4 Ways to Design Successful Sales Incentive Programs

4 Ways to Design Successful Sales Incentive Programs

Alli Campofranco

design successful sales incentive

What better way to engage and excite your sales teams than with some friendly competition backed by compelling rewards? Sales incentives are a great way to build customer loyalty and motivate salespeople to move your products off the shelves.

So, how can you design the most effective sales reward program? Well, that will be reliant on how you motivate your sales reps.

Here are 4 Ways to Design Successful Sales Incentive Programs:

1. Create Personalized SPIFFS

All sales teams are made up of individuals with unique goals, experience levels, and performance expectations. So, you can’t expect a “one-size-fits-all” contest approach to have the most impact on your salespeople. Get to know what drives them and don’t be afraid to ask them how you can motivate them. Let them pick the reward and the goal they need to meet in order to receive it. Maybe they want a new pair of Ray-Ban Sunglasses or tickets to a ball game. In most cases, the reward they ask for won’t break the bank and the goal they set will be similar to the one you would have suggested. Whatever it may be, they will work hard for it and feel honored to have picked it. Of course, if you do this for one of your sales reps, you’ll have to do it for all of them.

 

2. Award Non-Monetary Prizes

Monetary rewards lose their luster a lot more quickly than physical rewards. Believe it or not, most people tend to be very practical and don’t enjoying spending money on themselves. Cash will most likely disappear into the family budget to be used for things like bills or groceries. A physical prize creates a memorable experience that will turn into a lasting reminder of their achievement. Remember, sales reps won’t brag to each other about what they did with the cash they received, but they will share stories about the awesome YETI cooler or Apple Watch they got. This is just the kind of word-of-mouth marketing that gets sales teams excited to participate, drives engagement, and boosts performance.

3. Ensure Everyone Has a Chance to Win

Sales teams lose interest in contests when the same person wins over and over again. It takes away the fun and excitement of the friendly competition. Sales reps shouldn’t all be working towards the same goal anyway because all sales teams have their high, average, and low performers. You should be creating different buckets for your top 20%, middle 60%, and bottom 20% so that everyone feels like they have a chance in the running. This could be as simple as splitting prizes or goals into different tiers. Plus, this adds some friendly competition to the mix because sales reps are competing against each other rather than the entire team.

4. Consider Personal Preferences

Another important factor to consider when learning how to best motivate your sales reps is determining whether or not they are comfortable with public recognition. It’s important to ask their preference for this because many people get easily embarrassed. It’s as simple as asking sales reps if they’re okay with being acknowledged in front of the team or if they’d rather you do it in private, such as in an email or in a one-to-one meeting. This is a great thing to ask upon hiring them.

Motivation is key to all successful sales incentives and it must be tailored to fit your team’s culture and objectives. That’s why we’re here – to help you design an impactful sales incentive program that will motivate your sales teams, increase sales, and meet your business goals.

Just give us a call, we’re nice! 866-567-7432

See How Incentive Solutions Can Help You Grow Your Business

Learn More