• Why Give Corporate Awards & Employee Recognition Gifts?
• Examples of Corporate Awards & Gifts
• How to Buy Corporate Awards & Gifts

Why Give Corporate Awards & Employee Recognition Gifts?

Formal recognition of a job well done helps to reinforce the actions and behaviors you most want to see people repeat. Moreover, employees whose efforts are recognized in some way are more likely to remain happy, content, and most importantly, motivated. Those individuals who are not honored will hopefully take it as an opportunity to work harder so that they can be receive their own corporate award sometime in the future. Finally, people like to feel appreciated, and corporate awards and employee recognition gifts are a perfect way to show your gratitude for others’ hard work.

Need further evidence that corporate awards are good promotional tools? According to the Advertising Specialty Institute’s 2010 Impressions Study, individuals receiving recognition awards display them about two-thirds of the time, and many keep them because they are enjoyable to have. Most importantly, 65% of those receiving a corporate award had an improved perception of the company that gave them the award. So not only recognition gifts promote your brand. They also promote goodwill for your brand—a subtle but very important distinction.

InkHead Promotional Products has a wide selection of engraved corporate awards and employee recognition gifts from which to choose, so you can find the perfect way to reward your top employees, key vendors, and eminent business partners.

On the following pages, we have outlined some of the main materials used in the corporate awards that we offer as well as some of the benefits and drawbacks to each. Then, we’ll discuss some of the different things you’ll need to look out for when ordering corporate awards from InkHead.

Examples of Corporate Awards & Gifts

Crystal Corporate Awards

Perhaps we’re most familiar with recognition awards made from optical crystal, one of the finest crystals available. With no lead content, optical crystal is clarified to a 100% optically-clear state, resulting in a perfectly clear glass that shines brightly under any light source. It’s important to note that due to the hand-cut craftsmanship of optical crystal, each piece will slightly vary. Exact size, weight and shape cannot be guaranteed. All crystal products must be handled carefully to prevent surface scratches.

Aluminum Employee Awards & Metal Recognition Gifts

In addition to a wide array of recognition awards made from solely from optical crystal, we also carry several corporate appreciation gifts that are comprised primarily of crystal but have some metallic or aluminum accents, bringing a modern touch to the classic gift. Moreover, InkHead offers a number of gifts made with wood and metal, like the award pictured below.

Bamboo Employee Recognition Gifts & Wood Corporate Awards

Who says employee recognition awards have to be made from optical crystal or metal? InkHead has several corporate awards made from alternative materials, such as wood and bamboo. The award pictured below is made from two different types of bamboo, a completely renewable resource, making it an ideal award to hand out at an environmentally-minded company banquet. In addition, we offer a number of wood plaques, great for employee-of-the-month recognition ceremonies or for an outstanding sales year.

How to Buy Corporate Awards & Gifts

When buying corporate awards and employee recognition gifts from InkHead, there are several things to bear in mind, namely the following:

• Item Color: What color do you want your award to be?
• Eco-Friendliness: Are you tying this recognition gift to an eco-conscious program at your office?
• Quantity: How many awards do you need?
• Imprint Method: How will the awards be decorated?
• Production Time: How soon do you need the awards?
• Shape: In what shape do you want your awards?

Item Color

Because the majority of our corporate awards are made from crystal, most of them are Clear. That said, we do offer a handful of corporate awards in other colors, most notably Silver and Brown. If you’re looking for a corporate award of a certain color, be sure to use the Item Colors product filter to review only those items of a specific color.

Eco-Friendliness

In the event that you’re planning a recognition event as part as a larger eco-friendly awareness campaign, we do have some Eco-Friendly Corporate Awards for sale. You can also filter your search to view only the eco-friendly corporate awards we sell by using the Eco-Friendly filter. Furthermore, eco-friendly products are designated by a green leaf icon when viewing the product gallery.

Quantity

Awards are one of the few promotional items that you can order one at a time. That said, while most of our corporate awards require an order of 1, a few require an order of 3 or 5 items, so make sure to double-check the item description when ordering to see how many you’ll need to order.

Imprint Method

As already mentioned, most of the corporate awards from InkHead are imprinted via laser etching. A few of our corporate awards are imprinted via other means, so be sure to consult the item description to determine how your item will be decorated.

Production Time

Since orders for corporate awards are generally only a few pieces each, most corporate awards in the InkHead catalog can be produced and delivered in about 2.5 weeks under normal conditions. If you have a specific timeframe in mind, make sure to use the Production Time filter to view only those corporate awards that can be produced within that selected timeframe.

