Successful companies recognize their most valuable assets as the people behind their success. In conceivably every business, there are people that deserve to be recognized for their contribution and loyalty. The relationship between an employee and their job within a company is as significant as the affiliation between a customer and their constancy to your brand. In short, engaged employees and loyal customers are the backbone of a business’s success.

Companies should strive to target, attract, and retain the right employee with the same enthusiasm as a new customer. Ultimately the performance of a workforce is reflective in the presence of a customer base; the results of employee productivity are established long term relationships and profitability. There is an evident link between these two groups of people, employee and customers, and the impact that they have on business performance. The common goal of any business is to engage and motivate both, yet there is often an unintended disconnect between the way recognition is distributed between the two.

Companies should take a “humanized approach” when developing their recognition strategy. If you are interested in developing or improving your employee recognition or customer loyalty program, consider the statements below:

• Several studies have proved that merchandise rewards increase motivation and are more meaningful than cash
• Individuals have a right to choose what is meaningful to them; offer a wide range of modern rewards that are aspirational, attainable, and achievable
• Create a unique program brand that supports your company’s values and represents your company culture to attract, retain, and entice participants
• Measure program success by welcoming participant feedback and implementing suggestions
• Communicate program enhancements or changes effectively and timely
• A unified, points based platform(s) for recognition and reward redemption can be used to support different initiatives simultaneously, share announcements and newstories, support peer to peer interaction, provide training and development, administer quizzes and surveys, celebrate accomplishments, and more!
• Partner with a full-service incentive house to centralize all your engagement efforts including marketing services, program hosting and management, rewards sourcing, fulfillment, and shipping, produce logo merchandise and promotional products, dedicated customer service

Intrinsically we are all human beings who value being appreciated in both our professional and personal lives. Demystify your company recognition strategy by implementing an ongoing incentive program that represents your company values, targets the right people, and rewards them for their contribution.