategy that fits your budget and other constraints.
5. Drop them a note.
In this digital age, communication tends to lack a personal touch. Show your customers that you care by sending them a handwritten note. Be sure to personalize these messages so that they know what they specifically mean to you as a person and a customer.
How will you show appreciation to your employees and customers this holiday season (and year-round)? Send us a note and let us know—we can’t wait to hear all about it!