Imagine how great it would feel to be an integral part of someone’s experience in winning an award or being recognized for great achievement. Numerous entities engage in some form of recognition, and thus require a personalized/logoed award.
You already have the customers, but are you covering all their needs? The awards category is approximately 5 percent of the promotional products market, equating to $50,000 of every $1 million. Is your business aligned with those numbers, or do you have an opportunity to grow your business — and your margins — organically? About 89 percent of organizations utilize some form of recognition for their achievers. If you’re not selling it, someone else certainly is. And what you don’t need is someone else snooping around your customer!
More food for thought comes from Dana Meyer from Visions/Awardcraft who points out that we’ve all watched the Oscars and other notable award presentations and seen the excitement surrounding the event. Each nominee worked hard and the chance of winning the coveted award is part of the motivation; recognition in front of peers intensifies the pride. “Winning a corporate award and being recognized for your contributions provides the same sense of pride within any organization,” she emphasizes. “The opportunity to win drives people to excel. Recognizing hard work makes for happy employees and motivates everyone to do their best. Giving awards is one of the easiest and least expensive ways to have happy and productive employees.”
However, Meyer cautions that all awards are not the same. Only a true symbolic award provides the type of visible recognition. When money, trips, gift cards or merchandise are given they are appreciated for that moment — and are typically consumed, leaving no lasting impressions.
In agreement is Margit Fawbush of BIC Graphics, which offers the JAFFA line of trophies and medals. She states, “although awards have fewer impressions per month (223 impressions per month) they are kept around for a very long time and generate the most favorable impression from recipients. There is a difference between short-term motivation and recognition. Gift cards, team luncheons, cash and travel motivate for short term goals. Tangible rewards that are kept (and therefore remembered) are tied to psychological well-being. Companies that recognize or otherwise engage employees see increased job performance and reduced turnover – in turn making a company more successful.”
Depending on your client, a successful recognition program can include: years of service, quarterly or yearly sales achievements, and team project completions. A recognition program is repeatable business, and with the increased importance on employee engagement, Fawbush points out, it’s a market that will continue to grow. Indeed, Miller notes that 80% of his company’s custom awards repeat annually.
When considering presenting the concept of an awards program if one doesn’t exist yet for your client, or perhaps revamping an existing awards program to be more efficient, pointed questions:
• What is the name of the project, such as ‘XX Founder’s Award, President’s Circle?
• Is there a theme related to the honor? (This helps with design)
• What objectives does the recognition program serve within the organization?
• How would you describe the company culture? How are you measuring these achievements?
• What are the demographics of the recipients? (you can then better focus solutions on what would appeal to them.)
• Where is the award to be presented? (Helps determine shipment logistics).
• What else was done in the past to recognize achievers?
• What worked and didn’t work, and why?
• What is the timeline for this project?
• What do you anticipate to be the greatest challenges in completing this project?
• What is the single most important objective for this awards/recognition project?
Fawbush adds:
• How many pieces are needed (quantities, award frequency)
• Is there to be one award or multiple tiers?
• Where do you anticipate recipients keeping the award?
• Is a functional award appropriate or solely for display?
• Is the award specialized to a particular person’s interests or is it generic?
• What is the budget?
• What additional departments could be appropriate targets for your inquiry?
The following departments are all potential targets:
• Human Resources – Service, attendance, retirement, training, promotions, wellness programs
• Corporate/C-Suite – Significant milestones, new buildings, acquisitions, holiday gifts
• Finance – Budget performance, inventory control, cost/savings initiatives
• Sales – Annual performance, sales incentives, clubs, networking communities,customer gifts
• Marketing/PR – Trade shows, meetings, new product launches, project completions, events, brand advocate programs, contest prizes
• Operations – Cost improvement programs, efficiency/safety/process improvements
Don’t forget the large and potentially lucrative athletic/sports market, Fawbush advises. According to recent research from TNS Worldwide, more than 70 percent of Americans support recognition of outstanding achievements in sports via trophies and other awards and 65 percent approve of recognizing children for participating in organized sports. Participation trophies are gaining in popularity because they serve to remind children that they are part of something important and their contributions are appreciated.
Visions/Awardcraft, says Meyer, has been providing recognition awards for over 40 years. The supplier offers an extensive line of awards in a myriad of materials to best match the corporate image, award theme, or simply personal taste, for any budget. And although Visions/Awardcraft is a major supplier of crystal, it also offers a diverse collection of stainless, art glass, marble, wood, resin, “and we are the only company offering gorgeous natural slate. We also do custom awards in all these materials for when a truly individual award is required,” she explains.
Meyer advises, “as a promotional products distributor, if you are not proactively selling awards you are walking away from money. Nearly every one of your current clients gives some type of award whether to their employees, vendors, charities they support or other occasions. Asking and taking care of their award needs not only provides additional profits for you, you are also making yourself more valuable to your client.”