There’s a (fairly) new holiday in town. The first week of October is officially ‘National Customer Service Week’. You may be tempted to roll your eyes at the thought of another distracting holiday interfering with productivity – but wait… Customer Service Week was designed with 5 objectives in mind all crafted to increase your bottom line.  

1. Boost morale, motivation and teamwork in your customer service department.

2. Reward your frontline reps for the important work they do all year long.

3. Raise company-wide awareness of the important role customer service plays in your organization’s success.

4. Thank other departments for their yearlong support.

5. Let your customers know about your company’s commitment to customer satisfaction.

Each year, thousands of companies across the United States and around the world celebrate National Customer Service Week and more jump on the bandwagon every year. From 3M to the Mom and Pop store down the street, they represent leading financial, healthcare, insurance, manufacturing, retailing, hospitality, communications, not-for-profit, and educational organizations, as well as government agencies, and others.

Last year, they represented all 50 of the United States and 40 countries.

Why should a company celebrate customer service week? It draws attention the significance the business puts on providing a great customer experience. And with so many consumers shopping online, the importance of making the customer feel good in when they patronize your company in person  has risen to new heights and can make or break a business of any size, according to Peter Hartz, author of "The Customer That Breathes."

More good news, Customer Service Week isn’t about grand gestures or budget breaking festivities, it’s the acknowledgment that matters and all the little things that add up to mean a lot. Want to get started with planning your celebration for next year? Here are some ideas to get you underway:

Create some positive buzz around this week.  Hang posters in advance to create excitement and let customers know good service is important to your team. (An added benefit – customers will likely thank employees for good work, inspiring them to do even better!)

Have a celebration kick-off with a cake or treats in the break room.

Inflate balloons and hand out to clients kids.  Have a drawing for customer prizes.

Print certificates of appreciation for each employee and hand them out with small gifts or candy.

Host free customer training seminars to help build on employees skills.

Theme days work well as do chair decorating contests or potlucks, but most of all have fun!