Articles Business

How to Create Employee Incentive Programs

employee incentive programs

When you recognize your employees, it leads to higher retention and employee happiness. There are many ways that you can recognize your employees, but a great way to do this is to develop an incentive program for your employees. Do you want to learn about the types of employee recognition and incentives? Keep reading these steps to creating employee incentive programs. 

Create Goals and Objectives

Before starting a program of any kind, you want to create goals and objectives. Having employee incentive programs almost doesn’t matter if you do not align the incentives you are offering with the objectives of your business. 

For example, to create an effective incentive program, you want your employee encouragement to give you things that you can actually use. If your company wants to increase sales and you may want to create an incentive for lead generation. 

If your company needs more employees, you may create an incentive for referring new employees. By creating incentives that align with your company goals, you will benefit a lot more. 

Think About Your Audience 

Next, you want to think about your audience. Your audience is the people or employees that can help you achieve your business goals. Whoever your audience is will be the people who participate in your program. 

For example, if your new employees are the ones that can help with your goals, you may want to consider new hire solutions that can incentivize your team. Depending on your audience, the program and the prizes or incentives will differ. 

For example, some people in your company may prefer to get prizes out of a raffle. However, others may prefer bonuses or some other form of reward. Depending on your audience, your program needs will vary. 

Find Ways to Involve Others

To create an effective employee incentive program, you want to find ways to involve others. Getting input from people who will be participating in your program is a great way to see what motivates them!

For example, if you are doing an incentive program for your sales team, you may want to get a representative involved. You can ask them for input on what rewards they and their coworkers would enjoy, how you can help engage them. 

It is also great to get involvement from other leaders of your company. Showing your employees that the entire company is involved in this program is a great motivator!

Set a Budget

Before you kick off your reward program and announce it to your employees, it is vital that you set a budget for your campaign! This will help you structure your entire campaign. 

To set a budget, you need to carefully decide what you want to include. For example, how many prizes or rewards do you want to offer? Do you want to have a few big rewards or several small rewards? 

Having a budget will also help you as you promote your program. If you are working with a large group of people, you may need to spend more money on marketing materials. Having a budget is a vital step to take before you launch your program. 

Have Different Reward Options

Whether your company uses bonuses, holiday gifting, or even employee points, you need to have different reward options for different people. Your employees are not all the same. They have different likes and dislikes, so they will also have different things that incentivize them. 

If you target your program incentives to one specific group, no one else will help you reach your goals. You need to make sure each audience at your company is motivated for their employee incentive. 

If you typically give bonuses during the holidays, you may also consider using an employee gifting incentive. Depending on the preferences of your target audiences, they can choose an incentive that works best for them. 

Promote Your Program

Finally, you need to constantly promote your incentive program. If your workers do not know about the program, they will not be able to help you reach your goals. 

When you first create your incentive program, you should consider holding a program kickoff. This can help you get your employees excited, you can tell them about the reward options, and you can find new ways to communicate in the future. 

While it is important to spread awareness at the beginning of your incentive program, it is equally important to keep reminding your employees of the rewards and the goals. By keeping the information at the top of their minds, they are more likely to stay motivated and reach goals!

There are many ways you can promote your employee incentive program. You can put up flyers over the office, have an email list, and continually make special announcements! When you generate a lot of excitement at the beginning of your incentive program and throughout the life of the program, you will find that it is much more successful. 

Learn More About Employee Incentive Programs Today

Learning how to create an employee incentive program that works can give you happier employees and more productivity. It is important that you set goals and a budget, focus on your target audience, and promote your program. 

Whether you need help with an employee incentive program, onboarding, and more, Givenly can help! We offer branded and personalized gifts that are sure to keep your employees happy and fulfilled. Contact us today to learn more about our products!