MOTIVATION
Ten Tips for Maximizing Your Sales Incentive Program
CRAIG DEWOLF
Many organizations think of their sales incentive programs as static entities. Once designed, the programs often are not reviewed and updated reg- ularly. As a result, there are increasing challenges to validate the programs’ performance or improve ROI. This is particularly true when designing incen- tive programs to motivate direct sales teams or independent channel partners, including dealers, distributors, and resellers.
If you’re not keeping up with competi- tive programs, you are falling behind. Without intending to, sales manag- ers may be ignoring simple ways to maximize ROI from their incentive
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programs – without increasing their existing budgets. Others may not even be clear on what they are get- ting out of their existing programs – and can’t quantify any ROI.
Below is a list of best practices that will help you get the most from your sales incentive program. Whether you are running sales incentive programs for your direct sales teams or indirect chan- nels, the following 10 principles apply:
1. REWARD FOR SALES BEHAVIORS AS WELL AS SALES.
Everyone wants to drive more sales with their incentive programs. Most sales incentive programs focus their reward investment on post-sale re- wards; however, a growing trend is to reward key behaviors that drive more sales – albeit at a lower reward value. There are dozens of potential behaviors and factors to consider, including activities such as training, lead follow-up, reporting new op- portunities, and providing demos or
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