Sports are beginning to make a comeback this year. Teams are forming and coaches are back to guiding and preparing players for games. Many coaches put in seven to eight hours a week as a coach, on top of having full-time jobs. Their dedication is uncanny. Preparing to say “thank you” to a coach, especially during these tough times in 2020, makes all the difference. 

As a parent or team player, life can get a little hectic during sports seasons. Between practices and tournaments, it sometimes makes it hard to get ahead of the game (no pun intended). Scrambling to plan end-of-season gifts to thank coaches seems inevitable. 

This year, you can easily prepare in advance. Below you can find a few great gift options for coaches when you’re in a pinch, coach-gifting etiquette, as well as the best times to give the coach a thank you present when the normal, annual banquet may not be an option. 

Coach Thank You Gift Options

Whether you are giving an individual thank you gift or presenting a combined gift as a team, here are some solid thank you gift options that all coaches are bound to love. 

Personalized Thank You Gifts for Your Coach

One way to thank the coach after a great or sometimes not-so-great season (hey, they tried their best!) is with something personal and memorable. 

Most everyone always has a cell phone on them these days, and parents are often taking more than plenty of pictures during games and practices. Find a team photo or action shot from the latest season and have it printed online. Places online such as Mpix offer great, high-quality prints for great prices. 

Once you receive your team photo print, you can ask everyone (or everyone’s parents) to pitch in and purchase a frame for the photo. This personalized photo mat and frame can be signed by the sports team members with individual thank you notes to the coach. Insert a photo of the team and it will memorialize the 2020 season for years to come. 

If you feel like a photo frame is not the right way to say thanks to the team’s coach, Personalization Mall also has plenty of other fantastic options when it comes to personalized coach gifts.

Thank You Gifts For Everyone

Let’s be frank, monetary gifts are always nice to receive (or give). In order to make things a little more personal, however, gift cards are a great way to give a gift that can be used on the recipients’ terms while still being more personal than a cash gift.

Gift cards can be in the form of physical cards, or digital cards. For a gift to present to a coach, a physical gift card seems to make the most sense. Place the card inside of a thank you greeting card and have the entire team sign the inside. 

When it comes to choosing the proper gift card, keep in mind the coach’s likes and dislikes, also, instead of waiting until the last minute to decide, you can use a service such as CardNow that will allow you to always have a stockpile of gift cards on hand when you need them. The great thing about the particular service is, you don’t have to pay for the card amount until you are ready to give it as a gift. Until then, the cards are empty and ready to save you a trip to the local supermarket. 

Thank You Gift Etiquette

Whether you decide to go with a personalized present or a gift card, knowing how much to spend and how to go about paying for the gift is important. 

If you are going for a group gift from the entire team, knowing the reasonable amount of money for each teammate to spend is important to keep in mind. So, what is the standard amount of money to spend on a coach gift? 

On average, an acceptable amount for a group coach gift is around $5 – $15 per team member. Most parents are more than willing to chip in if they are aware a thank you gift is being purchased for the coach. This would mean a team of ten could hypothetically give the coach a $100 gift card to a favorite restaurant. With it, he or she will have enough to also take someone to dinner with them and really enjoy their gift of appreciation. 

If you are unsure of how to collect funds for the gift, you can simply send an email to the team members or team members’ parents. Explain to them the gift idea and ask if anyone is willing to pitch in to help with the purchase. Be sure to set a cut-off date for the collection so that everyone is on the same page. 

Keep in mind, you can always spend more or less on a gift to the coach depending on what you and the others who are pitching in are most comfortable with.

Timing of a Thank You Coach Gift

Presenting a gift to a coach is fun and normally done after the last game of the season, or even at the end-of-season sports banquet. This year could potentially pose to be an interesting year when it comes to sports gatherings and banquets. 

Because of COVID-19, many events and large gatherings are being cancelled. If you are unable to attend or have a proper end-of-the season banquet, plan for the team to present the coach his or her gift after the last game of the season.

Saying Thanks Is Simple

Being prepared to thank a coach is an easy task, especially when you are prepared and not scrambling at the last minute. Remember, there are plenty of personalized gift options to choose from as well as gifts the coach can use in the future, such as restaurant gift cards. This year, you can be prepared to thank the coach.

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