Employee Appreciation Day is celebrated on the first Friday of March each year and is the perfect opportunity to show appreciation for your team in style.
If you’re looking for fun appreciation ideas, Employee Appreciation Day eCards elevate the traditional thank-you card. Think of them as digital greeting cards employers send to express gratitude on this special day.
Boosting your team’s morale has never been easier (or more fun)! Let’s explore how to celebrate your team members with creative eCards and other Employee Appreciation Day ideas that transform your usual thank-you messages into something truly memorable.
Employee Appreciation Day eCard FAQ
Why should my organization send Employee Appreciation Day eCards?
Millions of people use eCards instead of traditional greeting cards for friends and colleagues. The global greeting cards market size is projected to reach $20.66 billion by 2030, and now, organizations are joining the trend. Employee appreciation eCards are a simple yet memorable way to acknowledge individuals’ efforts in the workplace.
Celebrating your employees in general is good for these reasons:
- Boosted Morale: Celebrating Employee Appreciation Day can make employees feel valued. Employees who feel their company has a strong culture of appreciation are 1.43 times more likely to be engaged (Blueboard). Plus, 80% of employees are motivated to work harder when they’re recognized by superiors.
- Improved Employee Retention: Recognition establishes a sense of loyalty among staff. Among employees who feel their company cares about their well-being, 55% of employees are more likely to stay with their employer for 10+ years (Guardian’s 11th Annual Workplace Benefits Study).
- Better Company Culture: Appreciation fosters a workplace where people feel respected, supported, and driven to do their best. As a result, happy employees are 12% more productive than unhappy ones (Lorman’s Employee Engagement Statistics).
- Improved Teamwork and Collaboration: Celebrating employees can reinforce a positive company culture that encourages a supportive work environment. Knowing this, around 72% of mid-sized businesses use team-based awards to foster collaboration (Vantage Circle’s Employee Recognition Statistics).
- Enhanced Customer Satisfaction: When employees feel appreciated, they’re more likely to engage positively with customers, leading to better customer service and company reputation. In fact, high employee engagement is tied to better business outcomes and results in a potential 23% increase in profitability (Gallup’s Employee Engagement Report).
By giving recipients a tangible reminder of appreciation, your employees will have a fun keepsake in their inbox to look back on when they need inspiration.
What do you include in your employee appreciation card messages?
When crafting employee appreciation card messages, personalize the content to reflect the individual’s unique contributions and characteristics. Express genuine gratitude and acknowledge the employee’s specific achievements or qualities that have positively impacted the team or company.
Craft a strong employee appreciation message with these tips:
- Be Authentic. Make sure your message is sincere. Authenticity resonates, making appreciation feel more meaningful.
- Point Out Specific Achievements. Mention specific accomplishments or ways in which the employee has added value to the team or company. This not only personalizes the message but also shows that you pay attention to their contributions.
- Express Gratitude. Clearly state your gratitude, explaining how their hard work and dedication make a difference.
- Keep It Positive. Focus on the positive aspects of the employee’s performance and attitude. A positive tone lifts spirits and boosts morale.
- Include Future Encouragements. Along with thanking employees, encourage continued excellence and growth.
Be sure to end on a forward-looking statement that reinforces their value to your organization. You can even include fun employee gifts like a virtual gift certificate.
Can I schedule my Employee Appreciation Day eCards?
eCardWidget’s eCard platform allows you to schedule your digital greeting cards in advance. Create your designs, write sentiments to individual contributors, and then schedule your cards to send on Employee Appreciation Day!
What delivery methods can I use for Employee Appreciation Day eCards?
This all depends on the eCard website you use. At eCardWidget, we provide plenty of delivery options, including email and text messages. You can print them out for hand delivery or even post them on social media for a public approach!
When else can I use employee appreciation eCards?
Employee Appreciation Day is a natural time to send thoughtful eCards, but there are plenty of other opportunities to show gratitude and enhance company culture. Here are the best times to send employee appreciation eCards:
- Work anniversaries
- Holidays, birthdays, and other special occasions
- Daily achievements like project completions
- Professional development milestones like earning a certification
- Retirements
- Express condolences when an employee experiences a personal loss
For the best results, incorporate eCards into your organization’s culture by making them a part of daily workflows. Whether you want to recognize remote, in-person, or hybrid team members, you can use eCards to connect with employees for any occasion wherever they are.
Examples of Employee Appreciation Day eCards
If you need inspiration for your Employee Appreciation Day eCard designs, we’ve got plenty of real-world examples pulled directly from our clients. As you explore these greeting cards, notice how each organization adds its own flare and infuses its brand.
