What Are Points?
Points are earned through Shoutouts and can be redeemed for rewards. Each emoji used in a Shoutout equals one point.
Example: “Huge thanks to @lee for stepping in on short notice 🍩🍩”
Result: Lee earns 2 Donuts (points).
Teams often use recognizable emojis like 🎉,🏆, or 🍩 to represent points in Shoutouts. Shoutouts also supports custom emojis, which is especially useful if you want a unique “points” symbol that won’t get used casually in everyday Slack messages.
Tip: Use a multiplier to award multiple points in a single Shoutout (for example: 5x 🍩, 🍩 x5, or 5*🍩).
How Many Points Should Each Person Get?
Point allowances work best when they scale with how often recognition happens. Since recognition tends to increase as teams grow, the ranges below show how many teams adjust point limits at different sizes to keep things balanced.
Team Size | Recommended Weekly Points per Person |
< 20 people | 20-30 |
20–100 people | 15-25 |
100+ people | 10-20 |
Balancing Recognition and Redemption
When setting point costs for rewards:
Make small wins feel achievable (5–10 points)
Reserve premium perks (e.g. PTO) for higher earners (25+ points)
Keep a mix of fun, personal, and team-centric
Popular Reward Ideas (Monetary + Non-monetary)
Type | Examples |
Non-monetary | Lunch with execs, DJ the next all-hands, choose next team offsite snack |
Monetary | Gift cards, company swag, food delivery |
Team-building | Plan the next team activity, nominate someone for a spotlight |
How to Monitor Point Usage
From the Donut dashboard, admins can:
See top givers and recipients in the Leaderboard
Track reward redemption activity in the Fulfillment history tab
Update point allowances in Shoutouts settings as needed