15 Reasons to Reward Employees and Customers

Lapel pins are a great way to reward people.  They may be little, but receiving lapel pins feels like a lot of recognition.  When you recognize and reward employees and customers, you promote a positive, productive, and innovative business climate.  It’s a proven fact that motivated employees and happy customers are critical to a company’s bottom line. By recognizing their dedication, commitment and initiative, you boost their morale, increase productivity, build enthusiasm and create powerful profits.  Here are 15 great ways to use lapel pins and other promotional products to reward your employees and your best customers:

You can reward:

1.  Employees ‘caught’ giving outstanding customer service to your customers

2.  Employees who come up with the best cost-saving ideas

3.  Salespeople who meet or exceed their sales goals

4.  Employees (or even customers!) who come up with the best name for a new product or service

5.  Employees who achieve a year (or 5 or 10 or more) of service with your company

6.  Salespeople who make the most cold calls in a day

7.  Managers who inspire their teams to achieve new heights in their respective departments

8.  Customers who give the most or the best referrals

9.  Customers who give good suggestions

10. Employees who refer or recruit new employees to your company

11. Employees who contribute to workplace safety

12. Employees who complete additional training to enhance their knowledge of your industry or product line

13. Employee of the Month or Employee of the Year

14. Employees who receive praise from customers

15. Customers who buy from your frequently or spend lots of money on your products or services

If you need to thank someone for excellence in one of the categories above, then contact us for creative ideas on products and pins that will be the perfect reward or motivational tool for your organization!

The CSI Lapel Pin

When it comes to television and film, it’s all about the details.  The same can be said when it comes to solving a crime.  If you’re a fan of CSI: New York, you’ve probably noticed a small pin all the regulars began wearing on their lapels at the start of the sixth season.

According to producer (and former NYPD detective) Bill Clark, the pin is a small circle with the letters DB which stand for “Detective Bureau”. The small pins are given out by the Chief of Detectives.  There are lapel pins for each department, OCCB (Organized Crime Control Bureau), Bomb Squad, DEA (Druge Enforcement Agency) etc. 

It’s just one more way that lapel pins show up in our daily lives and popular culture!

Pinning Celebs on the Red Carpet

Did you catch the Golden Globes last week?  Do you just love watching those celebs parade down the red carpet in their designer gowns and tuxes?  Did you know that lapel pins have their place on the red carpet?  There are actually people who work the red carpet ‘pinning’ celebrities in an effort to bring attention to their worthy causes.

We found an account from one of those “pin people” that give an inside look at what happens behind the scenes on the red carpet.  Joyce Aschenbrenner of the Jimmy V Foundation has worked at four ESPY Award Ceremonies (which commemorate the past year’s best sports stories by recognizing major achievements, reliving unforgettable moments and saluting the leading performers and performances).  Her interaction with sports celebrities and Hollywood stars on the Red Carpet at the Kodak Theater is both funny and inspiring.

You can read her full account here.  Meanwhile, here are some of our favorite parts:

“For one day every year, I have the amazing opportunity to step back into the razzle and dazzle of sports and be part of the annual ESPYs.

The press tent is run by ESPN PR staffers — it’s a real zoo with a mixture of sports and entertainment media. The show itself and everything connected to it is produced by Hollywood professionals and huge army of ESPN staffers coordinating every aspect of this tremendous operation — it’s an amazing behind the scenes experience.

My job, be it ever so humble, is to “pin” the celebrities on the red carpet. Don’t laugh.

The Hollywood types hate that we do it — they say we “hold up” their red carpet experience (not true). So, every year, a few brave ESPN colleagues and I steel ourselves against the abuse of the Hollywood handlers, self-important headset wearing “supervisors” (not sure what, exactly they supervise) and legion of Gestapo-like security guards to man (er. . ., WOman) the ESPY red carpet and pin the celebrities.

Exit the Real World.

