The topic of selling sales incentives made the list in the Incentive Research Federation’s (IRF) newest report,
2014 Trends in Engagement, Incentives, and Recognition. The report shined light on the fact that although sales goals came up short last year, many of those companies are still raising quotas for 2014, leaving many executives searching for answers on how their sales teams will make those numbers. One trend that came out of the study was focused on the incentives being used to motivate sales teams. The report stated,
“Over the years, noted thought leaders (including the Harvard Business Review, McKinsey and Aberdeen) have all suggested that non-cash awards—offered in the right situations and under the right circumstances—can be more appealing to sales people than cash alone. That power to motivate is the reason why non-cash awards have had an increased role in driving everyday business results—including sales performance.”
Turning to non-cash incentives like gift cards, and finding creative and ‘out-of-the-box’ ways to incorporate them into a sales incentive program looks to be a hot topic for 2014.
