Even if we aren’t particularly materialistic, there’s something about receiving a thoughtful gift or token that can touch our hearts. So when it comes time to show our employee appreciation, finding just the perfect gift can go a long way in expressing our gratitude!
Our Top Picks
- Host a company event with a hilarious and humourous speaker
- Treat your employees to a team lunch
- Give out tasty and personalized gift boxes
- Offer up a free vacation day for the holidays!
But sometimes, it can be hard to narrow down the best employee appreciation gifts for our team members. So, if you’re still searching for ideas, keep reading and we’ll let you in on seventeen of our favorite employee appreciation gifts!
See Related: 9 Ways A Funny Motivational Speaker Can Inspire Laughter In Your Workplace
Employee Appreciation Gift Ideas You Can’t Pass Up
We all know that we are comprised of unique strengths and weaknesses. And a pretty common fault is to be not the best gift-giver.
We’ve been there. You’re trying to find the perfect way to show someone you care about them with a meaningful gift, but your mind is blank. Not only is that nightmare material, but you’re likely to end up shopping for a gift that will disappoint.
Giving great gifts can be an incredibly daunting experience, especially when you’re trying to shop for someone who is hard to read. Luckily, we’re here to help!
Below are 17 of our favorite employee appreciation gifts that you can give to anyone. Gift-giving has never been so easy!
#1. Host A Magical Company Event
Often we can get caught up thinking of the best item to give someone, but we should keep in mind that the best gifts are often experiences!
If you’re looking to treat your entire team to a meaningful and touching gift, invite them all to attend a company event! This is a fantastic way to show your appreciation.
Hosting a company event with a professional and humorous speaker or comedian (this is key!) can give your team the amazing opportunity to enjoy some fantastic entertainment outside of working hours while simultaneously connecting personally.
At Clean Comedians, we have both in-person and virtual speakers to connect with your team, no matter where they might be in the world. Our team of professional and talented speakers specializes in everything from comedy to motivational speaking to even magic!
And though they may have a handle on the entirety of public speaking and professional entertainment, they don’t resort to crude or inappropriate content. After all, this stuff has no place at an employee appreciation event.
Connections with our team thrive when we share a laugh. So utilizing humor at your company event can light the spark that will ignite happy and healthy working relationships. Though Employee Appreciation Day isn’t all year round, it only takes one fantastic company event to show your team that your organization is one worth working in!
#2. Hand Out Company Swag
When you love a brand, you sport its logo. So why not do that for your working place?
It would only make sense that a great employee appreciation gift would be some stylish company swag. Creating a fun, happy, and enjoyable company culture should allow your team to show their company pride.
#3. Treat Them To A Tasty Lunch
We all know that food is perhaps the best gift idea to exist. After all, the way to someone’s heart is through their stomach! So when you want to show your employees your gratitude and appreciation, a classic way to do so is by treating them to a delicious lunch.
If your workers still are in the office, take a moment in the middle of the day to bring them out to lunch. And for remote employees, send them a meal or schedule a fun video chat to connect with them over food!
It’s easy to bond and connect with our coworkers and team members when we indulge in a tasty meal. A gift idea this simple shouldn’t be passed up!
#4. Bring Them A Pick-Me-Up Coffee
If food is the best gift, coffee is perhaps the second best. Especially for those coffee fanatics at your work (there’s at least a couple always), treating them to a classic hot beverage is a surefire yet straightforward way to show your appreciation.
Coffee is one of the top employee appreciation corporate gifts out there for many reasons:
- You can enjoy it year-round, any time of the day
- Everyone always has their own particular coffee order in mind, so you know they’ll enjoy it
- It’s inexpensive, and you can easily gift it over and over!
#5. Give A Gift Basket
Especially during the holidays, a popular way to show anyone in your life that you are thankful for them is with a classic gift basket or box. So it should go without saying that a personalized gift box is a great way to show a little employee appreciation.
It’s incredibly easy to make various gourmet gift baskets based on your team member’s preferences. Just find out what trinkets or sweet treats they crave the most and collect them into a tasty package.
Still struggling with ideas of what to incorporate into an employee appreciation gift box? You can’t go wrong with the following:
- Assorted coffee flavors or tea
- Dried fruits or snackable nuts
- Chocolates and other sweet treats
- Fine wine and cheese
And don’t forget to top it off with a personalized message or note expressing your gratitude!
#6. Offer A Free Vacation Day
Employee appreciation gifts can go a long way in conveying your appreciation and gratitude. But remember that you don’t have to give a tangible item to touch your employee’s hearts!
A fantastic gift to give your team members is a free vacation day. Especially around the holiday season, we often want to spend our free time with our families and those we care about.
So give your employees the gift of freedom and allocate a free day off that they can cash in at any time!
