Celebrating the Impact of Customer Service Teams

This year, the theme for the celebration is “Everyday Heroes.” Day in and day out, our frontline customer service teams are heroes—both in our eyes and in the eyes of the customers.

Short on ideas? Here are some tips on how you can show your appreciation to your customer service employees.

1. Let them reward their own peers.

Put the power of recognition, and more importantly, the reward in your team’s hands. You can use an internal system to collect reward or nomination points to let them give each other kudos for the good work done.

They also get to choose which kind of reward they wish to receive such as a cash bonus, extra leave credits, or a gift card.

Go the extra mile and make it public too, as this is a great way to give employees a pat on the back, and at the same time, boosts team morale and motivation.

2. Make it all about them—celebrate them, literally, all week!

There are companies who pull out all the guns when they celebrate Customer Service Week—holding different celebrations (or parties) for each day of the week with a theme.

It doesn’t need to be grand, though, as you can start by giving free food (pizza is always a great idea!) on a Monday (cause who doesn’t love free overwhelming food?), allowing a no-dress code policy, showing fun videos, or hosting a games night or an out of town team building trip.

You can dress up your team’s work area with balloons and streamers to make it more festive and decorate top employees’ desks with certificates.

Have little gifts for everyone at their desks too—little knick-knacks like memo caddies, pens, mugs, and paper pads are thoughtful items.

3. Pay it forward.

A great idea is to have your team use the week to focus on doing something great for somebody else, especially the less fortunate.

4. Let employees make important decisions.

Let them make decisions that matter and can impact the company. Verbal appreciation is important, and bonuses or other perks are appreciated, but ultimately, showing someone that you trust their opinion and expertise is far more valuable.

5. Encourage and provide opportunities for growth.

The best way to show appreciation for your employees is to give them opportunities to grow and stretch themselves, showing that you believe in them to do well in such opportunities.