Incentive - March 2008 - (Page 46)

2008 Incentive Gift Card Roundtable NASCAR deal—because we are highly involved with NASCAR—and so the card will be able to be used at our own store and it could be redeemed at the track. I think people will like that option. We just feel that some of these cards, the unusual cards, have some tremendous possibilities in the upcoming future. Every year it’s the same thing, gift cards are being touted as more popular than ever. Do you see this trajectory as something that will continue or do you anticipate a plateau within the near future? JC Penney: I am again going to hone in on my area of expertise, the b2b market, but the whole industry, the whole concept of incentives being used in corporations to improve performance has not even reached a plateau yet. I think the last Incentive Federation study of 2007 said 34 percent of the companies surveyed use travel or merchandise incentive programs. The whole aim of the Incentive Marketing Association is to increase awareness of the effectiveness of doing that. Hallmark Insights: I would also note that in the b2b space we are just at the tip of the iceberg here, and if you look at the last Incentive Federation study, gift cards were the most effective method or technique used by large companies. There is still a low penetration of gift cards in the incentive space, and with the avalanche of acceptance by the consumer, I think more and more companies plan on incorporating gift cards to their incentive offerings, or in turn, supplanting some of the other offerings that they may have had. So I think that shift is just beginning to happen in the b2b space. Disney: I would just like to add right on top of that the satisfaction of gift cards with employees is also generating and fueling that growth. Q For the complete roundtable transcript, go to INCENTIVEMAG.COM/GIFT_CARD 46 | Incentive | March 2008 | incentivemag.com http://INCENTIVEMAG.COM/GIFT_CARD http://incentivemag.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Incentive - March 2008

Incentive - March 2008 Contents Editor’s Note: Delivering on Diversity In The News Cover Story: Leveraging Diversity in the Workplace Incentive Interview: Paul Levesque on Why Awards Fail Case Study: AEIS’ Max!-imum Incentive Program Mine Employees’ Creativity with Innovation Incentives Incentive Must-Reads The Third Annual Gift Card Roundtable My Turn: Motivation or Bribery? Everybody Get Together In Her Shoes: Why Bosses Should Be Flexible Incentive Primer: Passport Problem-Solving potentials Here and Now Is CES Electronics Heaven? China and Crystal: More Than a Pretty Face Travel News Florida: What’s New on the Beach? Smooth Sailing for Incentive Cruising Come To Hawaii And Take It Fast Last Word: But Enough About You

Incentive - March 2008

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