Today almost everything is measurable. And that ability has driven a almost maniacal focus on numbers, return, percentages, etc. Everything has a number attached to it. Run an incentive program and without a doubt the goals are numbers, the rewards are numerical (points, dollars, credits.) But numbers do funny things.
Numbers turn on a portion of our brain that evaluates and makes judgments about value and relationships. Offer 10 points per sale and the first thing a participant does is determine if the ratio of points to effort is equitable. So what can you do?
But some effort into the emotional connection to the objective. I was reminded of this by Ron Shelvin (his blog: Ron Shelvin's Marketing Whims) in this post - Are Financial Services Firms Emotionally Tone Deaf?
Ron's post talks about a study highlighted in the book Made To Stick (see my post on the book here) where people were paid $5.00 to take a survey and then asked to donate a portion to charity. One group received a letter that talked about the statistics around giving to the charity. Another group got a letter that told a story about a girl and how the charity would help her. The "story" letter got double the donations! The emotional plea drove greater results than the rational plea.
One more thing... yet another group was sent a letter that combined the two approaches - a bit rational, a bit emotional. Results? I bet you think it was even better. You're wrong. It was still less than the emotional alone. But... and it is a big but... it was a full 25% better than the rational alone.
The point is that focusing solely on the "numbers" in a program can drive results. But throw in a story with an emotional appeal and you can increase your program success.
Communicate how a past award earner used the awards to take a second honeymoon. Highlight the person who used their points on a backyard BBQ and had a graduation party for their son/daughter.
Connect to your audience's emotional center.
You can't get around putting a value on the earning potential in a program - but you can put more effort into communicating success in the program through stories that touch an emotional chord.
