Every day is a new opportunity for you to say "thank you" in a big way. However, most of us allow those moments to pass without much consideration. After all, life can get very busy.
What if you were to buck the trend and start to think about ways to spotlight the people who add so much value to your life? They can be anything from trusted teachers to motivational coaches to religious leaders to family members. Showing appreciation through the delivery of gifts and goodwill takes a little planning, but it is highly meaningful as an act of kindness and acknowledgment.
Who knows? You might just be repaid many times over for your kindness.
Benefits to Giving Thank You Gifts
Certainly, giving personalized appreciation gifts is meaningful to the recipients. But did you know that it can have advantages for you and others, too?
Some of the biggest benefits to giving thoughtful gifts without expecting anything in return include:
- You will make your relationships with people much stronger. This becomes helpful in times of sorrow or difficulty.
- You will make someone's day a bit brighter. Having someone surprise you with an unexpected present is highly meaningful and can change moods immediately.
- You will begin to see the world in a more optimistic light. Everyone needs some positivity!
- You will show others how to express their gratitude. From your coworkers to your kids, the people who witness you being compassionate, caring and considerate will be more likely to follow suit.
Like what you hear? Read on to find out how to share your heartfelt appreciation in a plethora of ways.
Who Deserves Appreciation and Thank You Gifts?
Although anyone can deserve a thank you gift, some people tend to receive more than others. These include instructors, neighbors, friends, employees, customers, parents, siblings, babysitters, children, members of the clergy and bosses. In fact, you probably have a host of people who have helped you out or been there in hard times.
To help you figure out which people you want to thank with an act of selflessness, pull out a pen and paper. Jot down all the folks in your life, including people professionally and personally. Jog your memory so you make sure you are not overlooking anyone. When you have a nice list, you can move on to figure how best to appreciate each one with a special present.
How to Pick Who Deserves Which Type of Gift
Obviously, each of the individuals on your list deserves some type of personalized appreciation gift. Nevertheless, not all your recipients need to receive gifts that cost anything at all. Sometimes, a simple text or email is all you need to send to show how much you care.
However, you will likely want to give something more substantial to certain recipients. For instance, did your mentor help you snag the job of your dreams or give you a referral to get into a school of choice? That type of compassion and help deserves something a little bigger than a message or card.
How will you know what type of appreciation gift to choose for each person who has positively affected your life? Go back to the list of recipients you created. Then, add "A", "B" or "C" next to each of their names.
The "C" recipients will be the people who just need to know you have noticed their good deeds. The "B" recipients should get something more than a few words via text or a private social media message. And the "A" recipients are the ones who need to be recognized in a much larger, perhaps even public type of way.
Examples of Appreciation Gifts to Give
You already know that one type of appreciation gift will not be ideal for all situations or recipients. However, you may find it challenging to navigate the wide world of thank you gifts.
Because we live for appreciation at DIY Awards, we can easily help you understand your choices. Below, we look at several recognition gift ideas that would work well for your "A" or "B" recipients, and maybe even a "C" recipient or two!
When Is the Best Time to Give an Appreciation Gift?
Almost any time of the year can be an opportunity to give an appreciation gift. Some days are already built into the calendar, such as Mother's Day, Father's Day, Boss's Day and Administrative Assistants' Day.
Of course, you do not need to wait for a special time to offer someone a present. Anytime is the right moment for gifting!
Thank You Gifts With Personalization
As long as you know the basic personality of a gift recipient, you can usually come up with some type of object to buy them. However, custom-crafting and personalizing the gift takes the whole approach a step further. In fact, a personalized gift can become a treasured heirloom passed down from generation to generation.
For example, consider engraved jewelry. Rings, necklaces, pendants and watches with engraved messaging tend to be treated more carefully and respectfully than other types of jewels and wearables. The same holds true with optical crystal appreciation awards that have been personalized with the recipient's name and an accompanying image or logo, as well as an inscription.
At DIY Awards, we offer a wide variety of personalized crystal plaques in a variety of general shapes and sizes. Feel free to browse our entire collection of lines to choose the right crystal award. Remember that beyond getting your crystal award engraved, you can also opt for color fill. Color filling adds a sense of depth, warmth and dimension to the beautiful plaque.
