The Planning of an Incentive
Program
It's advisable for you to put your initial thoughts
on paper as a broad outline, then fill in the specifics, once
you have identified the major components of your next sales
incentive or other type of reward
program.
It is often easier
to apply incentives where the results can be measured with
reasonable accuracy, or statistically compared to some
previous reward program result. To ensure the success of
your incentive program, you must place most emphasis
on:
The
achievability of the standards or targets you are
encouraging participants to achieve.
The
reliability and/or availability of the system or people you
use to record the results.
If
comparing current activities with the results from a
previous period, you must be careful to check the earlier
figures you use are reliable and directly comparable in
concept and detail, and are seen as such by the contenders
in your scheme.
If you
are use existing levels of activity as a starting point and
are planning to use incentives to improve results in the
future, you must be sure that the participants are given the
time and the tools to have a realistic chance of success in
meeting the new targets.
If you consider
these aspects very carefully and if your proposed method of
measurement does not readily satisfy all of them, or if you
suspect participants may be able to find weaknesses (no
matter how small) in your formula then you must start all
over again, or, if the loopholes are only of a minor nature,
prepare credible answers to those aspects which you feel may
be challenged.
Once you have made
your initial decisions about the type of incentive program,
you can be more specific about the results you seek, and
start outlining the major components of that
program.
You will also have
to consider who is going to be the target for improved
results or performance.
You will now have to
finalise your objectives and this cannot be done
without:
·
Creating
a very accurate profile of the people to be recipients of
the program.
·
Deciding
how to motivate or challenge them.
·
Choosing
the most effective time (or times) to introduce the
incentive program.
·
Deciding
the duration that is most suitable to the objectives and
capable of sustained support.
Next
article:
How to motivate people - Sales Incentive
Program
2008
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The Planning of an Incentive
Program.
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