What's New in Incentives and Performance Improvement

August 2008

Apple Launches Itself into Incentives Business

Apple’s iPod line of products has been a staple of employee recognition and corporate promotional products since the first generation iPod took off in 2002. But it has mostly been third-party motivational services companies that have reaped the benefits of having the much-coveted MP3 player in their catalogs. After testing the waters at the 2007 Motivation Show in Chicago, however, the computing giant rolled out is own corporate program in May following a “soft” debut earlier this year. Apple’s new initiative is called the Apple Gifting and Rewards Program, and it allows companies to purchase promotion and awards packages consisting of iPods, iPod accessories and iTunes gift certificates. Using the slogan, “Get Results. Get Apple.” the company is also is pushing the iPod as part of an employee training program, as well as the focus of a points-driven program. IPods must be ordered in batches of 50, while other Apple hardware has no minimums. Companies can also have the company pre-load iPods with corporate-generated content for a $10-per-unit fee.

For information about the Apple Corporate Gifting and Rewards Program, call 1-877-275-IPOD.

Great Place to Work Recognizes European Firms

The Great Place to Work Institute, the organization that compiles Fortune magazine’s annual “Best Places to Work” issue, has recognized a series of European companies in a special event held in May. For companies with 500 or more employees, the top firms are: Microsoft, Google, Cisco, 3M and Impuls Finanzmanagement. The best small- to mid-sized workplaces are: Reaktor Innovations, ConSol Software, 4Flow, Piscines Ideales, and &Samhoud. A common quality of the top-ranked companies is openness of management, according to the Financial Times, which sponsored the Institute’s European effort. In Microsoft’s case, 90% of employees at the company’s Dutch division agreed that they could “ask management any reasonable question and get a straight answer.” In the case of the Reaktor Innovations, the Institute cited the company’s extraordinary efforts to retain quality employees – satellite offices in western Finland and in Buenos Aires were created for the sole purpose of retaining top talent.

A full rundown of the Institute’s European winners is available at www.FT.com, under the newspaper’s Special Reports section for May 28.

Safety Incentives Reduce Employee Mishaps

Incentives work when it comes to getting employees to pay attention to safety. According to a recent study of truck drivers by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, safety incentives reduced insurance claims by an astounding 65% at trucking firms utilizing such programs. And there are other benefits: “Incentive programs that offer progressively increasing safety bonuses for longer periods of crash-free operation would give drivers a material reason for staying with their employers rather than moving to another place of work, where they would have to start again to accumulate safety credits,” says the report. Companies that felt strongest about safety found the best success by combining financial incentives with recognition incentives. In fact, recognition incentives are seen as a key to building employee pride in safety, says Ray Barton, co-author of Incentive Programs for Enhancing Truck Safety and Productivity, on the Canadian website TruckNews.com.

What Are the Most Desired Incentive Products?

In its Spring newsletter, Hinda Incentives listed the most in-demand products from its incentive and motivation programs through 2007. The top five most redeemed items, in terms of units shipped, were the Apple iPod, Bose In-Ear headphones, various models of digital cameras and the Coby Digital Photo Frame. The list of most redeemed items in terms of dollars was again headed by the iPod, followed by the Bose Wave Radio, various digital camera models, the Bose SoundDock System (for iPods) and the Emerilware 10-piece cookset. Other popular items noted by Hinda were the Garmin portable GPS, Panasonic 50-inch plasma television and the Hamilton-Beach slow cooker.

The company also reported that ecologically-friendly products are becoming increasingly attractive to employees in motivation programs, so much so that the company is attending the EarthNow trade show in Las Vegas this month.

Advice for Weathering Employee Dismissals

In a slumping economy, more and more companies are faced with the prospect of laying off workers. Few things can be more demoralizing to employees than to see co-workers laid off or fired. In Pink, a magazine for professional women, writer Lori Johnston points out that certain methods of terminating employees can mitigate the damage to worker morale. For example:

• Don’t: Make the dismissal personal. Focus on how their actions are affecting the business.
• Don’t: Be defensive. Let employees vent, but don’t respond to their complaints.
• Do: Have a third person present. Having a witness heads of potential lawsuits.
• Do: Dismiss people early in the week. It gives other employees a chance to ask questions rather than letting their fears grow over a weekend.
• Do: Dismiss people at the end of the day, when fewer colleagues will be around to see any potential nastiness that may result.

Getting Gen Y and Gen X Engaged

Attracting, retaining and engaging so-called Gen Y worker (those born after 1982) is becoming an increasingly important issue as Baby Boomers start to retire. According to two executives in charge of employee motivation at HealthOne, Gen Y employees are more focused on work-life balance than prior generations. The executives, Roger W. Smith, VP of Human Resources at HealthOne’s Continental Division, and Courtney Sherwin, HealthOne’s Director of Total Rewards, say Gen Yers aren’t likely to stick with the same employer for very long and are less enamored with authority figures within the company. Members of this generation tend to think, “I want a life first, and then I'll work.” To that end, companies seeking to attract this demographic should focus on life/work balance and (if the job allows) let employees choose their work location and hours. For Gen Xers, Smith and Sherwin note that they’re very family-centric and often face hurdles with caring for children, so day care and time off to attend children’s events are highly valued. The pair also say companies that adapted to these two generations’ preferences have seen big payoffs. UPS, for instance, implemented flexible schedules and realized a reduction in turnover from 50% to just 6%, while Children’s Health System saved 4,020 workdays after implementing a back-up child care program. Smith and Sherwin detailed their approach during a presentation at the World at Work Total Rewards Conference in Philadelphia in May.