The basic concept (I have perfected this technique over the past four years) — have a pin in the ready-position, stakeout the opportunity and blurt out as quickly as you can before a handler whisks the celebrity away — “The V Foundation for Cancer Research is the official charity of the ESPY Awards will you wear our pin tonight?”. . .get that pin onto the lapel and clear out of the way.

It’s about 120 degrees on the red carpet thanks to the California afternoon sun and a flaming red carpet that reflects not only the sun, but the megawatts of television lights all pointed directly at that carpet.. My first year I snidely laughed at Joan Rivers who had an assistant stand there and point a little fan directly on her every moment she was off camera.

Joan Rivers is a very wise woman.

You drip like a wet mop for three hours.

On one side the carpet is lined deep with bleachers jammed with screaming fans, an announcer constantly working this group into a crazed frenzy. On the opposite side of the red carpet is The Media — jammed little roped-off areas for the big entertainment shows and then six-deep photographers behind security ropes — you think football sideline photographers can be a pain? Yowsa.

The Hollywood paparazzi guys are crazy! They scream and yell at the celebrities to look this way and that way; they boo and hiss if a celeb doesn’t stop and pose. Add into that mix smaller TV shows, radio people, etc. behind the ropes thrusting microphones and barking at the celebs (”Brandy! Over Here!”). . .(”Vince! Inside Edition!”).

My cohorts and I — this year Rachel Mack from ESPN and Amy Lupo and Katie Moses from the X-Games — slip in and out of the craziness trying to be as invisible as possible. If you don’t directly pin the person, the pin never makes it to the lapel.

If you’ve seen the women’s ESPY attire on TV you know why we rarely pin women (but that’s another story. . .). The pins are important to The Foundation — it’s an unparalled opportunity for visibility. The added bonus, the pins show up in pictures used throughout the year (e.g. Nick Lachey during the divorce — the same picture of Nick and Jessica from the ESPYs was reprinted repeatedly in magazines and there was my little gold “V” on Nick’s lapel ). Sorry about the divorce, but LOVE the picture. . .

That’s the why and how of red carpet “pinning.”

Katie and Amy posted themselves inside the security tent (the celebrities have to go through airport- like screening before they enter the red carpet) — Rachel caught the people that they missed at the beginning of the carpet and I caught the rest further down. It still thrills me to watch an ESPY show and see our little V pins on the lapels of sports stars and celebrities.

The willingness of so many famous, uber-famous (and not-so-famous) people to wear our pin still humbles me. Many stop and give a quick “I knew Jimmy V” or “I still remember Jimmy V running around the court looking for somebody to hug” or “I watched him give that ESPY speech when I was a kid” and that’s heartwarming to know so many people still have fond memories of Jim.

Some, like Dr. J, come over to be “pinned” without asking — his annual pinning “bear hug” is something I cherish. I’ve pinned LeBron James the year he came alone as a high school honoree and this year when he had two Hummer limos full of his “guys” (biggest entourage to date).

Sometimes you just stand back in awe — Janet Jackson is absolutely stunning. Or shock — Ben Stiller is a very small man; Lara Flynn Boyle was unimaginably beyond skinny. Serena Williams is as friendly as your girlfriend from high school. The guys from Entourage were cute and crazy and funny, just as they appear to be on TV.

Mostly, it moves so quickly, there’s no time to be star-struck. The handlers frantically rushed Patrick Dempsey through, but he graciously paused quickly enough to get a pin through his lapel. A huge scream went up from the crowd. I didn’t even realize that he was kissing me on the cheek when I pinned him, but the women in the bleachers went wild at the gesture. Oh. . .My. . .God. . . McDreamy kissed me.

Ben Rothlisberger was being “held up” for Entertainment Tonight so we stood there making small talk; I mentioned that my entire family is rabid Steeler fans and that my niece Megan would die if she knew I was “just hanging” with Big Ben. He glanced at my cell phone and smiled. He spent the next several minutes talking long-distance to Megan. “OK Megan, nice talking to you but I’ve gotta go - Mary Hart is ready for me. . .”

