5 strategies for improving remote team collaboration

Establish workplace norms

Every remote team has its own way of achieving its goals. Thus, you need to work with your team to define and establish communication and collaboration norms before they start working. 

For instance, what are their core working hours? A remote team can’t be online from 9 AM to 6 PM local time every day, particularly if you have international members. You should work with your team to define when they’ll be online and available for a meeting.

In addition, you may have specific language such as acronyms known only by your team. So, make sure to clearly define what these acronyms are and document them for easy reference. 

Also, you need to consider how your team will communicate and on which channels. Clarifying which tools remote teams will use and when it’s appropriate to use these channels is necessary to ensure productivity and improved collaboration. Lastly, you should set rules for each channel such as using cameras or muting themselves if not speaking on a video call.

Provide the right tools

Speaking of tools, your remote team can’t collaborate effectively without the proper tools. So, make sure to equip your team with the right tech stack for remote work. This should include tools for:

• Video conferencing;
• Project management;
• Chat;
• Brainstorming;
• Real-time collaboration; and so on. 

Another great idea would be to incorporate AI into the workflow. Such tools as an AI Meeting Assistant, AI Project Planner, AI Task Tracker, etc. However, providing your remote teams with the right tools is not enough. In addition, you should teach and train them how to effectively use these tools. So, establish guidelines for your team on how to properly use these tools.

Create time for bonding

Your employees may not be near each other as in an in-person workplace, yet their closeness can impact how well they communicate and collaborate together. Thus, you want to use virtual team-building activities to help your remote employees feel more connected and less isolated. It can boost their engagement, participation, and overall productivity too. 

You can try common social opportunities such as Coffee Hours or online escape rooms or try some unusual indoor team-building activities such as scavenger hunts or comedy shows. There are hundreds of ideas on the internet, or you can ask your teams for their suggestions and ideas. 

Hosting fun activities every now and then can help your team better connect, build team bonding and keep communication strong. As teams get closer, collaborations become more natural and easier.

Implement asynchronous communications

In the traditional workplace, synchronous communication is the standard by which employees need to respond to messages as soon as they received them. Nonetheless, in a remote workplace, asynchronous communication is a more suitable option, allowing employees to reply promptly when it’s productive or convenient for them to do so. 

With this communication model, you give your remote team space to work. This way, they can focus and avoid breaking their productivity or the flow of work by replaying a distracting message. For managers, this can help them avoid micromanaging. 

That said, you don’t want to wait days for employees to reply. Hence, you want to implement clear guidelines on an expected response time for all kinds of communication. For instance, you can set a 5-hour response window for messages or revision requests. This ensures that your team can respond at their most convenient time without slowing down others or delaying a project.

Optimize virtual meetings

Meetings are a necessary evil for team brainstorming. Sadly, they often become a waste of time if not managed properly. Henceforth, make sure to optimize your meetings for more effective collaboration. 

For one, make sure that any recurring meetings are as short as possible, preferably 15-30 minutes long. This way, your team has more time to do actual work. Further, it’s important to create an agenda before the meeting. Invite only the necessary people to the meeting and encourage notes taking. Make sure to assign the next steps before the meeting ends as well. 

Lastly, try to minimize the scheduling of video meetings as possible. Though virtual meetings have their place and time, you shouldn’t make them the norm. This is because they’re a big productivity killer. Online meeting fatigue is real. If possible, you can convey things you need to know using messaging apps or project management tools.

Conclusion

Remote work has become an expectation in today’s modern workplace. That said, even the most seasoned leaders still find it difficult to manage their remote teams. Due to the lack of face-to-face meetings, digital communications may lead to gaps in understanding and result in poor collaboration. But by implementing the above-mentioned tips, you can overcome hurdles to collaboration productivity.

25 creative customer appreciation ideas to express gratitude

While there’s nothing wrong with traditional customer appreciation ideas, we believe that going the extra mile and doing something unique will gain you bonus points with your customers. Of course, you don’t have to buy them cars but a set of winter tyres is not a bad idea as you can see below.

The good thing about these customer appreciation ideas is that you’re not supposed to copy-paste them. Instead, use them for inspiration and come up with ideas that will suit your business model and brand.

Scented ‘thank you’ cards

One thing we have experimented with engaging customer loyalty. We send a handwritten thank you card to each customer that completes 3 transactions.

We also spray them with a scent that smells like freshly cut grass. This engages the strongest sense we have: the sense of smell.

Right now, we have approx 200,500 customers, and we are measuring the impact on these efforts, however, it’s still too early to tell. If we see it has a lasting impact we are going to figure out a way to scale it, possibly with one of the services that send out handwritten cards.

Bryan Clayton, CEO of GreenPal

Give them a shout out on social media

Quoted retweets and sharing the experiences of your consumers through social media channels can be the perfect way to show consumers you are taking the time to read what they are saying, and really appreciating their input. 

It allows consumers to feel a real part of your community and make them invested in your business because you are taking the time to interact and comment and their personal experiences and adventures with you, your product, or your service.

