Last week my friend and original Yelp marketer Nish Nadaraja posted The Fine Art of Badass Marketing. The basic idea is this:

What a great reminder that, with just a little effort, we can make folks smile while doing business with us… and thus eager for more.

Sometimes businesses go above and beyond to offer remarkable gifts or loyalty programs, and of course you’re going to remember those. But many of my favorite examples are very affordable, like the local shwarma place where the owner gives me an extra falafel to munch while I wait, with a conspiratorial “Just for you, my friend!” Or the hotel clerk who hands my kid a little stuffed animal at check-in. Or an out-of-the blue note from a colleague just to share an old memory. In all of these cases, yes, the person in question may want to do business with me in the future, but they’re making me feel like a person rather than a transaction.

For managers, some of your most important business relationships are with your employees. And it presumably goes without saying that a teammate who feels cared for is a whole lot more likely to stick around and contribute. I find that simple “way to go” notes go a very long way, especially if they sometimes come from unexpected sources like a board member, client or an exec from a different group. And of course the occasional fun swag item or team event is memorable too (or in these remote times, a combination, like this impressive virtual reality party at Next Insurance).