If you have a diverse workforce, corporate Christmas rewards might feel tricky for you. How can you best create a shared experience and event that celebrates each employee while still allowing for the many of your team who work from home, come in and out of the office or may not be able to join in your festive events? We take a look – as experts in corporate gifts we certainly have a good view of the best way to give at this special time of year!
When should you give staff rewards for Christmas?
We took a poll on social media to ask when people had been given corporate Christmas rewards. The most popular answers were:
-Last working day *inc Christmas Eve – 67% -First day of the last week – 22% -Mid December – 8% -Start of December or sooner – 2%
It seems that for most employers – the later the better!
So – we followed up and asked when employees would prefer to receive a reward or corporate Christmas treat from their employer.
The stats showed the best times to get a present from an employee’s perspective was:
-Last working day *inc Christmas Eve – 35% -First day of the last week – 32% -Mid December – 23% -Start of December or sooner – 10%
While the last working day was still a popular choice, mid December was also a much more favoured option for employees, as was the start of December.
When asked why, the comments were varied.
“I would sometimes like to re-gift to someone else. For example if I get a big present like a hamper, I could give some items to my local food bank or a neighbour.”
“It can be a pain to carry the gift if I am given it on Christmas eve as we tend to go out as a team. ”
“Last year I missed the delivery so didn’t get the item and couldn’t join in with the opening on Teams.”
“It was a bit late and no comms on if there was a big company event -we ended up doing a Secret Santa on our own within the team.”
“On Christmas Eve some of us leave early so it felt a bit rushed and a non event.”
It might be time to adjust when you give your employee corporate Christmas rewards!
What to give your employees for their corporate Christmas reward
The most popular gifts are certainly changing every year, but 2022 has been overshadowed by news of a cost of living crisis, increased bills and worrying stats on how things may look as we approach 2023. This means that the ideal gifts for the season are likely to be those that are able to help employees make the most of what they have. Now could be the time to add in more varied store cupboard essentials into hampers, or to invest in food items if you usually just give wine or drinks.
The Simply Thank You onecode also allows employees to choose on what they need. In many households, there are real debates over whether to spend on presents vs luxury food items. This year, we have seen many employers create hybrid corporate Christmas rewards that offer both those everyday essentials, the choice of a gift card rewards, and a few luxuries.
How to present your corporate Christmas rewards
With employees all over the shop, especially in the busiest time of the year, a celebration all together may be hard to achieve.
You could:
- Encourage them to open the gift on their own time, and send a photo of them with their treat to your team communication channels
- Ask them to wait until the end of the working day, and join in online
- Arrange for each team to open their gifts using their manager to co-ordinate the best time
- Send them a message saying ‘it’s time to open your treat’ – allowing everyone to get a buzz at the same time
- Send a digital treat, but co-ordinate the arrival time of the digital download
Wrapping ideas for staff gifts
We wrap all of our gifts for you, but want some tips? These are some of our favourite!
-If you are giving a gift card, put it in a festive envelope with some confetti or glitter in your brand colours.
-For tickets or certificates, consider putting them in a small box wrapped and add in some branded paper.
-A basket can be wrapped in cellophane and tied with a big bow in your colours of ribbon. A gift card can also be added to this ribbon or in an envelope.
-Wine bottles can be wrapped in tissue paper and tied with a ribbon, or in a branded tea towel.
Whatever you choose, make sure to put a card with a personal message inside! Your staff will be touched by the gesture and this takes a gift to a new level.
What to write to accompany your corporate Christmas rewards
Write from the heart if you can. These templates may spark some ideas for you.
“Thank you for all your hard work this year. I’m so grateful to have you on my team.”
“I’m so excited to give you this gift! I know you’ll love it.”
“Merry Christmas! I hope you enjoy your holiday season.”
“Thank you for being such an amazing team member. I’m so lucky to have you on my team.”
“I hope you enjoy your Christmas gifts! You deserve it after all your hard work this year.”
“Merry Christmas! I can’t wait to see what you accomplish next year.”
“Thank you for your dedication and hard work this year. I’m excited to see what you achieve in the new year.”
“Wishing you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! I can’t wait to see what great things you do in 2023.”
“You make my job so much easier and I’m truly grateful. Merry Christmas!”
“Thank you for being an amazing team member and friend. I hope you have a wonderful holiday season.”
“I appreciate everything you do to help our team succeed. Merry Christmas!”
“Merry Christmas! I know that next year will be even better because we have you on our team.”
“I hope you have a wonderful holiday season! You deserve it after all your hard work this year.”
“Thank you for being such an integral part of our team. I’m excited to see what great things you do in the new year.”
Can we help you?
Simply Thank You is a trusted provider of corporate gifts, rewards, recovery gifts and more. We want to make gift giving easy. With Simply Thank You work rewards, you can reward teams, say thanks to clients and incentivise customers with products or gift cards for business. We offer so much more than just corporate gifts!
Established in 1993, we have been providing successful corporate service programmes for over 20 years. We operate as the partner of choice for our clients, which are leading companies in their respective fields. Each client trusts their brand and reputation to us and we deliver a gift and service that reflect the quality and culture of their organisation. Get in touch today to find out how we can help your business.
