Non-cash incentives are being tapped as a way to both control spending and motivate employees and channel partners in an economy defined by growing austerity. The average employee cash incentive award is now $732 – triple the cost of non-cash awards, according to preliminary findings of a new joint study about incentive awards conducted by the Incentive Research Foundation (IRF) and the Incentive Federation. Although full results won't be available until later this summer, several key findings were unveiled at the IRF's annual Incentive Invitational held recently in Las Vegas. Some highlights:
For more information, go to www.TheIRF.org
The Motivation Show has announced the schedule of more than 50 topics for its highly regarded conference program running on Tuesday, October 4, and Wednesday, October 5, at McCormick Place West in Chicago. The 5thAnnual Conference: Connecting Engagement, Loyalty, and Financial Results, will feature a series of 75-minute professional seminars in five learning tracks: Employee Recognition; Customer Loyalty; Meeting & Event Management; Sales Motivation; and Training. Conference Director Donna Oldenburg says that attendees at the 2011 Motivation Show will be able to select from dynamic sessions focused on the hottest issues in employee engagement, customer loyalty and meetings and event management, including, gaming, mobile technology, social media and hybrid meetings. She also notes that G.J. Hart, President and CEO of Texas Roadhouse, will be The 2011 Motivation Show's Keynote Luncheon speaker on Tuesday, October 4. His presentation is entitled Standing by His Convictions: How One CEO Put His People First in the Face of Negative Public Opinion. Complete details about the Conference and Tuesday Keynote Luncheon are at www.motivationshow.com.
Meeting Professionals International (MPI) has released its Business Value of Meetings study, which identifies key benchmarks including: percentage of businesses that measure, barriers to implementation, crucial programming elements for organizational success and key skills needed for personal success. After interviewing 261 corporations in 27 countries, researchers found that less than 10% of meetings are currently measured for business value. The deciding factor of whether to measure or not is whether the business goals for the meeting focus on specific return on investment (ROI). When faced with meetings or events that don't have clear financial objectives, meetings are often dismissed as immeasurable, when in fact this study found business value of meetings can be measured whether relying upon ROI or not. More info at www.mpiweb.org/bvom
The first AIBTM wrapped up its 3-day run at the Baltimore Convention Center on June 23, and early signs from the show floor and education sessions indicated that the event exceeded everyone's expectations. With 789 exhibitors from 52 countries, the show was actually 40% larger than the original floor plan. A total of 740 hosted Buyers from Asia, Europe, South and North America scheduled more than 11,000 appointments during the event, which included over 800 registered trade buyers and 66 media representatives. "We really enjoyed the appointments," said Liz Erikson, Executive Director, Meeting & Incentives – North America, Fairmont Hotels. "The Hosted Buyer program with the appointment schedule is really an added benefit to a trade show. We're rebooking for next year because of that quality. There are many industries represented you don't just have associations, but you [also] have a lot of incentive houses that have come, and a lot of third parties. I think it's an excellent meeting place and I think with the proper nurturing this show will grow." View more follow-up coverage at www.aibtm.com
Members of a leading trans-Atlantic joint venture – Delta Air Lines, KLM, Air France and Alitalia – recently announced a 7%-9% reduction in trans-Atlantic passenger capacity between Europe and the U.S./Canada beginning this fall. This is in response to a significant increase in jet fuel prices and fluctuating seasonal demand. The four airlines will adjust their combined network and decrease capacity by reducing frequency on selected routes during the fall and winter seasons and right-sizing the joint venture fleet across the Atlantic while introducing seasonal flying to warm weather destinations. The alliance also has consolidated reservation sales responsibilities in Europe and the U.S., co-located commercial and operating teams and airport facilities, unified signage in more than 400 airports and combined marketing and advertising. Ore info on the web at www.klm.com/corporate/en/newsroom/
How is technology shaping the modern travel consumer? Well, 75% of leisure travelers look to the Internet for travel information – but do they find too much information or not enough to make an informed decision? A recent Travelport study, The Well Connected Traveller, reveals rapid changes in consumer behavior. Want to find out what 62% of travelers are doing now that they probably weren't doing at all five years ago? Travelport engaged The Futures Company to conduct global research into the end-to-end travel process consumers undertake, from inspiration to shopping to booking to post-trip evaluation. Some highlights:
For more information, go to www.travelport.com/customer_community.aspx
The June/July issue of Engagement Strategies Magazine is out! Here's a look at what you'll find inside:
Author and engagement guru Richard Axelrod talks about the collaborative effort that's essential in creating an enduring engagement culture. To make sure you get your copy of Engagement Strategies Magazine, go to www.enterpriseengagement.org/account/login/ and update your subscription today!
Amazon may be gone, but its legacy is still around in the form of higher expectations and increased automation. Here's how the industry is filling the gap. Read more in the current issue of Engagement Strategies Magazine.
Here's how Mountain States Health Alliance transformed itself into an organization that not only provides quality patient care, but is also considered a great place to work.
A new White Paper, How Social Media is Changing Corporate Performance, discusses how lessons learned from Social Media are helping corporate employee-engagement experts capitalize on the momentum in self-motivated, peer-driven participation. Corporate recognition, rewards and incentive programs for employees are actually the unsung pioneers of the kind of 'social points' activity like we see in Social Media games like Farmville and others. By leveraging the power of online systems, corporations can provide a familiar social environment similar to those in which people have already chosen to engage during their own time. You can bring the power of Social Behaviors to your employees by offering intrinsic/extrinsic motivation rewards and recognition programs. Peer-to-Peer awards let people recognize each other. Team-based activities allow for relationship-building and trust. Wellness programs show that you care about employees' health challenges and that you want to help through education and online tools. Open 'suggestion programs' accelerate innovation by creating a meritocracy. To view the full report, go to www.dittmanincentives.com
Does your organization have a transactional website to handle bulk sales of merchandise to qualified buyers or points programs for incentive companies? The incentive industry is one of the few areas of business that doesn't have a true transactional model to support its end-users and incentive companies. The Corporate Rewards Exchange is a cooperative effort of leading brands, incentive fulfillment firms and incentive companies to build a new distribution channel for sale of gifts to corporations, incentive companies and marketing services firms. The CRE enables brands to tap into a large ad hoc market for bulk gifts and rewards in a way they can carefully control, providing a powerful means for incentive companies to more effectively use their products in reward programs via a highly automated billing, redemption, tracking and customer service system. It's designed to support all of the current players in the incentive marketplace by providing a more efficient means of offering rewards to end-users and incentive companies, at a very low cost. For more information, please contact us for a demo.
Selling Communications, Inc. is a fully integrated, target marketing, media and technology agency that improves results for clients by focusing on the people who matter most. We can help your business grow and save you money by targeting key prospects, getting their permission and strategically integrating your marketing and sales communications with the specific audiences most likely to affect your business performance.
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For more information on Selling Communications, its products and services, contact Jim Kilmetis at 914-591-7600, ext. 229 or send an e-mail to jkilmetis@sellingcommunications.com.
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