Are you looking for trendy spring appreciation gifts and new day-to-day recognition tools to give your team? You’ve come to the right place! As one of Baudville’s in-house product designers, I’ve chosen my personal favorites for spring appreciation. Learn what’s hot right now with my High Five for Friday Spring Trend Report!

1. NEW Talking Praise - fun desktop notes
These notes feature FUN and BRIGHT colors with a creative shape that shows off our originally-designed art. They’re a great day-to-day recognition solution!
They’re lighthearted & easy to give for any recognition moment and perfect for on-the-spot recognition. Personally, I would love to be surprised with one of these left on my desk!

2. NEW In Good Company - fun business cards
Another fun and lighthearted recognition option that is SO easy to give! These awesome, write-in business card style notes come with a plastic case so they can be on hand at all times. That way you don’t miss any opportunity to recognize your best employees. Surprise recognition can be the best kind sometimes!



3. Thanks for All You Do! - best selling theme
What a refreshing and happy recognition theme. These colors just scream Spring! You can give anything in this theme so easily for any appreciation occasion. And, our new Twist Top Tumbler in this theme is a two-in-one treat! All of our tumblers are great for holding your favorite summertime drink; but this one is special because of its colorful swirl straw and candy-filled base!

4. Positive Praise Theme – bestselling theme
Can’t you tell I just love bright colors?! Color is so important in designing the art that goes on each of our products. What I love most about this theme is the vibrant fun design and simple use of text. This theme does so well because you just get it when you look at it. Not every occasion calls for a serious and sentimental message.

Right now, my favorite product in this theme is the PVC memo clip holders that come in a pack of 5. Recipients can use the clip at their desks for photos or notes from managers or their co-workers – and have a constant reminder of how awesome they are!

5. NEW Pop of Praise – desktop pop-up notes
I am in love with all our day-to-day recognition tools that we offer for managers! Aside from our Holiday theme art, they are probably my most favorite product to design.

Pop of Praise are one of the easiest products to use that we have designed yet. All you need to do is pull a random note from the box and write a small note and - BAM! - you are ready to give quick & easy recognition! The best part is that you are instantly ready for your next moment as the next note pops up.

Want more ideas? Check out a few more of my all-time favorites:
• Twist Top Tumblers – offered in many themes.
• SHOUT OUTS – great way to get your team to support one another.
• Cheers Kits – great for manager-to-employee or peer-to-peer recognition.
• Pocket Praise – perfect for day-to-day recognition.
• Sweet Treats – I just love the jelly beans!  

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Since 2008, April has designed countless (really, too many to count!) themes and products for Baudville. Here, she uses her expert’s eye to pick her top five favorites for spring!

Whether it’s working on home construction for Habitat for Humanity or helping kids read at a local elementary school, volunteers make the difference. Be sure to recognize the contributions and accomplishments of your volunteers this year during National Volunteer Appreciation Week April 10-16.

Our customers have found the use of recognition themes to effectively express appreciation for their volunteers. Some customers host volunteer appreciation events like luncheons and award ceremonies, and others may have more informal gatherings in someone’s home. Regardless of the location or type of recognition, using a recognition theme can make the appreciation more memorable.

Baudville has more than 100 recognition themes in its repertoire, but our customers have clearly made the following 10 their favorite volunteer appreciation themes. Which one will you use for National Volunteer Appreciation Week ?

1. Essential Piece. A classic recognition theme, this theme's sentiment, "can't imagine us without you," will help you to convey the value of each volunteer. 

2. Making a Difference. One of the most popular themes for National Volunteer Appreciation Week,  the inspirational story that accompanies this theme is perfect for recognizing the impact of volunteers.

3. A Helping Hand. We just released **new products** in this favorite theme!

4. Making the Difference. Focus on the impact of your volunteers. Share stories of exceptional volunteer work when you have the entire group together.

5. Thanks For All You Do! Keep your message simple during National Volunteer Appreciation Week and just say thanks!

6. You Are Truly Appreciated. The objective of National Volunteer Appreciation Week is expressing appreciation to your volunteers. This theme keeps your message simple and effective!

7. You Make a World of Difference! I once attended a volunteer appreciation reception with this theme. The volunteers were given globe stress toys, and the tables were decorated in green blue. It was a lot of fun and - obviously - very memorable!

8. Together We Can Make a Difference. Recognize teams of volunteers during National Volunteer Appreciation Week, too. 

9. Imagine Believe Achieve. Inspire your volunteers with this motivational recognition theme. 

10. Volunteers Make the Difference. Volunteers are proud to be volunteers, so recognize their special role in your organization with this Character Pin!

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Cori is Baudville's in-house Recognitionista (she's officially a Certified Recognition Professional, too)  and a member of the Millennial generation. Get her employee recognition tips and special discounts by liking Baudville on Facebook. 

I’m not going to tell you that it’s all fun & games up here in creative-ville, but every once in awhile, we do get to have a laugh. We certainly did when we were working on the new Positive Praise recognition theme. The Goofy Guy Squeezable Praise became everyone’s favorite new projectile and the Goofy Guy Pens were the perfect remedy whenever things started to get a little too tense.