Say what you want about Terrell Owens, but every year he stops for the pin and wears it throughout the night so he’s OK in my book. Whether it’s Dwayne Wade or Peyton Manning onstage, or the Little League champs who get a quick camera shot from their seats, the fact that they’ll wear our little V pin continues to give me an enormous sense of pride….

Thanks to Joyce Aschenbrenner for giving us an inside scoop on the role of lapel pins and lapel pinners on the red carpet.  We must confess that we’re a little bit jealous of the kiss from McDreamy!  We have to agree that we’d sweat like a wet mop on the red carpet for three hours and brave those nasty Hollywood handlers if we could have a dreamy kiss from Patrick Dempsey too!

How to Make a Lapel Pin

Ever wonder how custom lapel pins are made?  You’ll be surprised at all of the work (much of it done by hand!) that goes into making these miniature pieces of wearable art….

20 Reasons for Lapel Pins

I love lapel pins because they an unobtrusive and tasteful way to make a statement about your beliefs, affiliations, and values.

These hard-working little metal billboards are one of the most low-cost, yet effective ways to deliver a message. They’re also excellent conversation starters, instant builders of camaraderie, and strong visual messages.

Looking for a reason to wear a lapel pin? I’ve got plenty for you.

You can wear a lapel pin to:

20. Dress Up or Decorate Your Lapel
19. Brag About Receiving Special Employee Recognition or a Prestigious Award
18. Identify Your Membership in a Fraternity or a Sorority
17. Demonstrate Your Affiliation with a Professional Organization
16. Support a Charity or a Cause
15. Cheer for a Sports Team
14. Show Your Holiday Spirit
13. Commemorate an Anniversary
12. Celebrate Your First Parachute Jump, Kayaking Adventure, or Yoga Retreat
11. Show That You’ve Joined a Club
10. Break the Ice at a Networking Event
9. Promote Your Business
8. Create Awareness About Breast Cancer, AIDS, Autism, etc.
7. Prove That You’ve Been to a Museum, the Hard Rock Café, Disneyworld, etc.
6. Encourage Pin Collectors and Traders to Trade with You
5. Promote a Sale, a Special Promotion, or an Upcoming Event
4. Identify Yourself as a Conference or Trade Show Attendee
3. Show Your Loyalty to a Branch of the Military or a Civic Organization
2 Advertise Your Interests, Hobbies, and Beliefs
1. Show Your Patriotism

So what are you waiting for? Give me a call and we’ll help you design your own personal lapel pin billboard today!

The Bumble Bee Lapel Pin

Did you know that Mary Kay Ash, creator of Mary Kay Cosmetics, always wore a bumble bee lapel pin? Her signature lapel pin was a symbol for her achievements and the accomplishments of all of the women who made up her sales force.

Mary Kay used to tell the story of how scientists had proven that based on their anatomical construction, there are many reasons why bumbles should not be able to fly. Their bodies, for example, are too large in proportion to their wings. Yet, fly they do!

Mary Kay wanted to create a company that could offer women unlimited opportunities for personal and financial success. Many naysayers thought her ideas were too idealistic and that they would never work.

In 1963, at the age of 45, and with only $5,000 in savings, she opened her dream cosmetics business with her son Richard Rogers.  She had used furniture, homemade drapes and a single metal shelf from Sears to furnish her small Dallas storefront.

Her initial team of salespeople, or beauty consultants, as she called them, made nearly $200,000 in profits in their first year of operation. Today there are more than 1.7 million Mary Kay salespeople around the world, generating billions of dollars in sales.

Cue the bumblebee lapel pin. Mary Kay said, The bumble bee is “just like our women, who didn’t know they could fly to the top, but they did.” In 1970, at an annual seminar, Mary Kay started awarding the diamond bumblebee pin  to her top-performing sales consultants, telling the can-do story of the humble bumble bee. Her lapel pin message: If the bumble bee can fly, you can too!

“Aerodynamically, the bumble bee shouldn’t be able to fly, but the bumble bee doesn’t know it so it goes on flying anyway.” - Mary Kay Ash