#7. Make Them A Personalized Mug
There are a lot of coffee and tea lovers around us, especially in the workplace. And if you want to take gift idea #4 to a higher level, treat your employees to a personalized coffee mug.
If you’re like us, you can never have too many coffee mugs. But a touching and personalized gift like a unique mug is sure to become their favorite hot-beverage-holder!
#8. A Good Book Can Say A Lot
If there are coffee fanatics, then there are also bookworms at your workplace. So for the avid reader, a good book can be one of the best gifts you can give them!
Reading is a pretty popular pastime for many Americans. So it’s a good idea to encourage your team to create their own book club to discuss their favorite reads. Emphasizing building connections with your employees and themselves is a great way to improve comradery and blossom new friendships.
Bonus: How To Improve Decision-Making Skills In The Workplace With Comedy Jugglers
#9. Everyone Loves To Receive Flowers
You don’t need to go on a romantic date to treat someone to a beautiful bouquet. Flowers are a fantastic gift to give anyone. Who could say “no” to such a classic and gorgeous offering, anyway?
Whether you want to congratulate someone or show them a little affection, giving flowers is a simple yet effective way to express sincere appreciation towards your employees. Finding a fun and colorful bouquet for the office is also a great way to brighten up your team’s working area and welcome some clean energy into the air!
#10. A Simple Plant For Their Workspace
If flowers can effortlessly bring new life and encouragement to your employee’s workspace, then a sweet and simple desk plant can do it even better!
Many of us are always craving ways to personalize our working area, and even giving a simple desk plant as an expression of appreciation can show that you care about their working environment.
If someone already has a collection of potted plants crowding their desk, you’re probably safe giving them another one. But don’t make the mistake of giving a desk plant to someone who has no desire to care for a plant!
#11. An E-Gift Card Can Work For Anyone
Some people can be a little challenging to shop for. So, if you need an appreciation gift that’s safe to give anyone, go with an e-gift card!
You can either choose their favorite stores to gift an e-card to or pick a general card to gift them. Regardless, giving employees the freedom to choose their own gift is the best gift to give some people.
Still Need Employee Appreciation Gift Ideas?
If you want a couple more ideas for employee appreciation gifts, here are a few more of our favorites.
#12. Bring homemade baked goods to work to share with the team
#13. Give an at-home spa day package to encourage de-stressing
#14. Everyone needs a new wireless charger nowadays
#15. Stock up on tasty snacks and other treats in the office
#16. Make them a personalized nameplate for their desk
#17. Especially for those working from home, upgrade their office set-up with an ergonomic chair
No matter what route you choose to go to show your appreciation, it’s a sincere effort that counts!
Why Showing Appreciation Is Essential
Regardless of the time of year, emphasizing gratitude and appreciation in the workplace is the foundation for a productive and thriving environment. And most importantly, employee recognition can contribute towards high job satisfaction and happy moods!
We’ve all experienced this phenomenon at one point or another. When your hard work gets recognized and rewarded, it makes you want to keep up the fantastic work!
So when we recognize employees, it becomes much more intriguing and easy for them to want to continue to spend time and effort being star workers.
The benefits of practicing employee appreciation can be viewed from either a human perspective or a business perspective.
- From a business perspective, employee appreciation encourages engagement and productivity, by rewarding great ideas and efforts.
- And from a human perspective, showing gratitude in the workplace can help cultivate an enjoyable and healthy working environment, and make your employees excited to show up every day!
Even if it’s a little extra effort each day, it’s important to take the time in the office to show and express appreciation and gratitude regularly.
Celebrating Employees In The Workplace
For many of us, we spend considerable amounts of time each day and each week at our workplace. Whether it’s just a part-time gig or a full-time plus overtime endeavor, our workplace holds a large chunk of our attention.
When we get to celebrate our coworkers or employees, it can give them a new level of satisfaction in what they do. And as leaders, one of our top responsibilities is to be active in expressing employee appreciation!
Even if you’re not the biggest teddy bear, showing gratitude to your employees can bring many benefits you can’t ignore.
- Expressing appreciation boosts employee morale and happiness
- It can encourage team members to go the extra mile
- It provides a greater purpose to our professional lives
- Allows productivity and employee engagement to skyrocket
- Contributes to cultivating a happy and healthy workplace culture
Great employee appreciation gifts can be tangible or intangible. After all, many times, the best thing we can receive is a sincere and meaningful compliment or conversation.
Taking the time to recognize and treat your team is the foundation of expressing appreciation and gratitude. So whether you’re shopping for an employee appreciation gift or offering heartfelt compliments, all you need to do is make a conscious effort to show your gratitude, and the rest will follow.
Keep Reading: 6 Benefits Of Showing Gratitude At Work
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Adam Christing is a professional comedy magician, virtual MC, and the founder of CleanComedians.com. He is a member of the world-famous Magic Castle in Hollywood and a popular corporate entertainer, magician, and virtual speaker.
