Certificates are a popular award because of their low price point and easy customization capabilities.  Because Customer Service Week and year end award ceremonies are just around the corner, I wanted to take a more careful look at certificate design to help you prepare for the busy award season!

There are three steps to creating an impressive certificate award. First, choose your components, such as paper, folder, seals, ribbons, and frames. Second, format the certificate design with templates and award verses. Finally, make a memorable presentation to the recipient.

1. Award Components
A certificate starts with your paper selection. Depending on the occasion, you may prefer a more traditional certificate design, like our popular scallop design. Or you may prefer the glitz and glam the foil certificate designs offer. One of the main benefits of the foil-stamped papers is the addition of an award title. Certificates have a variety of different sentiments, including “Excellence,” “Certificate of Completion,” or “Academic Star.” Depending on the award occasion, the foil-stamped design can enhance your award.

Once you’ve selected the certificate paper, choose a folder or frame to display the certificate. Rather than presenting the certificate on its own, the added display tool helps to make a grand impression on the recipient and anyone witnessing the award. Choose a certificate seal to make your award look official, and add a ribbon for color.

2. Certificate Formatting
To simplify the certificate design process, use a template that is already formatted with the appropriate margins and spacing. Next, decide what you want to say on your certificate. Visit our Certificate Idea Gallery for inspiration and download our Sample Award Certificate Titles for ideas. An award certificate design usually includes a title, award verse, the recipient’s name, date, and the signature from a leader. The font you choose also contributes to the design. The award title should be the largest text on the certificate, and the recipient’s name the second largest.

Font choice is also an important part of your certificate design. If your certificate is for a formal award, such as a service anniversary, you will want to use a formal serif font. But if you’re having fun with certificates and using goofy award titles, you can have a little fun!

3. Memorable Presentation
The final step in the certificate creation process is presenting the certificate to the award recipient. Now that you’ve invested a lot of time and effort into carefully designing your certificate, you want to make sure your presentation hits the mark! Take time before your award presentation to consider what you want to say. Download our Award Presentation Guide for useful tips to help you prepare!

Do you consider yourself an expert certificate designer? Share your tips with us in the comments below!

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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.

• Find the perfect card easily with the new selection layout
• Save time and schedule your ePraises with the new date and time scheduler
• Share ePraise with your colleagues, co-workers and friends to pass on the recognition with our easy to share buttons
• The recipient can easily print the ecard with a click of a button
• Easily allows the recipient to quickly send a special thank you ePraise to the ecard sender
• Quick links to top products and resources to help keep those recognition ideas flowing after you send your ecards

• Sign in to your Baudville.com account to save your ePraise history
• Use the handy tips writing guide to help you write the perfect note on any ecard
• Know exactly when the recipient views the ecard with the automatic email that is sent to you after pick up

So make sure to take advantage of this fanstastic free tool offered by Baudville and send an ePraise now!

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Kimberly is the Baudville Website Manager and star of our online product videos. She applies her knowledge of the web to create the ultimate online experience for Baudville customers.

Whew, six weeks into my internship and I am just getting into the Baudville groove! I got my name plate on my cubicle and can finally clear a paper jam in the printer. But I am constantly experiencing new things about Baudville every day. For example do you know how we actually recognize our employees and co-workers?

Last week was a busy week of recognition for the whole company. We had baby showers, birthdays (mine!), casual days, and an entire company meeting. I‘ve never experienced so much celebrating with my co-workers before and who knew it would be such a blast!

I attended my first entire company meeting last week. I know what you are thinking right now, a “dull” meeting cannot include recognition. Absolutely it can and the best part, the meeting becomes exciting! Everyone gathered in a huge room located in our distribution center. Our CEO, Brad Darooge, gave us some encouragement for the upcoming six months and recognized us for achieving goals in the first half of the year.

Next, Cindy, the Human Resources Manager talked about how our Health and Fitness challenge is going thus far. (For those who don’t know, currently we have undergone a “friendly,” 10 week, Health and Fitness competition here at Baudville). On the first day of the competition we all received t-shirts displaying our work out pride. We received new water bottles to stay hydrated. Finally, she opened the floor for employees to share personal Health and Fitness goals. It was a great way for the whole company to encourage and praise people for a job well done.  

Since the whole company got together, we couldn’t pass up the opportunity for a mini competition. We were given plastic bags, scotch tape, string, and tissue paper. With these random elements we had to cushion an egg so that when it dropped it didn’t splatter everywhere. Whoever kept the yolk in their egg won points for their Health and Fitness challenge team. The absurd concoctions caused a lot of laughter and conversation in the days after.

I also found out this week that birthdays are a huge deal at Baudville. At the beginning of the month, birthday cards get passed from cubicle to cubicle and are filled with special notes or drawings. Then on your birthday, you receive your card with a little present inside. Lastly, you have to choose where your birthday lunch is going to be so co-workers can take you out to celebrate.

These are just some ways we have been recognizing co-workers lately and having fun here at Baudville. Other companies have been doing a great job recognizing as well. Tell me about some big or little ways you’ve recognized your employees or co-workers lately!

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Kendra is the newest Baudvillian. She is currently an advertising intellectual at Grand Valley State University, and is ecstatic about the change of atmosphere as Baudville’s web marketing intern. Watch out because this young professional just touched down at Baudville.

We offer a free service on our website called ePraise which are recognition ecards you can send to coworkers, peers, or anyone you want to thank or recognize. We have over 110 different designs for birthdays, anniversaries, teachers, nurses, volunteers, and to simply say thanks. 

Although writing a recognition ecard  seems like a pretty simple thing to do, many of use don’t do it. Why? We have every intention of typing one, but when the fingers touch the keys, we draw a blank. We have no idea what to say!

Here are a few simple tips that will help you type a recognition ecard that is meaningful, personal, and sincere:

1. Describe the action, behavior or result you are recognizing. Did you observe the person delivering excellent customer service? Did they provide a referral or a critical piece of information so that you could meet an important deadline? Did they help you out of a jam at the last minute? Be specific about what they did, not just "Thanks for a great job."

2. Explain why it is important to you or the organization. Did it help you achieve a goal or make your job easier? If possible, create the link between their behavior and the organization's values and mission.

3. Reflect back to the person. What is it about the way they did it? Talk about how their action reflects a personal quality of the giver, such as integrity, initiative, or follow through.

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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.