How to Start a Recognition Program With Custom Pins

A well-thought-out recognition program can boost morale, reduce turnover, and foster a positive company culture. The question facing many businesses is simple; how to start a recognition program that resonates with your team? There are all kinds of strategies out there, and, believe it or not, one thing almost all of them have in common are lapel pins.

Custom lapel pins offer an affordable, meaningful, and versatile solution to elevate your employee recognition program. If you are looking for inspiration on a design or need help getting started, we’ve got you covered. Here’s our how-to guide on starting a recognition program that makes an impact - and how custom lapel pins will play a pivotal role.

Step 1 - Outline Your Goals

Before diving into all the details, you need to identify your main goals. What do you want your recognition program to achieve? Is your goal to boost employee morale, reduce turnover, or celebrate milestone achievements? Setting clear objectives will help you design a program tailored to your organization’s needs.

Not only that, having a clear vision will help you create a more cohesive series of recognition pins. You want your custom pins to look unique and feel valuable to your team, so be sure your designs fall in line with the themes of your recognition program.

Step 2 - Define Recognition Criteria

Recognition programs can focus on a variety of achievements including:

• Years of Service: Honor long-term commitment with milestone awards. Some companies create pins for each year of employment, while others focus on big milestones like one year, five years, and ten-years.
• Outstanding Performance: Celebrate employees who go above and beyond. These types of pins could be awarded when employees are promoted to new positions, when their work uplifts the team around them, or when they complete some kind of special service.
• Teamwork and Collaboration: Recognize those who excel in fostering a collaborative environment. You want to encourage teamwork and cohesion in your team, so be sure to highlight the ones setting the best example.
• Innovation: Reward creative problem-solving and innovation. The people who help your business evolve and improve are valuable assets that can’t be replaced.
• Company Milestones: It takes a lot of people to make a business succeed, and custom pins designed to celebrate sales milestones, anniversaries, the opening of new locations, or other important wins for the company is a great way to bring people together.

Step 3 - Create a Series of Recognition Pins

Custom lapel pins enhance recognition programs in several ways.

• Real-world recognition: Unlink digital rewards, or fleeting perks, lapel pins are lasting tokens of appreciation that show employees their important connection with the business.
• Customizable designs: Company logos, custom designs, and unique shapes only scratch the surface of options available when customizing recognition pins and years of service pins. Creating a series of pins makes collecting awards more engaging for your employees, and each design embodies a different type of success.
• Professional presentation: Employees can proudly wear their pins at work, conferences, or events, serving as a badge of honor.

Step 4 - Plan a Rollout

Creating a series of recognition pins isn’t enough on its own, but it’s a great start. Introducing your program with the right amount of enthusiasm and a clear outline of how employees will earn recognition will set up your program for success. Some companies choose to host a kickoff event, but it’s just as effective to create a company-wide announcement.

Be sure to let your employees know that the program is designed to help management look for excellent performers, and help the companies best and brightest talent shine even brighter. Once you’ve made your announcement and shared details on how your team can earn recognition, it all comes down to following through and awarding custom pins throughout the year.

Step 5 - Measure Success

It will take a few weeks or a few months to start seeing the full effect of your recognition program. Be sure to open lines of communication for employee feedback, whether it’s through engagement surveys or something as simple as a suggestion box. Taking stock of your pins and counting the number of awards handed out from month to month will give you a visual representation of how your team is performing based on the criteria you set up for employees to earn recognition.

Once you have the right amount of data and employee feedback, take time to evaluate what is working and what needs adjustment. You may find that there are other types of recognition to target, or that there are adjustments needed in the ways you award employees with the pins.

More Tips for Creating a Successful Recognition Program

There are a few more things to keep in mind when developing a lapel pin recognition program. Perhaps the most important thing to keep in mind is pin design.

The custom pins designed for recognizing your best employees should be visually appealing and tied to a specific type of recognition. There are plenty of ways to make an interesting and unique design. Consider different plating options, cut outs, gemstones, and interactive elements! If you need help coming up with ideas, don’t worry. Our team of professional artists will ensure all your pins have a unique look and feel that will resonate with your team members!

Pairing your pins with other rewards like certificates, gift cards, or other tokens is a sure way to help make an impact on your employees. It’s also important to award pins publicly. It feels good to be recognized among peers, and those who see hard work being recognized are more likely to strive for recognition of their own!

Starting an employee recognition program doesn’t have to be complicated or expensive. Custom lapel pins provide a simple but impactful means of celebrating achievements and milestones while promoting a culture of appreciation. By following these simple steps, you’ll create a program that is sure to uplift your team, strengthen your workplace culture, and drive long-term success. Get a head start on your recognition program today by designing a series of recognition pins!

Recognition Pins Employee Recognition Pins How to Start a Recognition Program