Having fun at work not only lowers stress and improves morale, it can also increase productivity. I’ve see it first hand in our department, but this WorldatWork article does a great job of backing me up as well.  

If you need to have more fun in your office, our Positive Praise theme is an excellent place to start. Maybe you took the quiz in that link I just posted. If so, let’s see how you scored.

If you answered mostly no, I’m afraid your situation is pretty grave. You’re going to need to take serious measures to increase employee morale. For this, I prescribe:

Totally Wacky

   

In your next meeting, toss the Goofy Guy to someone who has a great idea or suggestion. It will lighten the mood, plus the “woo-hoo” sentiment on the back is perfect on-the-spot praise. The talking and bobble-head pens are another way to lift spirits. It’s pretty hard to scowl with one of these grinning back at you.

If you were about 50-50, then you need:

A Little Bit of Silly

   

These notepads come with a smiley-face pen for a lighthearted yet useful reward. The Appreciation Gift Sets feature a sweet treat for your team members to enjoy now, plus a fun keychain they can use every day. 

If you answered mostly yes, then you’re in good shape. You just need some:

Everyday Fun

  

Both the Pocket Praise and Cheers Kit in this fun theme have brightly-colored notes and great sentiments for day-to-day recognition. They’re just what you need to keep up the momentum!

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Allison is Baudville’s one (and only) Copywriter. She’s been writing for a variety of media for more than nine years, so if she tells you she has been there and done that, she probably has. Before embarking on a career in writing, Allison worked as a department manager where she used Baudville products to motivate her team. She’s what we call a true believer!

Getting employee recognition started in your organization or team doesn’t have to be rocket science. Managers can choose a recognition theme, select coordinating tools and have a program up and running before you can say aeronautics. To start an employee recognition program for your team, follow these six easy steps:

Step 1: Choose a recognition theme. Use your team goals as a guide to select the right recognition theme. Because your team is evaluated on successfully achieving its goals, you’ll want to give recognition that reinforces goal-driven behaviors. Recognition themes focus on positive attitudes, excellent performance, teamwork, outstanding customer service and many more. Browse all 100+ options at the Baudville website.

Step 2: Get the right tools. Once you’ve found the recognition theme that’s right for your team, select your tools. This is where the recognition theme really comes in handy! The coordinating themed recognition tools, like note cards and lapel pins, serve as additional reinforcement for the recipient and make it more likely that he will repeat the behavior in the future. To find the right tools for you, take our Recognition Tool Finder quiz.

Step 3: Communicate and communicate some more! You can never over-communicate when it comes to your employee recognition program. First, introduce how the recognition program will work and how employees can earn recognition. Next, introduce your recognition theme and explain how it ties to team goals. Make the case for recognition – that it will improve morale and performance – and everyone will become a fan of the new program.

Step 4: Tune into awesomeness. Now is the fun part! Keep your eyes open for employee behaviors and attitudes that deserve recognition – and give it to them! Employee recognition is most effective when it is given immediately after the behavior takes place and includes a hand written note. Enjoy giving recognition to your team and watch how the attitudes and results improve!

Step 5: Observe your program. As you put your employee recognition program into practice, observe how employees respond and ask for their feedback. For your program to have a long-term impact on employee morale and performance, you will have to make changes and adjustments. After a few months, you may want to use a new recognition theme and focus on different objectives.

Step 6: Celebrate! As employee morale and performances improve, take time to celebrate as a team. Give special recognition to your stars and congratulate the team on meeting goals and milestones. Recognize the benefits the employee recognition program has had on your organization and be on the lookout to practice more recognition!

Our new Together Everyone Achieves More Theme is great for recognizing teamwork.

The holidays are approaching, and everyone agrees that employee morale has experienced a turn for the worse. Corporations are expected to have a record low number of employee holiday parties. Give your staff a boost with an inspiring and optimistic theme for the year end.

In this blog entry, I’m throwing the spotlight on one of our latest additions to our Recognition Theme library, New Beginnings.

We designed New Beginnings especially for the 2009 corporate climate. The year has been especially challenging for companies and employees who have struggled with layoffs, budget cuts and just plain hard times. The soothing color palette and optimistic story motivates your team for the next year and hints at better things to come.

So how do you use New Beginnings in your organization? Give your employees a small token of your appreciation for the year by selecting a personal gift for the entire team. You can also engrave the story on a number of products and personalize it for your recipients.

Most importantly, though, your employees want to hear from you. Add a holiday greeting card to your gift and take the time to write a personal note inside of each one. Let your employees know what it is you appreciate about them. This is the greatest gift you can give this year.

Will New Beginnings be your theme for the end of the year? Tell us how you’re using it! Email us at recognition@baudville.com.

The New Beginnings Story
Freshly fallen snow revives the senses, Inspiring new ideas. Each tiny flake glistens with optimism and the promise of new beginnings. ‘Tis the season for possibilities.

 

 

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Cori is a Certified Recognition Professional at Baudville and a member of the Millennial generation. Follow her recognition tips at Twitter.com/Baudville.