Modivcare
With employees spread across multiple locations, Modivcare needs a unified platform for employee recognition to reach even remote team members. That’s why they turned to eCardWidget to power their remote employee recognition efforts.
With eCardWidget, they created eCards that leadership could send employees for:
- Everyday accomplishments tied to company values like compassion and respect
- Special occasions like birthdays, anniversaries, and graduations
They even enabled employees to send personalized eCards to one another for going above and beyond, fostering a culture of peer-to-peer recognition.
Takeaway: When designing your Employee Appreciation Day eCards, consider how you can emulate Modivcare's impeccable branding and emphasize company values.
Double the Donation
Double the Donation offers matching gift software. With the company’s place in the nonprofit sector, its team knows the value of expressing appreciation to donors and applies the same principles to its employees.
With eCardWidget, Double the Donation created employee appreciation eCards that highlight specific company values, such as staying open to new ideas and treating clients with respect.
When someone exemplifies one of these values, employees can select the relevant eCard design, and add a custom note of appreciation. These eCards are automatically sent to company leadership, and the best ones are shared on a virtual “Bravo Board” during the team’s monthly All Hands meeting.
Takeaway: When creating your Employee Appreciation Day eCards, consider how to maintain visual consistency and bring the eCards to life with animations. You may even also make the cards available to all employees, so they can reach out to one another on this special day!
Fexco
Fexco provides various financial services, like payment solutions and secure global bank-to-bank transfers. The company brings fresh thinking to its clients and employees alike, which is why it joined the trend of digital greeting cards!
Company leadership and employees can choose from four eCard designs to highlight exceptional professionalism, teamwork, progression, and reliability. The fun yet professional graphics against bold backgrounds make for engaging cards. Each design includes the company’s logo and a line that says, “Boom! You’ve been noticed.”
Takeaway: Consider limiting the text on your eCards' designs, making your greeting cards more versatile. That way, you can reuse them every day instead of just on Employee Appreciation Day. Don't be afraid to throw some color in your design either!
Harbor Vet
Similar to The Ottawa Hospital, Harbor Vet encouraged beneficiaries to show appreciation for the veterinary professionals in their lives by sending WAVEs (AKA eCards).
The campaign page explains how vets often don’t always realize the impact they have on their communities. That’s why Harbor Vet launched the campaign: to show gratitude and remind veterinarians of why they got into the field. They even donate to organizations that support mental health in the veterinary industry for every eCard sent.
Notice how the eCards pair photos of real animals with fun graphics! This brings the designs to life and emphasizes the purpose of the organization.
Takeaway: Consider featuring your own images and graphics on your Employee Appreciation Day eCards. Easily upload your own photos and pair them with fun graphics and animations to make your design one-of-a-kind.
The Ottawa Hospital
Located in Canada, The Ottawa Hospital wanted to enable patients to express gratitude to staff members. Healthcare professionals experience high levels of burnout, stress, depression, and anxiety, and several studies indicate that gratitude can lower the brain's stress responses, enhance resilience, and even enhance people's capacity for empathy and social bonding.
Using eCardWidget, The Ottawa Hospital created 12 eCards to enhance gratitude and community spirit at the hospital.
You’ll notice these eCards feature stock photos and keep designs simple. If you’re not artistically inclined or lack access to a graphic designer, that’s okay! eCardWidget offers dozens of templates and stock photos, so you can get your Employee Appreciation Day eCards ready to go in no time.
Takeaway: If you work at a hospital or nonprofit, consider enabling beneficiaries to send eCards with custom notes on Employee Appreciation Day. This adds a level of personalization, making your greeting cards much more meaningful.
Girl Scouts of Maine
Any organization can show appreciation for employees, including nonprofits! The Girl Scouts of Maine created a series of eCards empowering Girl Scouts to show appreciation to their troops' volunteers.
Scouts were encouraged to fill out a card with a short volunteer appreciation note and hand it directly to their favorite volunteers. The page gives a great example of how volunteers impact their troops and why some Scouts may want to express their gratitude: “Maybe the troop cookie parent was super helpful or one of the troop co-leaders made your Girl Scout feel confident enough to try something new.”
These fun designs feature cartoon graphics, short appreciation messages, and recognizable symbols like the Girl Scout hand sign.
Takeaway: If you work at a nonprofit and rely heavily on volunteers, consider showing them appreciation on Employee Appreciation Day. After all, you couldn't pursue your mission without them!
How eCardWidget Can Power Your Employee Appreciation Day eCards
To create and send Employee Appreciation Day eCards, you need a dedicated eCard platform. We’ve got you covered with our user-friendly recognition platform that puts the power in your hands. With eCardWidget, you can infuse recognition into your workplace culture with these powerful features:
- Drag-and-drop eCard designer. Kickstart your design with a template or or create a design from scratch. You'll have complete control over your eCard's colors and fonts and can bring your designs to life with animations.
