Sales incentive programs, including SPIFs, spurts and promotions, are critical for driving motivation and performance among sales teams. In fact, the Incentive Research Foundation reports 90% of top-performing organizations use incentives to reward sales associates, including channel partners.
However, with channel market competition increasing, you need to influence desired behaviors earlier in the partner relationship to increase participation, engagement and profitable partnerships.
To help you create an impactful sales incentive program, here are eight effective ideas I’ve seen that go beyond traditional "sell X, get Y" promotions.
Successful sales incentive program ideas
1. Game plays
Take your sales incentive program to the next level by adding fun and impactful games that compensate partners for doing the things you want them to do (e.g., contact leads, add to the funnel, etc.). Little (or potentially big) rewards keep the program top of mind for busy partners and reinforce desired behaviors.
Related: Discover the value of implementing gamification and points rewards programs.
2. Push/pull strategy
Motivate program owners/managers and sales reps at the same time. Offer incentives to sales reps for meeting targets, while also rewarding leadership for driving sales rep participation. This creates alignment and encourages support from the top down.
Related: See how our automotive aftermarket parts distributor client used a push/pull strategy to drive engagement and gain mindshare.
3. Team-based qualifiers
Foster collaboration with team-based goals, where everyone is working toward a shared objective. For example, require the entire team to complete a certain percentage of training before individuals become eligible for rewards. Use measurable metrics to guide the goals, with regular short-term and long-term reviews to provide insight on what’s working and what’s not.
4. Gated points
Use gated points, or pre-qualifications, to motivate partners to complete training or take specific actions. This approach encourages key behaviors that contribute to overall sales success, like taking quizzes about the solutions or requiring a minimum service score. The pre-qualifications not only help the reps sell, but also increase your company’s frequency in products sold and other key metrics. These incentives are often seen with training gates, satisfaction scores, service repair KPIs, lead response times and minimum sales levels.
5. Personalized goal setting
Allow sales reps and partners to set their own goals and choose their rewards. Personalization increases motivation and gives reps a sense of ownership over their performance.
6. Exclusive travel incentives and experiential rewards
Offer high-value travel rewards or can't-do-on-their-own experiences for top performers. This can be especially effective for motivating seasoned sales reps, who may no longer be excited by traditional incentives.
7. Point multipliers
Give increased rewards for sales above a certain threshold. Whether you want to prove a strong ROI or care for margin-specific payouts, point multipliers help push people over a performance plateau. For example, if you see most reps only submit five sales or activities, offer increased rewards after hitting six or more to renew their motivation.
8. Friendly competitions
Tap into sales reps' competitive nature by organizing head-to-head contests or leaderboard challenges. Set specific metrics and time periods to keep the competition engaging and focused.
Building an effective sales incentive program
While the eight ideas above are all good on their own, consider which ones (or which combination) will most impact your program participants. Follow these four steps to get the most out of your incentive program.
1. Understand your audience’s motivations
Take time to get to know your partner sales teams and understand what they value. Use pulse surveys, past redemption analysis and demographic information to determine what sales incentive promotions to run and what awards to offer.
Related: Learn what you need to know about neuroscience and motivation.
2. Align your incentive program strategy to base compensation and annual promotions
Make sure there’s a compelling reason for partners to participate. Most sales incentive programs live side-by-side with compensation plans and other annual or ongoing promotions. How does your incentive program interact with those rule structures and earnings? How will you be able to gain mindshare and drive engagement? Considering these factors in advance will help you create a harmonious program that maximizes your investment.
3. Demonstrate program ROI to decision-makers
Use your program data and sales goal promotions to show what success looks like. Present the investment and anticipated outcomes to decision-makers and program owners to demonstrate the program’s value.
Related: Set the right goals for sales incentive programs.
4. Communicate the program and promotions
Tell everyone eligible for the promotion about your incentive program and its objectives. Articulate the promotion in a way that resonates. Communications should focus on the desired participant behavior needed and what value partners get out of performing that behavior.
Related: Read best practices for to-partner marketing communications.
Budgeting for your sales incentive program
Creating a realistic budget is crucial for a successful sales incentive program. But I often hear it can be challenging to know what your budget should be and if it will move the needle. That’s why we built our customizable incentive program budget calculator to do the math for you. Our experts are also happy to guide you through exercises to make a pragmatic budget that’s personalized to your needs and audience.
Ready to get started planning your sales incentive program? Try the personalized incentive budget calculator.