Believe it or not, the holiday season is just around the corner. Now’s the time to choose holiday rewards that make your customers, employees, and prospects feel appreciated.
A generic fruit basket or hoodie with your company logo might be your go-to, but you certainly could do better. Instead, make a statement that stands out by sending digital rewards that allow your recipients to choose their own gift card.
If you haven’t even begun planning your gifts, it may seem like there’s plenty of time, but purchasing, packing, and shipping physical items isn’t a fast process. Digital holiday rewards are ideal, since you can send them out quickly over email, and they make it super easy to include international recipients.
What’s more, National Retail Federation surveys have shown gift cards to be the most requested gift year after year. So you know your recipients will be happy to receive them.
If you’ve never sent digital gift cards, don’t worry. Here’s a step-by-step holiday rewards plan that will ensure you get your preparations done in a flash.
If your recipients are your employees, request the total number from human resources or your office manager. If you include contractors who work for you on a project-by-project basis or your office building’s staff (such as security guards, cleaners, and cafeteria workers), you may also need to send out an email to your contacts to get a complete list.
For customers and prospects, reach out to your sales and marketing teams to get an accurate list, including:
Finally, the companies or vendors you partner with deserve holiday rewards, too. Poll your colleagues to make sure you haven’t left anyone out.
Now that you’ve identified your recipients, add up the total number and determine how much you can spend on each one. If you have 500 recipients and decide to spend $50 a person, that’s $25,000.
Keep in mind that holiday rewards are gifts, not end-of-year bonuses tied to performance. That means you’ll want to give all your employees the same amount.
For customers and prospects, however, you may want to give different amounts, basing their holiday rewards on the size of their account or the value they bring to your relationship.
READ MORE: Can’t Afford Bonuses This Year? Consider a Simpler Employee Rewards and Recognition Program
The best tip here is to keep it simple. Create a standard email template that showcases your brand and works on mobile devices, as well as desktops and laptops.
While the theme of your email can be a generic “Happy Holidays” or “Season’s Greetings,” customizing the message for each audience is a good idea. Be direct and specific about why you want to thank the recipient.
Also, be sure to draw attention to the enclosed gift in the subject line so the email doesn’t get lost in a sea of holiday ads and your recipients actually open it.
Nobody has time to manually compile recipient lists and send individual emails with digital gift card codes. Thankfully, digital rewards management platforms can help you automate the process for your holiday rewards.
Already use a marketing platform such as HubSpot or Marketo? Choose a tool (like BHN Rewards) that will integrate seamlessly with that software, saving you time during a busy time of year.
You also want to make sure your reward emails are sent from your own trusted domain, ensuring high deliverability and making your gift more recognizable to recipients, so they don’t delete it or flag it for spam.
Telling your team their holiday rewards are coming via email during your weekly meeting gives you an opportunity to publicly underscore how much you appreciate their hard work. You can also customize the reward emails to include a personal message.
For customers and prospects, use the tracking and integration capabilities of your digital rewards management platform to know when recipients redeem their gift card. This allows you to create even more engagement.
Your sales reps can nurture relationships by sending a simple follow-up note. Something like: “I hope you will enjoy the gift we sent. I’ll touch base in the new year — there’s a webinar coming up I think you’ll be interested in attending.”
There you have it. A simple five-step plan to get your holiday rewards up and running in no time.
Learn more about how to use BHN Rewards holiday rewards to quickly and easily engage your employees, customers, and prospects.
BHN Rewards puts the power of digital rewards to work for marketers, researchers, and HR managers. Don't forget to check out all the great content in our Resources section!
BHN Rewards puts the power of digital rewards to work for marketers, researchers, and HR managers. Don't forget to check out all the great content in our Resources section!
