4 Ways to Appreciate Your Customer Service Team In or Out of the Office

It takes empathy, patience and adaptability—to name just a few traits—to be a top-notch customer service staff member. Despite what some people might believe, the customer service team is one of the most important divisions in your business. Good customer service builds customer loyalty and word-of-mouth marketing that can’t be bought.  

Plus, these days, in a time of uncertainty that means stressed-out customers looking for help as well as CX teams managing either at-home work or social distancing in the office, you’ve got yourself more than enough reasons to express your immense appreciation for the work they do.

Customer service reps spend every day with your customers riding the roller coaster of emotions—from the highs of making everything right for a customer to an angry customer who won’t take no for an answer. But given the right experience, you’ll gain not only loyal customers, but ones who will decide to spend more at your company.

No matter if your customer service staff is in or out of the office, they would be delighted to receive an unexpected Hallmark card. A card not only represents the time involved to find a sentiment that fits, but with the inclusion of a handwritten note, it truly is the physical representation of your gratitude. And Hallmark cards, especially, just make people feel good. Now, more than ever, it’s important to help your employees, especially those on the front line of your business such as customer service reps, know how much you value all their hard work.

4 Ways to Demonstrate Your Appreciation for Your Customer Service Associates

Here are four tips on how to make sure your employees know how important they are to your company.

1. Send a Physical Recognition to Their Homes

You can’t replace that feeling of noticing a greeting card envelope in the mail and wondering who took the time to send a card. It’s the perfect way to make that human connection with your customer service staff who are essential to your business.

Not only will opening the card and realizing it’s from their employer make them smile but reading a personal note that thanks them for their work will make the moment memorable.

It’ll be especially meaningful for those working from home—they might miss their coworkers or feel isolated. Taking the time to let them know you appreciate the hours they are putting in for your business will gain not only loyalty, but a determination to do more.

2. Surprise and Delight Your Customer Service Team

Happy employees work hard for their companies. A way to keep your customer service team satisfied is with a surprise. An unexpected card, whether it’s in the mail or given to them in the office, would certainly please your customer service staff.

By acknowledging their hard work with an out-of-the-blue note, they will, in turn, want to tell your customers what a great company they work for, resulting in a better experience for customers. And, don’t discount the idea of having peer-to-peer appreciation notes surprise and delight your team—especially if you’re working remotely. Split up the entire customer service team and have each person send one card with an individual message to their coworker. They’ll love to see who they get a card from and what they wrote!

3. Be Genuine

It’s important to be real, human and humble—right now especially. That’s why expressing gratitude for your employees who spend every day helping the company’s customers is vital. That message of appreciation is even more meaningful when you give examples or talk in specifics. However, sometimes it’s hard to find the right words to get started writing your message. Consider using phrases such as, “I appreciate how…” or “We can depend on you to…” Maybe you need a prompt or even a few ideas to clear the writer’s block, that’s where Hallmark steps in to help. Read through our “5 Tips for Writing Employee Recognition Messages” and be sure to check out the template and message ideas.

4. You Can Never Say Thank You Enough

Official times, such as Customer Service Appreciation Week and Employee Appreciation Day, are great reasons to put together a formal campaign to thank your staff. However, don’t forget to show your gratitude for the work throughout the year—those will be the moments that stick with them. Thank you letters, employee appreciation cards and “just checking in” notes all work well to help boost employee morale—most importantly during trying times. It’s even more impactful when the note includes a thank you with specific details of why you wanted to acknowledge them—maybe it’s because a customer included a note about how good your service was, or your approval rating has soared lately. Never let your customer service employees feel taken for granted by expressing your appreciation for what they do. It’s a tough job! With notes of praise and appreciation, you can go a long way to reminding them why they love what they do.