Myth vs. Reality: Incentives & Engagement
Employee incentive and engagement programs are more popular than ever! Done well, they’re an effective tool for motivation, recognition, and retention. Sometimes, their reputation for fun and excitement overshadows the very real business benefits they provide, which can lead to misunderstandings of what their whole purpose is.
Learn the truth about all things incentives and engagement from two of M&IW’s experts, Peggy Polick, Sr. Engagement Consultant, and Nicole Raudabaugh, CMP, CIS, Customer Success Manager.
In Case You Missed It – Myth vs. Reality: Event Management
Myth: Incentive events or travel programs are a boondoggle and a fantastic party without business benefits.
Reality: It is proven that rewarding top sales performers and/or top customers with incentive opportunities is a way to gain loyalty, brand recognition, and industry friendships.
When you work with a professional event management company such as M&IW, the very first thing we talk to you about is the goals and objectives of your incentive. Are you trying to boost sales? Build community in a new merger? Invest in recognizing employee tenure? Then, we talk about how we can help you achieve those goals. It’s true that a good party makes for a memorable incentive trip, but if you scratch the surface of this agenda item staple, you’ll find innumerable connections being made over dinner or on the dance floor.
Additionally, incentives are a great opportunity to conduct actual business through product announcements, service recognition, and team bonding. All this and more can be readily accomplished when attendees are in a fun environment where they can let their guard down and easily absorb the key messages being directed at them.
Myth: I don’t need a corporate gifting consultant; I can just buy gifts from Amazon.
Reality: If you need gifts for more than 20 people, Amazon isn’t going to cut it.
Sourcing and buying gifts yourself may work for small groups of fewer than 20 people, but for most incentives or events, you need gifts for many more attendees. Online retailers do not always have enough inventory to meet the demands of your meeting.
A corporate gifting consultant can provide gift ideas that align with your event location, objectives, and budget. At M&IW, thanks to our extensive industry connections, we can also usually provide items at or below retail costs and with customization options. A corporate gifting consultant also handles all gifting logistics, ensuring the items get where they need to go by the date needed and keeping you apprised along the way.
Myth: We pay our people well, so we don’t need an engagement strategy.
Reality: While salary is important, it’s not the only factor people consider when deciding to join (or stay with) a company.
Today’s top companies are attracting and retaining employees through stock options, profit-sharing, and—you guessed it—employee engagement programs. Employee engagement has many benefits, and one of the most effective strategies is using an online engagement platform to connect team members and partners and engage them through life events, kudos, top performer awards, and more.
M&IW’s performance engagement technology, EPIC, is one example of an online platform that is scalable, affordable, and completely customizable, making it a win for both employees and organizations. It offers a suite of products to engage employees, sales producers, customers, and partners as well as the data and analytics to prove its effectiveness and help shape your future strategies.
Contributors
Peggy Polick
Sr. Engagement Consultant
Meetings & Incentives Worldwide, Inc.
Nicole Raudabaugh, CMP, CIS
Customer Success Manager
Meetings & Incentives Worldwide, Inc.
Related Articles