Cold Showers and Incentive Planning

Ever take a shower with the knob turned to ALL cold water?

How about with the knob at ALL hot water? 

Neither of those options sounds very pleasant and in fact could cause a 3rd degree kind of harm.  Ouch!

I’m also betting that in some cases you want a shower that is hotter than normal – say when your back is bothering you or when you want to relieve some stress.  In other cases you may want a cooler than normal shower in order to cool off from working in the yard or because – well, we’ll leave that to the imagination.

The point is this – the temperature in the shower is a function of the ratio of cold and hot water and the context in which it is delivered.

Luke-Warm Reward Programs

After spending a few days at an industry conference (more posts to come on this) it occurred to me that many incentive companies and many providers would just as soon see you freeze to death or burn yourself until you look like Freddy Kruger.  

Depending on who you talk to you’ll hear – merchandise is best; gift cards are best; travel is best.  

Let me set the record completely and clearly straight...

Nothing is BEST

Like the shower, your mix of award options is a function of the context in which you’re using them.  

• Long-term strategy?  
• Short-term sales boost?  
• Reinforce corporate values?  
• Distribution channel or employee?  

The specific answers to each of these questions will drive varying program designs and varying award options.  

If you tell me you want to influence employees over a long period of time I might recommend a program with an award currency that can be saved or spent over a period of time allowing the participants to accumulate and redeem for larger award options.  If you’re looking at a one-time promotion focused on the distribution channel I might recommend a gift card solution.  If you want to reinforce an overall company value tied to an overall recognition culture I might recommend a group travel award with regional travel awards below it and some other non-cash awards.* 

(* All program prior program award recommendations are illustrative - your mileage will depend on your company culture, audience, goals, timing, etc., etc., etc.)

In other words – don’t take a cold shower when you need a hot one.  Don’t take a hot shower when you need a cold one.  

And the biggest mistake of all – don’t take a luke-warm shower all the time.  By keeping your shower handle in the middle you miss out on all the benefits your shower can provide.

Same goes with your incentive and reward activity.  Sticking with the “middle” assures you that you won’t get the best results – or the worst.  

You’ll just end up with middle of the road results - not the results you want and deserve.

Comments

[Drew Hawkins]

I think you nailed it on the head. In some instances merchandise would fit better for a program when in other cases it wouldn't be near as effective.

Obviously companies that say "gift cards are best" or "merch is best" are ones that emphasize those programs in their revenue. It makes sense for a company (from a branding perspective) to push what they sell. Doing otherwise would almost be like Dominos saying "Pizza is a great family meal but you need chicken, so get your next meal at KFC."

Or does it make sense to push other things in the name of trust building?

Either way, you're right that one size doesn't fit all. It's a matter of finding out which works best.

[Trish McFarlane]

Love that you put this in terms that are easy to relate to. I find that companies often go to extremes and the idea that they needs to keep changing it up based on business needs is something I wish more organizations would embrace. Recognition and incentives should not be something that we look at once then throw on the shelf and expect it to keep working regardless of whether we're hot, cold, or somewhere in between. Nice post.

[Paul Hebert]

As a provider I think your #1 priority is to build trust. Long-term that's the only sustainable business model. To blindly recommend your solution when others are better or more effective in some instances just trades short-term sales for long-term profit. IMHO.

Even KFC would admit that breakfast isn't a "finger licking" event. Play to your strengths and allow others to do the same - and treat your clients like adults - tell the truth and help!

Helping is always a good strategy.

[Paul Hebert]

Right on my Ringleader friend. Rewards/recognition/incentives need to be "dialed in" on a regular basis. Your goal is constantly adjust based on the context. And you're right - we need to evaluate more often than what normally occurs. Business moves faster than a once every three year audit. So should your reward strategy.

[Drew Hawkins]

Good point. Trust building hardly ever backfires on anyone.