Deborah Merkin
Recent Posts
Employee Appreciation Goes A Long Way
Everyone wants to feel appreciated at their jobs. We all work hard and it validates our hard work when our boss, or the head of our department, recognizes our efforts.
4 Keys to Maximize Your Safety Program
3 Ways to Boost Employee Loyalty in Your Small Business
Small businesses are often challenged with striking a balance between offering employee loyalty incentives and controlling costs of these very incentive programs. Often some of the most meaningful mechanisms for boosting and maintaining employee loyalty are also the most cost efficient. Here are three easy, low-cost ways to ensure your employees remain loyal for years to come.
Reward Them With Time Off: Offering hard-working and dedicated employees with extra time off in an ad-hoc fashion isa really effective way to keep employees on their toes and make them feel like their effort is appreciated by management. By giving employees a random day off after a long project or a particularly stressful stretch of time, will help keep them motivated and working hard on a long-term basis, since they never know when management may reward them. To employees, time off is extremely valuable and an extra vacation day to take a long weekend can be a great way to de-stress and re-motivate an employee to return to work with new energy and new perspective. Since there is no upfront cost for this type of employee loyalty incentive it can also be a great way to help control employee loyalty program costs.
Give the Right Incentives: When designing employee loyalty incentive programs ensuring that the incentives provided are meaningful to employees is critical. If the incentives do not motivate employees, then employers will not get the ROI they seekand the incentives will not have perpetuated the desired employee behavior. Offering incentives that are flexible and can beadjusted to different employee tastes, with equal value, is the most effective and cost efficient solution. Gift cards can offer flexibility on experience while the cost remains the same. Being able to offer a diverse variety of gift card brands such as Boston Market, to help a working mom take care of dinner one night, or Crutchfield, for an employee who may be looking to make some home improvements, provides an experience for every individual employee, while management can maintain the cost.
Open Door Policy: Giving employees access to senior management is a great way to show appreciation for a job well done orfor reaching milestone anniversaries with the company. This shows both acknowledgment for loyal employees, making them feel appreciated by the organization, while also allowing them to give valuable feedback to management from an employee perspective. The open door policy is mutually beneficial to both parties. Some employees may also view the opportunity to pick the brain of a member of senior management as a unique career development opportunity, which is both valuable to the employee's personal career goals and also helps an organization grow from within. Since this only costs the organization time spent, it can be a great way to provide a meaningful employee incentive experience while controlling internal costs.
The Right Amount of Choice for Your Gift Card Incentive Program
When crafting an effective incentive program, one of the key challenges employers face is offering the right amount of choice. Too little, and employees may feel like their hard work is undervalued. Too much, and the sheer number of options can become overwhelming. It's not unlike standing in the grocery aisle, trying to choose between 20 different types of toothpaste—after a while, the decision fatigue can set in, and employees may disengage from the process.
The Psychology of Too Much Choice
There’s a well-known psychological phenomenon called the paradox of choice, which shows that while people like having options, too many can lead to anxiety, indecision, and dissatisfaction. A famous study by psychologists Sheena Iyengar and Mark Lepper found that consumers presented with 24 different jam options were actually less likely to make a purchase than those offered just six. When faced with too many choices, our brains become overwhelmed, and instead of feeling empowered, we may experience stress and regret, even after making a decision.
The same applies to incentive programs. Offering employees too many reward options can make it harder for them to feel good about their choice, which can detract from the overall value of the incentive.
Striking the Right Balance
The goal of any incentive program is to create motivation and satisfaction without overwhelming employees. This means offering enough choice to appeal to a diverse group of people but not so many that it creates decision fatigue.
Gift cards are an ideal solution because they offer flexibility without overcomplicating the process. Instead of having to sift through dozens of reward options, employees can select a gift card that suits their needs. For example, offering options from a range of popular retailers—such as fashion or home improvement stores—can provide meaningful variety without overloading employees with too many decisions.
This is where the Engage2Reward™ Gift Card Ordering Platform comes into play. The platform is designed to simplify the reward process by offering a curated selection of over 300 brand gift cards. Companies can easily distribute gift cards that align with their budget, while employees enjoy the freedom to choose from a variety of well-known brands, whether they need something practical or want to treat themselves.
By focusing on a balance of choice, the Engage2Reward Platform allows organizations to offer personalized rewards without the risk of overwhelming employees. The gift card options span across different categories, from dining and entertainment to travel and retail, providing enough variety to appeal to different interests while keeping the decision process simple and enjoyable.
Benefits of a Balanced Incentive Program
An incentive program that offers thoughtful choice is more likely to yield positive results, including:
-
Increased Engagement: When employees feel their reward is personalized and meaningful, they are more likely to remain engaged and motivated.
-
Improved Satisfaction: Avoiding decision fatigue enhances satisfaction with the incentive itself, as employees are less likely to feel overwhelmed or regret their choices.
-
Cost Efficiency: Offering gift cards through the Engage2Reward Platform allows companies to control costs while still giving employees the flexibility they value. Employers can maintain their program budgets by selecting from various denominations, making gift cards a practical and scalable option.
-
Loyalty and Retention: A well-structured incentive program fosters long-term loyalty and satisfaction, encouraging employees to continue performing at a high level and stay with the organization longer.
Conclusion
In today’s competitive market, finding the right amount of choice for your incentive program is crucial to its success. Offering flexibility through a limited yet diverse selection of rewards—such as digital gift cards from the Engage2Reward Platform—strikes the perfect balance between personalization and simplicity. By creating a program that motivates without overwhelming, you can boost engagement, improve job satisfaction, and foster a more loyal workforce.
Ready to create an incentive program that works? Explore the Engage2Reward Platform and discover how easy it is to offer the right rewards to your employees!
Employee Satisfaction Leads to Increased Productivity
Employee satisfaction, engagement and overall happiness has proven time and time again to be a surefire way to foster employees to do more for their organizations. They are more productive, try harder, and are more loyal to their organizations. Ensuring long-term employee satisfaction is key to an organization’s success and reducing disruptive tendencies like frequent turnover. Here are 3 ways to ensure your employee’s satisfaction in their current position.
