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10 Ways to Take the Stress Out of Selecting a Service Award ProgramBy Craig Ainsworth

So you’ve been given the daunting task of looking for a new service awards program for your company. You’ve also probably been given an impossibly tight budget and maybe have limited time to roll out the program. You might be wondering if you should handle all the coordination yourself or hire an employee recognition company. You might save a little money coordinating the effort yourself, but unless you have a staff member who can be devoted to this process, it may be more of a task than you really have time to take on. This is where employee recognition companies come in—they already have award vendors or awards in stock, they can set you up with a web portal where your employees can view and select their awards, and they will do all the coordination, shipping and fulfillment for you. Here are 10 ways to take the stress out of searching for a good employee recognition company and organizing your new service awards program.

1. Figure out your budget and then find a program to fit it.

Most employee recognition companies offer awards at different budget levels. You want to look for a company that has single pricing for each level, which means all awards in a level are the same price. The reason for this is that if budget level A has awards that range from $10-$25, then you can never accurately budget the money spent for that level. You might get an average, but if people select the more expensive awards in that level, then you might go beyond your budget. Make sure to ask how long the pricing is guaranteed for, including jewelry. Typically the pricing quoted should be guaranteed for one year.

A good service award program should help make your job quite a bit easier, not more stressful.

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2. Look out for set up charges or hidden fees.

Don’t base your selection of a company entirely on the price of the awards. Some companies might charge less for the same award, but then they will charge you for all the “little things”: a deposit fee to get started, a fee for setting up the website, fees to print out award brochures, fees to imprint your company logo on awards, and fees for gift wrapping, special requests, and printing certificates. These line items can really add up, and it is a lot easier to keep track of these administrative tasks if they are already included in the costs of each award—this is called “all-inclusive” pricing. What “all-inclusive” doesn’t include is sales tax and shipping costs, so make sure you account for these items as well.

3. Develop a relationship with your vendor.

A reputable employee recognition vendor will be happy to meet with you in person or spend time with you over the phone. If you are able to, tour their facility; it will help you to understand their processes. Your ideal vendor should be interested in finding out about your company culture and what you are looking for in a rewards program. The vendor should give you a timeline based on your roll-out date when tasks will be completed and what they need from you. They should manage your data (including email address and physical addresses of employees or drop-off locations for the awards), fulfill and mail your orders, and keep within your budget.

4. Look for brand name awards.

Your employees may not admit it, but everyone is a little materialistic. Be sure not to sacrifice well-made products just because you have a tight budget. Look

for employee recognition programs which offer awards made by brand names. Brand name products are more likely to be superior quality, durable, made to last and up-to-date. Your employees will be more appreciative of them and be left with a positive impression. With “no name” brands, your employees may not value the award as much and it may be perceived as “cheap”—which is not the perception you want for your company!

5. Make sure you understand how far in advance you need to plan.

Make sure you choose a vendor with the least amount of set-up time required (ideally 3-4 weeks). You don’t want to have to give your vendor data 3-6 months in advance—a lot can change in 3-6 months with your personnel. You may incur costs for employees who are no longer with your company. Having only 3-4 weeks between you sending data to your awards vendor and your materials being sent out

Your employees may not value the award and perceive it as “cheap”. Not the perception you want for your company!

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BRAND NAME AWARDS Eagle Recognition has a large selection of durable, and up-to-date brand name awards.

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guarantees that all your information is accurate, up-to-date, and you don’t incur any additional costs due to employee turnover.

6. Know who you can turn to if you have a question about your account or problem with an order.

Your sales rep may not be the person you will be dealing with once your rewards program gets underway. Ideally you want a dedicated customer service or account manager who handles your account, not just an anonymous call center. Ask how long their customer service team or account managers have been with the company. If you are visiting the company, ask to meet your customer service manager if possible.

7. Make sure you can customize your rewards program.

Does the company allow you to make special orders on awards or allow you to customize the award catalogs? Do they have minimum orders on special requests? When comparing programs, be sure to ask about special requests up front. Will there be an additional cost for something as simple as your company logo on the certificate? Make sure your program reflects your culture and meets your company goals, without breaking your budget.

8. Understand the turnaround time and invoicing.

Ask how they handle invoicing: make sure you are invoiced monthly only for the awards that are shipped to your employees with no minimum orders. Ideally, the company should not invoice you until your employees receive their awards.

Also ask about their turnaround time and whether they stock their inventory. If they stock most of their inventory, then it should take 2-3 business days to ship most awards with corporate identification.

9. Ask about their exchange policy.

If your employee receives the wrong award, or it just isn’t what they expected, you want to make sure they can return it for a new one. The exception to this is awards that have been engraved or personalized—usually they cannot be returned. An ideal exchange policy should be “no questions asked”, and there should be no additional charge to the recipient or your company. Make sure that the return is between the recipient and the vendor; you don’t have the time to deal with the hassle of returning defective or unwanted awards!

10. Make sure you can monitor the process.

Your employee recognition vendor should provide you with your own web portal on which you can sign in and have access to program activity. Your employees should be able to place their orders online, check order status, and track award shipments. As an administrator you should be able to view detailed reports online, including: open orders, shipped orders, non-responders, employee look-up information and sorting, ability to delete or put employees “on hold”, and live budget details.

There is a lot to think about in developing an employee service award program, but knowing the right questions to ask and finding the right vendor to assist you will alleviate a lot of the stress. Ask around in your network for referrals or research vendors in your area online.

ABOUT THE AUTHORCraig Ainsworth is Vice President of Sales and Marketing at Eagle Recognition. Eagle Recognition offers turn-key solutions for length of service award programs.

You can reach Craig at by calling (888) 287-4240 or email him at cainsworth@eaglerecognition.com.

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Are you getting everything you should from your current awards vendor? Grab a copy of our helpful checklist at www.eaglerecogntion.com.