- Easy sending and scheduling. Upload the eCards to your employee portal or intranet for easy sending. Then, users can schedule their eCards to be sent later, so they can rest assured their Employee Appreciation Day card messages will be delivered on time.
- Sender and recipient tracking. Track the email addresses of your senders and recipients to see what messages are sent using your cards.
If you want to learn more about eCardWidget, here's a virtual tour of our platform:
We’ve helped more than 8,000 organizations create eCards for various occasions, and we can’t wait to help you elevate your employee appreciation with Employee Appreciation Day, too!
Other Excellent Employee Appreciation Day Ideas
Beyond employee eCards, there are plenty of meaningful Employee Appreciation Day ideas to explore. From team activities to thoughtful gestures, these approaches can help you show genuine gratitude and make the day memorable for your staff.
An Extra Day Off
Studies show that employees are healthier, sleep better, and are more productive when they take breaks from work. Plus, paid time off (PTO) is the second most valued employee compensation benefit in the United States. Give your team Employee Appreciation Day off or an extra day of PTO to use whenever they’d like.
A Catered Lunch
Work culture events like a fun lunch can help employees relax, get to know one another, and feel more engaged at work. Cater lunch, bring food trucks to your organization’s parking lot, or go out to lunch. If you go out, consider breaking up into smaller teams so different groups of employees can get lunch together.
Free Development Opportunities
According to a study by Lorman, 74% of employees feel they aren’t reaching their full potential due to a lack of development opportunities. Considering that 70% of employees consider leaving a job to secure these opportunities, this Employee Appreciation Day idea can actually boost retention!
Offer employees a learning and development budget or bonuses specifically for taking online certification classes, attending conferences, or subscribing to research publications. To power your educational opportunities, you might invest in a learning management system with pre-built courses and course-building tools.
Award Ceremony
Host a formal Employee Appreciation Day event to reward employees for their achievements. This ceremony recognizes individual and team achievements, reinforcing how much your company values its employees. Hand out plaques, trophies, or certificates and provide perks like a designated parking space or a bonus to winners.
Hand out recognition awards like:
- Employee of the Month
- Team Player Award
- Problem-Solving Pro
- Unsung Hero
Choose the award titles that showcase humor and add a personal touch. Then, have employees vote on one another. This acts as a form of peer-to-peer recognition, so winners aren’t just hand-picked by leadership.
Team Happy Hour
For this Employee Appreciation Day idea, host an in-office happy hour or take your team out for drinks at the end of the workday. Encourage a healthy work-life balance by not cutting into their evening hours too much. Also, be sensitive to anyone who doesn’t drink by offering alternatives like mocktails and soft drinks.
Goodie Bags
Can’t decide on just one Employee Appreciation Day gift? Try several small ones! Create a goodie bag with snacks, stress balls, hand lotions, or a fun mug.
Tailor your goodie bags to reflect employees’ interests. For example, include items catered to specific hobbies or family situations (like including family passes to a local event). Alternatively, choose a theme. For instance, a wellness-themed goodie bag might include healthy snacks and a fitness tracker.
Coffee and Donuts
Swing by a local bakery to pick up donuts. You can either pick up gourmet coffee or create a fun coffee bar with toppings for people to make their own creations. Including options like espresso, cappuccino, and regular coffee, along with an assortment of donuts—glazed, chocolate, and jelly-filled—ensures everyone has something they enjoy.
You might even take employees’ orders in advance. For remote employees, consider sending digital gift cards to popular coffee chains or local coffee shops near their locations instead.
Social Media Posts
If you need to show appreciation on a budget, try posting on your organization’s social media accounts about standout employees on Employee Appreciation Day. With their permission, include a picture of the employee or team and share specific accomplishments. This gives them something to share with their own networks.
Next Steps
Why settle for generic thank-yous on Employee Appreciation Day? Stand out and show genuine gratitude with eCards that reflect your company’s unique spirit. Whether you want eCards to celebrate Employee Appreciation Day or everyday accomplishments, eCardWidget is the solution for you. Our tools let you choose how to represent your brand and boost employee morale.
As you explore eCard platforms and refine your team member recognition approach, check out these additional resources:
- Best Employee Recognition Software To Boost Retention: Explore leading employee recognition solutions that will make your workplace more positive!
- How to Celebrate Administrative Professionals with eCards: Administrative Professionals Day is also celebrated in April, so here’s specific eCard advice for thanking your secretaries and admins!
- Morale-Boosting Employee Recognition Ideas: Looking for other ways to boost team morale year-round? Explore these recognition program ideas for any organization.
