Incentive - April 2008 - (Page 54) THE INCENTIVE MERCHANDISE BUYER’S HANDBOOK CHAPTER 3 Choosing the Merchandise Awards A Web-based catalog provides the freedom to continually update and renovate the information and graphic influences presented to the program’s participants. objective among respondents (61.9 percent) for using merchandise awards, followed by thanking clients (50 percent), building morale (47.4 percent), and increasing sales (45.4 percent). In order to accomplish those priorities, respondents dipped into a trove of product categories, running from popular mainstays like apparel (offered in 54.2 percent of the respondents’ programs), trophies (41.6 percent), and electronics (34.7 percent) to more niche areas like toys, cookware, and home furnishings. Worth noting for cost effectiveness: More than half of the electronics purchases fell within the $500 and under category, well within the range of top MP3s and PDAs. Over a third of electronics purchases fell in at $100 or less, indicating that you can find a happy medium between price and value. Also of interest was the survey’s “other” category (34.7 percent), a mixed-bag of merchandise that may signal a trend toward more products such as art, music (and musical accessories), and sports and pop culture memorabilia, items that lie outside the typical incentive-box categories but can register emotionally with recipients. That link to the recipient becomes even stronger when the gift—e.g., a ceramic plate, handmade blanket, CD of photos and music—is tastefully branded with a simple thank-you and/or corporate logo. MADE TO ORDER: AWARD CATALOGS It’s a no-brainer that merchandise makes the best impact via catalog. What does involve considerable grey matter, however, is the manner in which that catalog is designed and promoted. While print catalogs are still viable, online has been the direction for many programs. The move to Internet showcasing continues to be strong for a variety of reasons and almost any size program. From a company’s perspective, a Web-based catalog provides the freedom to continually update and renovate the information and graphic influences presented to the program’s partici- pants. If an incentive runs from June through December, it only makes sense to take calendar and seasonal changes into account even if the adjustments are minor. Santa’s cachet promoting DVDs, stemware, and leather goods loses its luster come December 26th. For those involved with the program’s planning and administrative process, being online-based also saves time, a valuable commodity. With surveys revealing that everyone from presidents to marketing managers and HR reps to executive assistants playing a role, that is no small benefit. Online catalogs also allow companies to get creative with their ancillary information. Again, flexibility is the key element here—you can change out fading or stale products and replace them with trendy, cutting-edge items quickly, repeatedly, and with supporting text and visuals that drive home your pitch. Why just post images of Rossignol skis when you can throw in a schussing scene and such supplemental text as ski reports from Killington and Whistler? There’s an ease about using online catalogs that makes them enticing to participants. You can offer a line-up of low-key styled leather goods, with a handful of edgier choices thrown in for those hipper participants. Online’s flexibility allows you to highlight and promote those somewhat off-the-wall items—e.g., a fringe suede jacket or studded cowboy boots—to entice the attention of hard-working participants with unique fashion flair. The online component makes it easier for winners to redeem their merchandise as well. Although few will dispute the success of an online catalog, print isn’t quite dead yet. While 47.3 percent of respondents to Incentive’s recent survey reported using online methods, 52.2 percent said that they continued using print catalogs. Print catalogs can work particularly well with seasonal programs and for niche markets and products. I ASSISTANCE FOR THIS ARTICLE WAS PROVIDED BY MARK BERNSTEIN, SENIOR MERCHANDISER AT CARLSON MARKETING IN MINNEAPOLIS, MN; ARNOLD H. LIGHT, CTC, FOUNDER OF THE LIGHT GROUP INC. IN WHITE PLAINS, NY; DICK GAETA, PRESIDENT OF PREMIER INCENTIVES IN MARBLEHEAD, MA; AND MARY ANN MANN, DIRECTOR OF AWARD SERVICES FOR USMOTIVATION IN ATLANTA. 54 | April 2008 SPECIAL SECTION
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