When the first day a new job is typically a running gauntlet of 10 or 20 new faces and a stack of HR forms, a welcome kit helps bring new hires onboard and give them a few essential tools for starting the workday. At AllAboutPins, we want to show you how personalized items like our custom enamel pins can make the onboarding experience fun, effective, and inexpensive.

Getting Started With Employee Welcome Kits

As a growing trend among businesses big and small, employee welcome kits are one of many ways businesses are engaging their workforce in interesting and creative ways. On the whole, welcome kits help businesses create a positive first impression on their employee’s first day and establish a sense of their company culture. 

A good employee welcome kit will have office supplies and other useful items new employees can use around the office. But don’t just leave your new hires with a box full of practical supplies or your work culture’s going to be more impersonal than welcoming. The best employee welcome kits add personal touches to help break the ice and bridge the gap between “new hire” and “team member.” 

There’s no “right way” to personalizing an employee welcome kit, each kit will  vary depending on the company, but you can usually divide the contents of a kit into a few categories:

Informational Additions

Coming into the job as “the new guy” means everything from office dynamics to the nearest restroom is an unknown. Basic knowledge like when’s the best time to talk to a manager, where to find HR or policies for eating lunch at your desk are all things you’ll probably internalize quickly after being at a job for a while but run a good chance of tripping up new hires. A welcome kit can be your chance to get them up to speed and feeling confident about navigating around the office.

Practical Items and Office Supplies

Any items that help a new employee do their job whether its a pen, notebook, coffee cup or laptop is going to be appreciated as a direct investment into a new hire’s productivity. Moreover, they’re a quick way of communicating the daily needs of a position right off the bat while helping a new employee become productive as quickly as possible.

Forming a company identity

For most people, what they do for a living and where they work is a big part of their identity. However, within the first couple of weeks, most people are still getting used to things and adjusting to their new environment. A good welcome kit smoothes that adjustment period with fun and creative additions like custom enamel pins, stickers or company shirts that help sparks pride and engagement between the employees and their new workplace. 

Tips for Adding Custom Pins To Your Welcome Kit

Highly customizable and uniquely presentable, a custom corporate pin makes a solid personal addition to your welcome kit that gives your new hires a fun taste of your company culture and personality. Let’s walk through just a few tips for adding corporate pins to your employee welcome kit.

Keeping Custom Pins Focused and Branded

Custom pins are actually one of the best ways to help new hires share the company identity. Easy to order but cost-effective and highly customizable, it’s a quick way for new hires to express their new identity. A well-branded custom pin new workers a direct piece of company swag to help express their own involvement with their job. 

Give them a collection of custom pins

Since their explosion in popularity, custom pins can be found on lapels, hats, bags, and much more. As a fun addition to your welcome kit, give out a handful of custom pins in different designs so new hires can pick their favorites. An easy way to do this while cutting down on order costs is to use just a few unique designs with different color swaps. 

Keep it Authentic But Creative

Make sure your corporate pin designs are distinctly related to your company but don’t be afraid to get creative. When adding a custom pin to your welcome kit, you’ll want a pin design that’s flashy and attractive, not just well-branded. Look for ways to take a colorful spin or express your culture in unique ways. For example, Salesforce included a handful of branded pins with different emblems and images related to their company. Each image was distinct and wasn’t just a Salesforce logo but a unique image or design related to the company. 

We’re Here to Help

AllAboutPins helps clients design and manufacture custom pins in nearly every eye-catching shape and look. Don’t be afraid to just give us a call or shoot us an email if you need any help! If you’re looking for more design-specific tips for your custom pin, check out a few of our other articles below:

• Designing Custom Promotional Pins
• Custom Pins 101: Creating a Lapel Pin Color Palette
• 5 Tips for Packaging Custom Pins
• Artwork Guide for Custom Lapel Pins