Incentive - January 2009 - (Page 59)

AWARDS A Hole in One for Employee Motivation Total Golf Store, based in Chanhassen, Minn., offers an online pointsbased platform that companies can customize with their logo or incentive program name to reinforce the winners’ connection to the company. Frank Postic, the Total Golf Store’s vice president and general manager, says that nearly 80 percent of the company’s sales come from gift certificates. He believes that since serious golfers are very particular about their equipment, often a certificate for golf merchandise can be the most effective reward for an avid golfer. “They purchase what they want and that’s the power of the program,” says Postic. “Instead of giving them a driver when they already have one, or that’s not their brand or what they need, they get to select from some 10,000 different options and customizations… It’s not a one-sizefits-all reward.” Another advantage of the online catalog system is that participants can see what’s available prior to winning their award. Postic has heard about employees who go online and see an item they really want that’s in a higher price bracket, pushing them to boost their sales or performance even further than they would have initially. The certificates can range from $25 to as high as a company likes. Postic mentions one pharmaceutical company client that awarded several $2,500 golf gift certificates to its salespeople who had exceeded their annual goals. “They could choose from two or three [different rewards] but they were golfers and wanted to essentially buy a new game,” says Postic. “Now they had enough to do it! So they bought the drivers, the wedges, the irons and bags and everything else.” Burton’s stand-up golf bag Take it to the Course Then, of course, there is the gift of actual golf: individual or group gift cards for golf courses make for meaningful experiential awards that employees won’t soon forget. Jack Sims, author of the forthcoming book You Can’t See Your Backswing: How to Win at Business and Golf, who was also a founder and CEO of marketing firm Alcone Sims O’Brien (now Alcone Marketing) sees time out of the office as a reward in itself. The fact that it comes from a manager or the company is an added bonus. “To say, ‘Take a day off and go and enjoy a round of golf,’ is very special, and people really want that,” says Sims. He says golf events were hugely popular with Alcone Sims O’Brien clients and employees. Even those who aren’t enthusiastic about golf can enjoy a day on the green, and for those who want to get better, Sims has another suggestion: giving a lesson or two with the local pro. Golf merchandise tied to a specific company-sponsored event can offer a special kind of recognition. Relatively inexpensive items like golf towels and bag tags can have a huge value to the winner if it’s awarded for a specific tournament that only winners and top performers were able to attend. “Often dates actually mean more to people than having their names on some- thing,” says Jason McKinney, brand manager and business development for Brentwood, Tenn.–based Fore Front Golf, which specializes in personalizing golf equipment. “It becomes memorabilia, a collector’s item where they can say, ‘Hey, I’ve played this five years in a row.’ ” McKinney says these merchandise items can be given to all participants, to emphasize that it is a special distinction even to attend, or as special awards to winners. A special golf towel for the individual who got closest to the pin, earned the best score or hit a hole in one, offers trophy value while also being a handy addition to a winner’s golf set. The Wilson Staff Di9 Irons incentivemag.com | January 2009 | Incentive | 59 http://www.incentivemag.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Incentive - January 2009

Incentive - January 2009 Contents Editor's Note: Rewards Must Be Sustainable Headlines Cover Story: Responsibility's New Role Incentive Interview: Patrick Lencioni Family Rewards: Who They're Working For Primer: Working Design Leap of Faith: Religion in the Workplace Cook Up Engagement: Kitchen Teambuilding My Turn: Procurement Possibilities Motivation@Work: Hard Times Recognition Legal Ease: The Tax Facts on Corporate Gifts Travel News: Where to Go and What to Do The Bahamas: Islands in the Sun Field Reports: Four European Destinations Golf: Around the World in 18 Holes Potentials Here and Now Watches and Clocks: Strike the Pose Golf Merchandise: Awards with a Solid Swing Computers: Digital Delights Retailers Band Together for Gift Card Market Gift Cards: The Prepaid Reward Spectrum Advertiser Index On the Web www.Incentivemag.com

Incentive - January 2009

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