An incentive program is more than just a vacation for your hard working employees. It all starts about a year or two earlier, with qualification parameters, promotional campaigns, and pre-trip preparation that culminates in the trip-of-a-lifetime for your most valuable employees. In order to motivate, inspire, and reward those people who work the hardest for you, a well designed and implemented program is an absolute must from start to finish.

               
Once you have decided to implement an incentive travel program into your business plan, there are a few things to consider. First, you must identify your incentive goal. What achievement will you be rewarding? Is it meeting a sales quota or exceeding last year’s numbers, for example? Next, you need to secure the services of a full-service incentive house. This one key task will make your job easier and free you from handling the complex details of a full year of incentive programming. Next, consider your budget. Decide what you can allot to your total incentive program, not just the trip itself. Ascertain what the winning qualifications are to be, and how long of a qualification period will be needed to reach an attainable goal.  Of course, you will also need to choose a destination, but that will be an easy task with feedback from your staff and meetings with your incentive company. Lastly, you must also decide whether to award a group trip, or individual trips to your winners and their spouses or guests.

When choosing an incentive service provider, consider the following: how much experience with incentive travel do they have? Are they a retail travel agency or a full-service incentive house? Are they members of the Society of Incentive and Travel Executives (SITE), or another professional organization? Have they traveled to the places you are considering as reward destinations? Have they delivered a program at your chosen destination?  Have they provided you with references that you can contact? Were their presentation materials informative and exciting? Were they enthusiastic about travel? Are they familiar with the specifics of your industry or business? Once you have selected and contracted with an incentive company to facilitate your program, you are well on your way to increasing sales, improving morale, meeting quotas, or whatever goal best benefits your specific business!

Set your budget and keep in mind that it will cover a comprehensive program which can include some or all the following components: promotional marketing, air ticketing, hotel accommodations, room gifts, sponsored group activities, spa treatments, meals, transportation, administrative costs, and gratuities.  Usually, your incentive company will handle all the vendors, suppliers, and services on your behalf. You will be asked to make a deposit and pay scheduled invoices throughout the year. After trip delivery, a final bill is presented and the program is evaluated, in preparation for next year’s program. 

The qualifying period is a key component of a successful incentive travel program. Communication with your staff is paramount to success. A full-service incentive house should be able to take on a comprehensive promotional campaign on your behalf. This should include an initial meeting with your staff to disclose the trip destination, travel dates, and the parameters to win. Your employees must have a clear picture of not only what they can win, but exactly how they can win it. Clear goals, numbers, and the time frame are communicated at this time. This kick-off is followed by the actual qualification period, in which a promotional campaign typically takes place. Staff members receive motivational gifts at set times throughout the year as well as motivational and informational emails. Full-service incentive companies often provide a dedicated website, where program participants can look at the itinerary, read about the destination, and keep track of their progress towards the established goals.  Once the qualifying period ends and winners are chosen, the promotional campaign kicks into high gear. A congratulatory mailing goes out to your winners, with exciting destination brochures, pre-trip paperwork, and all the initial information they will need. Generally, group size will affect how the trip is delivered. An optimal small group, necessitating one tour director is approximately 40, comprised of 20 winners and 20 guests/ spouses. This group can fit comfortably on one luxury coach and have dinner receptions in small picturesque restaurants, for example. A small group like this has a luxury “boutique” feel. For larger groups, with two or more tour directors, the sky (or your budget) is the limit. A large group often has a very high-class high-roller feel, with your group occupying an entire floor of a hotel or having an evening event utilizing an entire castle, for example! In both instances, this perception of being a special guest, a pampered VIP, is important to the overall success and should not be overlooked.

After your winners are chosen and have received their pre-trip packages, your incentive company will finalize the actual trip components. Air tickets will be finalized and final room block numbers will be set with the hotel or resort. Winner activities, receptions, and events will be finalized and winners will receive their travel documents. By using a full-service incentive house, you ensure that the quality of the trip is to the highest standards. A tour director is almost always a component of a comprehensive group incentive program. They are the experienced on-site people who ensure that there are no problems for your winners. One of the most important factors in the actual trip is its smooth delivery. Winners must feel as though every detail has been anticipated and prearranged. Signing up for activities, transportation to dinner, and all other program components should run flawlessly. Winners should feel extremely pampered. This is their reward for hard work and dedication for an entire year. This is the trip that will motivate them in the years to come, as they strive to win over and over again.

The tour director is there to make sure everything runs smoothly. Lost luggage, scheduling snafus, and special requests should all be handled by the tour director behind the scenes, with your guests never having to worry about these details. In addition, a hospitality desk or suite is another useful component in many successful trips. This is a place where winners can come to ask questions, troubleshoot any problems that may arise, make dinner reservations, or meet up with other winners during free time.

Another decision to be made when implementing an incentive program is whether to utilize a group trip or individual trips. This often comes down to a few key questions: is team cohesion an important aspect for your staff or do they work independently? Can you afford to have a group of employees all away at the same time? Will you be awarding trips to any support staff? Will you have a second tier program for those who did not achieve the highest goal? Are your winners seasoned travelers or do they need a tour director?

Both group and individual programs are excellent ways to motivate, inspire, and reward your team, but studies have shown that a group trip has the most return on investment (Society of Incentive and Travel Executives, 2006). A group program utilizes group services, which are often very cost effective. Secondly, the social value of a group trip far outweighs that of individual trips. Individual trips often end up becoming glorified family vacations. Your winners may end up spending out-of-pocket money to upgrade vacation components. This defeats the original purpose of enhancing productivity, effectiveness, and satisfaction, as you want to promote the elite status of being a program winner. In comparison, winners of group trips often report that spending quality time with their coworkers in a social setting is highly motivating. This aspect of the trip builds team cohesion and spurs a healthy competition, enhancing future productivity.

Group trips also open up the possibility of including team-building activities or even informal work-related seminars or workshops.  According to your preferences, a full-service incentive house should be able to incorporate social responsibility projects and volunteer opportunities for your winners to enjoy. Such activities give your winners an enriching experience that also helps charitable or other worthwhile social-minded causes.

Whichever type of award you chose and wherever the destination of your trip, the goal of an incentive program is to facilitate company growth by motivating, inspiring, and rewarding your employees to achieve greater overall productivity. Those who win are motivated by the reward of a fantastic trip. Those who don’t win are motivated to try harder and win the reward next year, especially after hearing the rave reviews of the returning winners! Studies show that motivated employees work harder, are more loyal, and achieve greater productivity (Kreuger & Killham, 2006).
               

And don’t forget that as the decision maker, you can also take part in the trip-of-a-lifetime as well! Spending time with your top producers can make a big difference in competitive industries by building rapport and strengthening company loyalty.

Works Cited
Kreuger, J., & Killham, E. (2006). At Work,Feeling Good Matters. Gallup Management Journal .
Society of Incentive and Travel Executives. (2006). Incentive Travel Factbook. Chicago: Society of Incentive and Travel Executives.