Appreciation Gifts Made by Hand
Are you somewhat of an artisan? Do you make items by hand that you want to share? Handmade gifts make great recognition presents because they showcase the time and effort you put into planning and constructing the perfect present.
Unsure of what types of homemade and handmade gifts will be well-received by the people on your appreciation gifting list? Some fantastic recognition gift ideas include knitted blankets, crocheted scarves and sweaters, hand-crafted jewelry, cross-stitched and embroidered items, artwork, poems and especially foods.
If you have been blessed with the ability to whip up culinary gems, use your talent as the basis of your appreciation gift. Not only do you get to use your kitchen skills, but you can feed someone special in the process.
Practical Gifts to Recognize Someone Important
When you think about the person you want to appreciate, does the word "practical" come to mind? Some people are simply practical and no-fuss in nature. As such, they deserve gifts that they can use for realistic, everyday purposes.
What are some of the most thoughtful useful presents you can give? Quite honestly, gift cards work great. Choose a gift card to a location like a local grocery store or restaurant. Gift cards to home improvement stores and big box retailers also tend to be a hit. If you know the preferred hangout of your recipient, pick up a gift certificate so they can enjoy a night out without spending a penny.
Are you incredibly close with the person you are appreciating with a practical gift? Furniture and electronics can be rewarding, especially if they replace older items. Just make sure whatever you offer has a useful application, and your recipient will be happy.
Gifts Specific to an Occasion
Did a teacher help you ace a test you thought you would never pass? Was a boss instrumental in you getting a promotion? Did your colleagues pitch in to help you finish a headache of a project? These are all very specific events, so you might want to get more specific about your thank you gifts.
As an example, you could always connect your appreciation present with the act that occurred. An example of this could be sending thank you gifts in the color of your wedding theme to your bridesmaids. Every time they look at the gifts, they will be reminded of your nuptials and the part they played.
Occasion-specific gifts can be a lot of fun to brainstorm. Use your imagination and you're sure to come up with one-of-a-kind appreciation ideas suitable for a particular event.
Appreciation Gifts Great for Volunteers
As a final note about appreciation gifts, please remember the volunteers in your favorite non-profit organization! These are folks who work hard on behalf of a cause without expecting any monetary gain. By giving them a little something, you tell them their work has made a significant difference.
Want to look through recognition plaques? Explore DIY Awards for appreciation ideas galore, including quotes and poems for engraved messages. Contact us today!
Gifts to Show Your Thanks to Employees and Customers
In business, you will almost always have opportunities to say thanks to colleagues, vendors and even clients. Never let a chance to make this type of caring connection go by the wayside! Not only can giving a recognition gift keep you top of mind with customers, but it can cement lifelong partnerships and friendships.
Are you planning to give out a work-related thank you in a public forum, such as at a holiday get-together? This may be another time to consider a personalized and engraved crystal award. Not only will you surprise your recipients, but you will surprise them in front of other people.
Customer Appreciation Gifts
You need thoughtful customer appreciation gifts ideas to keep customers coming back. You know customer loyalty is key way to continuously grow your business. It is more important to show a little extra customer appreciation with something more personal than a simple business card for more and more people show their appreciation through automated voice mail and email messages than a live person.
Delicious edible gifts like cookies or pastries for your customer are nice; customer appreciation picnic, sporting or luncheons are great customer appreciation gifts ideas.
Teacher Appreciation Gifts
Whether you choose to purchase a thank you gift or create a homemade item, it is important that the teachers that have shaped you or your children receive the sincere recognition that they so well deserve.
DIY Awards offers appreciation quotes and sayings that will help spark your creativity while writing your thank you.
Pastor Appreciation Gifts
October is officially pastor appreciation month and a great chance for the congregation to pause and let our pastor and his wife know that they are valued and appreciated.
Give a gift that says it all.
Presents for Military Members
A career in the military is very different from a career in other fields. After all, it is a lifetime commitment and may be a profession that includes high degrees of risk-taking. Military members aren't recognized often enough, so any thank you gift will be welcome.
From items like watches to retirement plaques made of optical crystal, pick the best recognition gift you can to honor active military and veterans in your life. No doubt they will deeply appreciate your kindness.