Not All Wellness Programs Drive Employee Engagement

Simply having an employee wellness program doesn’t mean it will boost employee engagement, says Sean Slovenski, CEO of Hummingbird Coaching Services. Among the factors Slovenski says have been shown to improve wellness programs are:

• Convenience: Employees are much more likely to be engaged and make meaningful lifestyle choices when they can easily connect with their health coaches. Organizations that incorporate online communications in their health coaching initiatives will do much to increase engagement.
  
  
• Increased Interactions: Research and common sense shows the more interaction, the more accountability – and the greater likelihood of success.
  
  
• Motivation: A health coaching program that employs techniques that assess human motivation and a person’s “readiness to change” will increase adherence and realization of goals.
  
  
• Use of Positive Psychology: Being able to identify and leverage their strengths to change behavior and achieve goals empowers employees. Such an approach removes the shame or stigma that may be linked with an unhealthful behavior or condition and provides tools for real change.

Industry Events

September 23-25
The Motivation Show
Chicago, IL
http://www.motivationshow.com/

October 6-7
Brand ManageCamp
Las Vegas, NV
http://www.managecamp.com/bmc2008/

October 11-16
DMA '08 Conference & Exhibition
Las Vegas, NV
http://www.dma08.org/

November 18-19
Extending Your Brand to Employees Conference
Chicago, IL
http://www.conference-board.org/conferences/conference.cfm?id=1727&nav=hr

In the Current Issue of Motivation Strategies

Don Peppers Discusses Connectivity, Engagement and the Power of Positivity
Don Peppers and Martha Rogers, co-authors of Rules to Break and Laws to Follow: How Your Business Can Beat the Crisis of Short-Termism, argue that a "customer centric" strategy starts with networked culture and engaged employees – employees who enjoy their work and take pride in it, and who have the right tools, the right information and the right training, support and reinforcement. Motivation Strategies recently sat down with Peppers, who will also be the keynote speaker for the Brand Engagement Conference at this year's New York Incentive, Rewards & Recognition Show, May 7-8. He discussed why employee engagement – and encouraging a networked culture and an attitude of "positivity" – is critically important to companies that want to succeed in today's fast-paced and highly competitive marketplace. To read the full article, click here.

Gift Card Marketers Respond to Sharper Image Bankruptcy
Will gift card marketers see their product’s popularity take a hit in light of new concerns over redeemability? A recent Associated Press story concerning The Sharper Image’s Chapter 11 filing on February 19 focused on the fact that the retailer’s gift cards are no longer being honored, branding them “worthless pieces of plastic.” Despite the problems presented by the Sharper Image bankruptcy, industry insiders believe the popularity of gift cards will remain strong. “Gift cards continue to be a vital part of the American shopping scene and are still the preferred choice of award and incentive recipients,” says Deborah Merkin, Chief Operating Officer of GiftCard Partners, Inc., adding that it’s always a good idea to do your homework before selecting a retailer: “The gift card market mirrors the retail environment – it’s incumbent upon consumers and program directors to choose merchants wisely.” To read the full article, click here.

A Look at Brands from Both Sides of the Glass
Mark Schumann, one of the Keynoters at this year’s Brand Engagement Conference in New York City, says that while external branding gets most of the money and attention, internal branding is just as important. He says that a brand is at its most powerful when it reaches beyond the product to represent an idea emerging from the soul of the business. When purpose reaches beyond the sale to advance the relationship – to engage you, first on a functional level for being reliable, and then on an emotional level that will touch your feelings. Real brand power occurs when the brand reaches you inspirationally; when you connect with the “big idea” the business and brand stand for. To read the full article, click here.

How to Gain the ‘Loyalty Advantage’
What do American Express, Harley-Davidson, Waterford, Ben & Jerry’s, KitchenAid and Whole Foods have in common? They’re all companies that sell more than products – they are part of a lifestyle that customers can identify with. Over time, these companies have created a synergistic relationship with their customers, so that the experiences customers have with the product – as well as with the retail stores carrying it, customer service, billing, catalogs and every other touch point – reinforce their belief in the brand and its ability to change, improve, or maintain their quality of life. In an excerpt from her book, The Loyalty Advantage, Brand Engagement Conference speaker Dianne Durkin reveals what one of these popular brands can teach us about loyalty. To read the full article, click here.

About Selling Communications Inc.

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.

Take advantage of these SCI services to improve your business development:

• Results Marketing Agency Solutions: Identify and get permission to communicate with the people who matter most through an integrated program rooted in permission-driven databases, direct mail, e-mail, Web sites, brochures, newsletters, public relations and sophisticated telephone sales that produce results. Go beyond the traditional sales and marketing approach by providing useful information and resources to build better, more measurable relationships.
  
  
• Target media: Build your brand and bring it directly to your power buyers through our stable of established niche print and online magazines in the sales, marketing and meetings fields (including this newsletter), the Sales Marketing Network at Info-now.com and SMERF Meetings Journal.
  
  
• Integrated Communications Technology: Build permission-based databases through Solata software to effectively communicate with the people who want to hear from you and precisely track the results in real time. Solata is also available to other media companies and marketing agencies seeking to profit from integrated, permission-based marketing and communications.

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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