Adam Korbl, Founder & CEO of iFax

Cross-appreciation for maximum effectiveness

Everybody sends holiday gift baskets and game tickets, but we take it to another level.  We appreciate our customers by doing something that we call cross-appreciation. 

For example, one of our clients is a well-known tire shop in Toronto. During the wintertime, instead of sending a holiday gift basket, we offer our top clients free winter tires. The tire shop appreciates us giving them business and offers us a huge discount while the other clients appreciate our concern for the safety of them and their family. 

But it doesn’t just stop at winter tires, we do the same thing every 1 – 2 months. Sometimes offering clients free exotic car rentals, to weekend resort stays. Using our own client’s services to appreciate other clients has benefited us greatly.

Safeer Qureshi, CEO of SPG Media

Let them eat cookies!

Tamara Olson and Sinan Imre, Co-Founders of Studio Simpatico

Treat customers as winners

In 2019, for each client who worked with me 6 months or more, I create such a personalized gold-plated medal and sent it to their address.

Their surprise and gratitude are extraordinary. Those moments are the deep reason why I am in business.

Abdulaziz M Alhamdan, M.Sc. Positioning Expert at StoryBonding.com

Customer appreciation funnel

Clarafy UX works with high-value clients that we absolutely love, so we have built a funnel just for customer appreciation.

Once a client signs up with us we immediately send them a handwritten ‘thank you’ note with a small gift. We repeat the process every month the client works with us, and through the holiday season for 5 years after our clients complete their contracts.

This simple strategy has helped us retain and re-contract with almost every client we have ever worked with.

Clara Fairbanks, Lead Designer at Clarafy UX UI

Starbucks coffee to leave a lasting impression

For me, I often do not see agents in person. They book appointments on my website, give access to homes for photographs and everything is delivered digitally. With this, I felt like I was easily forgotten because I never got to make an impression so I started mailing handwritten thank you cards and have had an overwhelmingly positive response and in doing this it has allowed me to grow my business.

Ashley Askew, Owner of Shutter Club

When customer appreciation backfires

I have to be honest, customer appreciation almost backfired on me. 

In the initial days of my business, I tried giving a courtesy call to the parents who referred me to their friends and relatives, only to come across as needy and borderline pushy. They misconstrued my courtesy as a nudge to enrol their kid again, and needless to say, that never happened. 

But I get it that customer appreciation is an important part of any enterprise, and even after its initial debacle, I now do it more discreetly and strategically. I give exceptional service during the time of a student’s stay with me, thinking in my mind that outstanding work in itself is the deepest kind of appreciation and a gesture of gratitude to anyone. This is something taught in great detail in customer service training Melbourne programs. 

Shipra Batra, Founder of Shipra’s SAT and Creative Writing classes

Snail mail is better than email

We do this because people these days are bombarded with emails and sending a postcard gets it right in front of them and shows that we are going the extra mile to thank them. We have received a ton of positive feedback from customers that they were very surprised to receive something like this from a company.

Jeff Moriarty, Marketing Manager at Moriarty’s Gem Art

Personal handwritten thank you notes showed our customers that we cared enough and appreciated their business to take the time. Appreciation comes in all forms and where budgets can be tight for a business you need to be creative. We sent personal thank you notes from the most relevant staff member to thank our customers. Our customers said it was a novelty and a nice surprise to receive something in the post rather than a bulk sent thank you email.

Shayne Sherman, CEO of Techloris

Actions speak louder than words

Rebecca White, CEO of Prana Brush

Who’s up for some backyard makeover?

We like to offer our customers value as regularly as we’re able. Many times this is in the free content we produce, but we also have specials that offer discounts and other bonuses. These are all standard things, though.

Last year we hosted a contest for our customers to get a full backyard makeover with an entertainment area, fire pit, etc. We plan to do this again once it gets a little bit later in fall. It was very popular last year.

Dan Bailey, President of WikiLawn

Sending love for their birthday

My number one customer appreciation idea for a small business is to give your customers a surprise phone call on their birthday.

Imagine your customer’s surprise when they hear from you without you trying to sell them anything. Instead, you are simply calling to wish them a happy birthday!

Many of the people we help are ages 50-85 years old, lonely, and they may not even get a birthday call of card from anyone. Our phone call may be the only phone call they get that day from someone who cares about them.

Customers love knowing you REALLY care about them. A happy customer is also more likely to give you referrals and additional business in the future. These referrals often end up being our highest converting leads!

Randy VanderVaate, President and Owner of Funeral Funds

Yummy snacks make everything better

We create and send homemade Snack Packs to our customers and vendors, but not during the traditional holiday season. We share when the gesture is more impactful. The client may be experiencing an internal win with a new contract, a tough time with an unforeseen weather event, long hours, loss of a key leader, etc. 

The snack pack features brownies, fudge, candied pecans and jerky – a little something for everyone. Nothing is store-bought. We want our customers to know that we think about them outside of the workday and that they are appreciated.

