I recently received an email asking if customers ever gave my cleaning staff gifts. The answer is YES they did
In fact many customers do that, at least in my experience anyway. I would say it’s close to 50/50 if I had to guess.
I would think that the main factor driving their generosity is staff performance. So if the customer is happy they are more likely to take care of those that clean their facility. Though I have had instances where gifts were given then we were terminated soon thereafter, so you never know.
Gift cards of one kind or another are the most popular choice, and generally one is given to each employee as opposed to one that is shared. Most of them fall into the $25 range, though I’ve seen them as high as $100.
Sometimes actual gifts are left for the cleaning crew. At one time we cleaned a wine distributor, it was a long time account, and they gave our staff multiple bottles of wine each year. Another customer used to give out tickets to sporting events.
A few times the customer even went around handing out cash, so you never know what you are going to get. Sometimes if I was cleaning a customer because we didn’t have an employee yet, they even gave me a gift!
Anyway… I always liked the idea of my crew getting a little something from the customer. It made them a little more appreciative of the client, and I think that translated into better performance on their part as well.
And if you are wondering, I always gave out gifts to those that worked for me each holiday season. It was normally gift cards, but at times we gave out bonus checks, cash and restaurant gift cards just to name a few. You have to take care of those that take care of you.
I just finished giving all my clients gifts that ranged from boxes of fudge from Cape May, to gift cards to nice restaurants but only to my managers not office staff because it is very expensive when you have the number of accounts I have. As for my employees, one of my restaurants has a banquet room so I am hosting an ‘After Holiday Party’ since it seems impossible to get everyone together prior and we do have alot of contracts that are operating through the holidays! I will pass out recognition things at the dinner.
Hi Angela! That’s great. It really shows how much you appreciate everyone. On a side note, I used to buy fudge for my family when going to Cape May. I used to go a few times a year, normally off season.