Job satisfaction is more than salary and benefits; it is about how much employees feel valued. Thoughtful corporate perks are an effective way for companies to increase morale and loyalty and encourage a culture of appreciation.
Not to be confused with basic perks, thoughtful corporate perks are intentional, considerate, and considerate of the needs of employees.
From health and wellness activities to useful branded giveaways like a customized perk program can enhance your team’s experience and emphasize your brand. Below are some useful ways to achieve that:
Give Practical Gifts that are Personalised
Gifts that have a real value in your employees’ daily lives are the ones they’ll tend to remember—and appreciate. Personalized practical corporate gifts say a lot about your company’s appreciation for each individual—not as a worker but as a person. Items like insulated drinkware, wireless charging pads, and promotional cooler bags can be effective. Promotional custom coolers can take lunch, a picnic, or even a weekend getaway, offering function while providing subtle branded messaging. When the employee gifts you choose have been picked for fashion and function, employees will be more likely to use them regularly. What started as a simple gift will soon become an ongoing source of employee morale.
Provide Customizable Wellness Incentives
Employees today are more focused on achieving a work-life balance; companies that contribute to this have the benefits of positivity and productivity. Instead of providing the same membership to a gym for employees, flexible wellness benefits with specific choices make more sense. Some possible wellness benefits might be mental health days, monthly wellness stipends, meditation app subscriptions, home office ergonomic equipment, or yoga classes.
When wellness becomes a cultural emphasis and not simply a checkbox, it leads to an eternal, engaged employee. Flexibility in wellness perks allows your employees’ individual culture and values to inform their needs and will help prevent burnout; healthier, happier, and reenergized employees will follow!
Develop Recognition-Driven Gifting Programs
Recognition is a core principle of human psychological needs. Having someone’s time and attention publicly praised (i.e., recognized) feels nice. And while public praise is nice to receive, turning that recognition into a thoughtful gift is impactful and long-lasting. By planning a recognition initiative that contains custom gifting for behaviors/actions/achievements like reaching a sales goal, hitting a work anniversary, or finishing a cert, you can boost morale up a notch.
Have some high-quality branded items, gourmet treat boxes, or higher-end accessories to show actual thought was made in the selection of the gift. These gifts now become highlights of achievement and reflection of being appreciated. When employees feel their work and effort are documented with something they will appreciate and be meaningful, this likely creates a desire to stay loyal and continue to perform.
Surprise and Delight with Seasonal Perks
Occasionally, the daily routine is repeated. If the work cycle is long or has been a demanding seasonal period, monotony could lead to disengagement. Seasonal perks provide an opportunity to celebrate the employee experience and inject a little joy and novelty. Seasonal perks are not limited to holiday bonuses either; think gifts assembled in seasonal-themed packages.
The summer perks for your employees could be a promotional cooler bag full of snacks and drinkware encouraging summer outdoor fun while being consistent with your brand. Winter perks could be promotional fleece blankets or self-care kits. These seasonal surprises create positive emotional moments connected to your workplace, and if done at regular intervals, they convey that your company pays attention to time and timing.
Promote Career Advancement through Learning Assets
Investing in an employee’s professional development shows an investment in their future—both in the present and future. Examples are gifts of online courses to take an industry-related class, certification reimbursement, and industry conference admission fees—all great examples of supporting professional development that can be seen as a shared common interest.
In other words, gifting the opportunity to grow builds loyalty and can be combined with branded assets (e.g., notebooks, laptop sleeves, pens) to create an impressive option. When employees feel supported in pursuing their aspirations, they are generally much more likely to feel and be more loyal and contribute at higher levels than they do currently.
Apply Client-Level Gifting to Internal Teams
Most companies spend most of their premium branded gifts on their clients and partners. Changing the perspective and using similar branded approaches internally can have a powerful impact. When employees receive the same thoughtfulness, branding, and quality as your best clients, the sign is clear – they are equally important.
Consider providing branded goods, such as promotional travel kits, or luxury drinkware, which are generally used for client engagements. The gifts are a way to reinforce brand pride further internally and encourage parity among internal and external stakeholders. When team members feel like very important people, they tend to feel better about their roles and the organization.
Endnote
Corporate perks, if chosen wisely and applied consistently, can create a whole new way for employees to experience their workplace. It is not necessarily about extravagant spending but about appreciating in meaningful, helpful, and genuine ways.
Firms interested in morale, whether wellness initiatives, experience initiatives, or functional branded products like promo cooler bags, will reap dividends in productivity, retention, and corporate culture. A thoughtful perk is not merely a gift but a message saying, “You matter here.”
Read more:
How to Boost Employee Morale with Thoughtful Corporate Perks