Saying Thanks

“Saying thank you is more than good manners, it is good spirituality.”

—Alfred Painter

Thank you

It’s incredible that two little words can have such a dramatic impact on business relationships and the bottom line.

As recent as December 2019, researchers studying gratitude have found that being thankful and expressing it to others is good for our health and happiness. Not only does it feel good, but it also helps us build trust and closer bonds with the people around us.

More significantly, however, was the discovery that expressing gratitude not only improves one-on-one relationships but it brings entire groups together—inspiring a desire to help and connect in people who simply witness an act of gratitude.

Thank You in Business

We all know that expressing gratitude works.

We personally feel it when we say thanks as an expression of gratitude, and we feel it when we are thanked for something we have done.

It is interesting to learn that while expressing gratitude has multiple benefits and no disadvantages, the business world has yet to fully embrace the practice of saying “thank you.”

Sure we all know those super-successful people who send out thank you notes and express gratitude for the simplest acts.  But ironically, few recognize the connection between their gratitude and their success.

We incorrectly think the pathway to success cannot be that simple.

Another recent study looked at gratitude givers and recipients and found that givers often felt awkward about expressing gratitude. They also thought that the recipient wouldn’t care whether they sent a thank-you note or not. In short, it was viewed as an uncomfortable and unnecessary gesture.

But when the study investigated how recipients actually felt about receiving thank-you messages, they found that givers overestimated the time, effort, and discomfort involved in saying thanks and underestimated the positive impact it has on the recipient and their relationship with them.

So, what’s the takeaway here?

• Saying thanks is relatively easy; it makes both you and the recipient feel good.
• It is necessary. It can make a difference in your customers’ experience with your company and client relationships.
• And that all affect your bottom line.

Thank You in Business

Here are three ways gratitude can increase your revenue.

1. Thanking your clients makes for good customer experiences. Two-thirds of buyers cite customer experience as more important than price.
2. Good customer experience leads to more referrals. After a positive experience, three out of four buyers would recommend a company to their peers.
3. This all leads to increased loyalty. Raising customer retention rates by 5% has been shown to boost profits by up to 95%. And feeling unappreciated is the number one reason why people switch vendors.

Don’t forget—it’s not just clients and suppliers who can feel this way. Your employees and colleagues want to know they’re valued, too. Studies show that two out of three people would leave a job if they didn’t feel appreciated.

The Bible

Thankfulness is a prominent Bible theme.

First Thessalonians 5:16-18 says,

“Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”

Did you catch that? Give thanks in all circumstances. Thankfulness should be a way of life for us, naturally flowing from our hearts and mouths.

Psalm 136:1 says.

“Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good. His love endures forever.”

Here we have two reasons to be thankful: God’s constant goodness and His steadfast love.

When we recognize the nature of our depravity and understand that, apart from God, there is only death, our natural response is to be grateful for the life He gives.

There is no downside to expressing gratitude.

So, become a business that says “thank you.”  And remember that God commands gratitude, and everyone loves to be thanked.