Leanne E. King, CEO & President of SeeKing HR

There’s only one chance to leave a lasting first impression

When helping our clients create high-touch experiences for their customers, we always start with creating an exceptional onboarding. You only get one chance at a first impression, right?

As a simple example, in working with private health clubs, they’re often fighting an uphill battle as many consumers are sceptical and untrusting of gyms’ billing practices. To help overcome this, we like to create a personalized, caring experience in the first interaction.

When a prospect walks into the club, we get the staff to immediately engage the individual and find out their goals. If the person is interested in losing weight, for example, then they’ll offer a free low-calorie smoothie from the cafe. This simple act creates a bond with the prospect and sets the expectation that the club is here to listen and help them with their personal needs and goals.

Joe Kerns, Co-Founder of MAJiK Marketing

Here’s your money back!

I thank my loyal customers by returning money to them. When they internally refer colleagues and themselves are repeat customers, I give them a regular corporate/organizational discount. When they externally refer others to me, I extend that same discount to the new customers on their first order. 

This lets me show how much I value my regular customers. I return their loyalty with my gratitude and the best possible service, on an ongoing basis. It also gives their referrals a chance to benefit from the same reciprocally beneficial relationship. Win–win!

Adam Goulston, Owner of Tsujiru

Listen carefully before you speak

Not only does that offer more business for me, but it caters for my guests’ needs and shows them that their needs are cared about and those casual conversations are remembered. I think it always comes down to those small things that make a big impact and make them a customer for life.

Shaun Taylor, Owner of Moriti Safaris

Netflix and chill

As businesses, we need to show our appreciation to our customers. We need to show them that our brand really cares for them and that we value the loyalty and business that they give us. 

And as for my dating company, a way for us to show our appreciation to our customers is giving them year-long subscriptions to media service providers like Netflix, Hulu, or Amazon. And

they can even choose which subscription they want to avail of. This is a way for us to let our customers enjoy themselves by watching movies with their families and friends. Plus of course, they’d always tell their family and friends that our brand gave them the subscription so it also serves as a marketing campaign for our company.

Sonya Schwartz, Founder of Her Norm

Show your altruistic side of business

Zeshan Jeewanjee, CEO of One Day Event

A little party never hurt nobody

Our office, Parkside Lane, is a co-working space for some of the best event companies here in town. Every year we bring in roughly 50 event planners for a Pamper the Planner event at the office. Music from a DJ or band helps them relax as they are treated to a Mimosa & Bloody Mary Bar, a manicure, makeup, a masseuse and catered appetizers. Pictures and video

are taken for their social media during the event. Moreover, when they leave, a goodie bag with all our information and small gifts is handed out. It’s one of our favourite events.

Dave Forman, Pour Masters Bartending Services

Break the rules

Haris Bacic, Co-founder of Pricelisto.com

Trick or treat for the adults

The weather is still mild enough to hold the event outside, and she goes all out: hay bales, spider webs, pumpkins to take home, treat-or-treat bags, hot dogs, snow cones, kids’ activity area. It’s clever customer service as her staff mans the booths, and she gets to touch base with clients to thank them again for their business, myself included, staying on their radar for their repeat business and their word-of-mouth recommendations leading to new business.

Karen Condor, Insurance and Real Estate Specialist at USInsuranceAgents.com

The Devil is in the details

We offer customer service depending on customer needs. Us, designers/owners , make deliveries to clients home, write dedicated notes, help them at the store, consequently have a special relationship with many of them. We know about their lives and they know about us, ultimately we become friends. Also, from time to time we host events at the store for customers, so we can connect and get to know them more. We genuinely enjoy all of this. Most of our successful customer relationships are born because of our personalized service.

Bianca and Paola Muns, Co-Founders of  MUNS

Following up after a review

I like to follow up with a personal email or note to everyone that leaves a review on the site. It’s a way to connect and build a rapport with your client base so that they know another human is directly affected by your feedback and kind words. It’s time-consuming, but so, so worth it.

Emily McNabb Butler, Owner of The Good Hippie

Inviting them to fun events

Your customers’ dollars are going twice as far with their purchase of goods or services from you and a portion of that money being allocated to a good cause. They are able to get what they want and help who they want without much thought. This is simply the best of both worlds and your customers will be more than happy to return again.

Edwin Rubio, VP of Sales for VaporEmpire.com

Making the world a better place for everyone

When we launch a new market, we love to express our gratitude to customers and contractors by inviting them to events where we are able to connect with them in person. In 2019, we were able to post a series of community meetups at Nascar events, bringing contractors and early supporters of our business onto the track to meet drivers and see the cars up close. By creating new relationships and developing existing ones with customers, small businesses can greatly improve customer retention and enhance their brand affinity.

Shaun Savage,  CEO and Founder of GoShare

Conclusion

Whenever you run out of customer appreciation ideas turn to this article and remember that there’s no such thing as a bad ‘thank you’. Your customers will appreciate even the smallest gestures.