Custom Properties Are Live in Nectar

With the thousands of companies we’ve worked with, we’ve learned that there’s one thing that they all have in common. 

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They’re all different.

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Recognition isn’t a one-size-fits-all type of program, and each company has a unique set of needs and customizations. So with that, we’re introducing Custom Properties in Nectar.

Introducing custom properties

Custom properties allow admins to go beyond the standard employee fields like department or location. Admins can add additional properties to employees so they can better customize Nectar to their employees.

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For example, with early Beta testers, we’ve already seen customers create custom properties for fields like:

• Employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, seasonal)
• T-shirt size (XL, Large, Medium, etc)
• Leadership level (Executive, Middle Manager, Director)
• Language (English, Spanish, etc)

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The possibilities are endless! The key is to customize these properties to what matters most to your team—whether it's making recognition more personal, improving employee engagement, or simply making it easier to send the right rewards to the right people.

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How to use custom properties in Nectar

Recognition isn’t just about saying “great job”—it’s about making people feel seen, valued, and understood. That’s where Custom Properties come in. Let’s explore how you can use this feature to solve challenges, enhance nominations, personalize rewards, and create dynamic lists that keep your recognition program fresh and engaging.

Custom properties in Challenges

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With Custom Properties, you can create challenges that are tailored to different groups of employees, ensuring fairness and engagement across the board.

Imagine you want to run a “Recognition Streak” challenge where employees earn points for giving shoutouts over a set period:

• Full-time employees need to give 5 shoutouts in a month to complete the challenge.
• Part-time employees need to give 3 shoutouts in a month to complete the challenge.

Here’s how Custom Properties make this easy:

• Create a Custom Property called Employee Type (Full-Time, Part-Time).
• Set Up Two Challenge Versions—one requiring 5 shoutouts and one requiring 3 shoutouts.
• Assign Challenges Automatically so employees only see the version that applies to them.

This ensures that everyone can participate at a level that makes sense for them, keeping challenges inclusive, engaging, and achievable for all employees.

Instead of a one-size-fits-all challenge, you now have a thoughtful, tailored approach that recognizes employees fairly while still driving engagement.

And the best part? You can customize this for any challenge—whether it’s based on department, tenure, or even location. Recognition should feel relevant, and with Custom Properties, it always will.

Pro Tip: Custom properties can also be stacked together. For example, if I wanted a challenge for full-time employees that speak English I can create a challenge that will only show up for them.

Custom properties in Nominations

Not every award should be open to everyone. Maybe you don’t want Marketing nominating someone for a Sales Excellence Award, or maybe you need separate nomination categories for full-time and part-time employees. That’s where Custom Properties come in—they give you control over who can have access to certain nominations.

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Let’s say you want to recognize employees who embody your company’s values with a quarterly Culture Champion award. You want full-time employees to receive 500 points for completing the challenge, while part-time employees earn 250 points—since their hours and contributions differ.

Here’s how Custom Properties make this easy:

• Create a Custom Property called Employee Type (Full-Time, Part-Time).
• Set Up Two Nomination Categories: One for full-time employees and one for part-time employees.
• Adjust Criteria for selection—full-time employees might be evaluated on company-wide impact, while part-time employees might be assessed on team-level contributions.
• Ensure Balanced Recognition by having separate winners for each category, so part-time employees aren’t overlooked simply because they have fewer hours in the workplace.

Custom properties in Rewards

Recognition is powerful, but the real magic happens when employees can redeem their hard-earned points for something that truly matters to them. With Custom Properties, you can control which reward categories employees see, ensuring that different groups have access to the rewards that make the most sense for them.

Maybe you want full-time employees to have access to Gift Cards, while part-time employees can only redeem Swag and Experiences. Custom Properties make this possible—helping you refine the rewards experience without overcomplicating it.

This keeps your rewards program organized, relevant, and engaging—so employees always see rewards that match their roles and contributions.

Important Note: Custom Properties allow you to control which reward categories employees can see, but they don’t limit specific rewards within a category. This means if an employee has access to Gift Cards, they will see all gift card options available. Be sure to structure your reward categories accordingly to keep the experience fair and aligned with your recognition goals.

Custom properties in Dynamic Lists

Keeping employees informed is just as important as recognizing them—but manually updating lists for every announcement, policy change, or company update? That’s a headache.

With Dynamic Lists in Internal Comms, you can send messages to specific groups of employees, and those lists will update automatically as new team members join. Whether you're communicating with managers, remote employees, new hires, or a specific department, you can trust that your message always reaches the right people—without extra admin work.

How It Works

• Use Custom Properties (like Department, Location, Employee Type) to define list criteria.
• Send Targeted Communications to the right group—whether it’s an HR update for managers or a welcome message for new hires.
• Lists Update Automatically, so new employees are included without you lifting a finger.

With Dynamic Lists, you’re not just sending messages—you’re ensuring the right people receive them, at the right time, with zero manual upkeep.

The Future of Recognition is Yours to Shape

Custom Properties are just the beginning. The way we recognize, reward, and engage employees is evolving—and so is Nectar. With every update, we’re unlocking more ways to tailor your recognition experience, giving you more control, more flexibility, and more ways to make Nectar work for your team.

As we continue to expand customization across the platform, one thing is certain: recognition should feel as unique as the people receiving it—and with Nectar, you’ll always have the tools to make that happen. Stay tuned—there’s more to come.