The key to ensuring a quick turnaround for your order is having your artwork in vector format and a valid credit card. Remember, we do not begin send your order to manufacturing until we have your final art approval, so be sure to approve your virtual proof once you’ve received it.

We also have several FREE rush production corporate awards, so if you need your order in less time, we can generally accomodate your needs. If you want to view only those items with free rush production while you’re browsing the website, you can use the Free Rush Production filter.

Shape

Another consideration to make when buying employee recognition gifts is what shape you wish to use for the award. InkHead has corporate awards in a number of different shapes available:

• Obelisk: Perfect for any monumental achievement.
• Star: Ideal for those salespeople who have reached new heights.
• Globe: Great for international-facing employees.
• Block: Superb for showing appreciation to rock-solid performers.

These are just a few of the options available to you. We encourage you to explore our entire selection of corporate awards and employee recognition gifts to find just the right one for next recognition ceremony.

Ready to order some corporate awards? Have a question about this product? Please contact us. We can take your order over the phone or answer any questions you may have.

Shop Corporate Gifts

Contents

• Why Buy Corporate Gifts?
• Corporate Gift Ideas
• How to Buy Corporate Gifts

Why Buy Corporate Gifts?

St. Francis of Assisi once said, “For it is in giving that we receive,” and that adage is no truer than when it comes to corporate gifts. After all, corporate gifts are a great way to show your gratitude to both your employees and coworkers as well as your clients and customers.

A thoughtful executive gift to your employees will show them that they are valued and hopefully encourage them to continue their hard work for you. An unusual corporate gift will also go a long way in building enduring relationships with your preferred vendors. Give those prodigal customers a unique corporate gift to remind them how great your product or services are. Above all, a well-chosen corporate gift will promote goodwill for your company or organization among both your staff and your customer base. So don’t seek out a cheap corporate gift. Spend a little money and give those closest to you something they’ll love.

Corporate Gift Ideas

InkHead has corporate gifts to fit any budget, but here are some of our most popular corporate gift categories:

Coffee Gift Sets

What office isn’t complete without coffee? Over half of all American adults admit to drinking coffee daily and roughly an additional 25% drink it occasionally (source: http://www.coffeeresearch.org/market/usa.htm). That’s a great chance for your company or organization to register with your customers every day. Not just for holiday gift-giving, a coffee gift set from InkHead is so useful that it makes a great corporate gift any time of the year.

Desk Accessory Sets

Most people keep at least a few items on their desktops, such as pens, photographs of loved ones, a clock, or a calculator. One of our desk accessory sets will help your employees or your customers organize their workspace while generating further brand exposure for your company. Because such items are useful and unique from other corporate gifts, they will generate more impressions of higher quality.

Executive & Office Gifts

Want to get something with class? Think about getting one of our leather-made executive gifts. Items made of leather or stainless steel have a higher perceived value and thus often resonate more deeply with customers than gifts made from other items. Not only that, but such items generally last longer, thereby giving your item more opportunity to make an impression with your clients.

Fun Gifts

As mentioned earlier, unusual corporate gifts are more memorable than the standard fare, so don’t limit yourself to the tried-and-true corporate gifts you’ve given in the past. A desktop game, while being a unique corporate gift, will also provide your customers or employees a brief distraction from their workday, allowing them to decompress and engage other parts of their brains. Unique gifts can create a more powerful statement to their recipient than a promotional pen or custom shirt.

How to Buy Corporate Gifts

When buying corporate gifts, the most important thing to keep in mind is your intended recipient. If you are buying gifts for a company whose employees spend most of their time on their feet or away from their desk, a desktop organizer may not be the best thing to get. Buy something they’ll use, not something they’ll file away in a drawer and forget. If you some of your clients are animal-rights activists, you should avoid leather or leather-type products, as such a gift may have the opposite effect than what you intended.

Next, think about your cost. If you have a shoestring marketing budget, save executive gifts for only top-level decision-makers and get something a little less fancy for the rest of the staff, such as a promotional food baskets or popcorn bucket. After all, who doesn’t love popcorn?

You should also think about trying to stand out among your peers. If you are in a competitive industry, then chances are that other companies in your space may also be trying to woo the same clients via corporate gifts. That means you should choose a corporate gift that will set your company apart from the rest.

Finally, in a category as broad as corporate gifts, imprint method varies by product, so consult the item description or one of our promotions specialists for further information on how whatever corporate gift you choose will be customized.

Ready to order? Have a question about these products? Please contact us. We can take your order over the phone or answer any questions you may have.