Category: Sales Incentives

Sales Incentive programs

Incentive Programs – Do You Need a Bigger Boat?

Incentive Programs – Do You Need a Bigger BoatJust a few weeks ago, one of the most popular TV events of the summer concluded – Shark Week on the Discovery Channel.  One reason for its popularity is our fascination and fear of those steely-eyed predators.  My two daughters and I love sharks – in fact, one of mine and my oldest daughter’s bucket list items is to go cage diving with Great White Sharks in South Africa.  Even our favorite movie is Jaws.  It has been said that Jaws set beach tourism back several years because almost everyone was scared to go into the water after seeing the movie!

Like a swimmer in the waters around Amity Island, you may have some concern about what swims beneath the surface when considering channel sales incentive programs or employee recognition.  You may be concerned with results or budget requirements, or perhaps participant engagement.  With thorough preparation and thoughtful execution you can swim with the sharks.  As chief Brody found out in the end, it wasn’t the size of the boat that made the difference, but one well-aimed rifle shot.

This post by Jeff Edwards discusses how instrumental proper incentive program design and communication are to achieving desired outcomes.  Just as you wouldn’t jump into shark-infested waters without proper equipment or instruction, neither should you attempt to implement an incentive program without first considering the key elements that are mission critical.

Michelle Chappell identifies three key elements in her post, The X’s and O’s of Incentive Program Design that help to insure the best chance of not only surviving, but thriving in today’s environment.

Venturing into the “deep waters” of recognition and incentive programs, there is nothing to fear from the murky darkness!  With proper planning, tools, and instruction you’ll be able to identify and deal with the sharks that threaten to impede your progress.

Ready to jump-start your business with a channel sales incentive program, or implement an employee recognition program?  Contact us – we would love to show you that “yes, it is safe to go back into the water.”

Taking Incentive Programs Back to School

As I travel around the country these days, I encounter the unmistakable signs of the “back-to-school” season – more traffic, football games, advertisements for school supplies and less crowded airplanes, just to name a few. It’s been a couple of years since our family has experienced this rite of passage first-hand – and I must… Read more »

Incentive and Recognition Program ROI – Review Objectives and Indicators

“I” “I BELIEVE” “I BELIEVE THAT” “I BELIEVE THAT WE” “I BELIEVE THAT WE WILL KEEP OUR INCENTIVE/RECOGNITION PROGRAM FRESH BY REVISING GOALS AND OBJECTIVES THROUGHOUT THE LIFE OF THE PROGRAM.” Now that we have that out of the way, I find myself guilty of not pushing clients to adjust program goals and objectives as… Read more »

Program Design: Balancing Meaningful Budgets and Measurable Expectations

Our sales team recently worked on a channel sales opportunity that highlighted the importance of program design – specifically balancing the program budget and participant expectations. The key to success in this process is to understand and reconcile the following factors: the value of expected incentive earnings that will be meaningful to the program participant,… Read more »

5 Program Design Dragons that must be Slayed

Watching the 2002 movie Reign of Fire (Matthew McConaughey, Christian Bale) left me with one overwhelming and undeniable truth: the free reign of undomesticated, large, fire-breathing dragons is not conducive to a life of peace and prosperity.  As long as those dragons are around all activities are focused on avoidance, survival and a meager existence… Read more »