Employee recognition and incentive programs are constantly being adopted by new industries—retail is certainly one of them. As with many organizations, the staff who interact with the customers and actually make the sales happen are really the bread and butter of the entire organization. Without these people, the company simply wouldn’t survive.
It’s more important than ever that businesses figure out how to retain their employees, and a huge part of that is keeping them happy.
If you want to keep your employees happy while simultaneously motivating them to produce great results, offering an employee incentive program is a great place to start. These incentive or recognition programs help retail businesses to reward employees that have performed their jobs well and offer perks that go beyond their regular salary.
When implemented well, a good retail incentive program can help a business motivate their employees to sell more, leading to increased revenues. Additionally, these rewards show staff how valuable they are to the organization and lead to increased job satisfaction—both of which help to keep employees loyal, lower negative developments like theft rates, and increase motivation.
If a business is to take full advantage of incentive programs, they need to design the right one for their specific needs. The program has to be well designed to match the culture of the company as well as employee expectations. Given that we’re talking retail, it’s also essential that the program is designed in a way to promote sales above all else.
When preparing to design the ideal retail incentive program for your company, the first thing to consider is your staff’s current state of mind. You need to understand their roles, schedules, and desires before you can determine how an incentive program will fit into their current job and become effective in increasing both sales and motivation.
For example, the incentive you will give sales employees will not be the same one you will give customer experience representatives. You also have to consider company culture. You want an incentive program that aligns your employees with the company’s principles and helps them to take ownership of the business objectives.
It is essential that the goals that will trigger the rewards be properly communicated to the employees. You also have to consider the cost of these programs, as well as their frequency. Starting with a proper strategy will help the retail management team plan the best incentive program for their companies.
There are countless reward options out there for retail stores to test out with their staff. Some great reward options are:
The important element here is to find out what will motivate your employees. Each person will be different, and you need to find a flexible way to offer people what matters most to them. If you want people to be motivated to achieve the goals and win the rewards, they’ve got to be something they genuinely want.
For example, giving employees paid time off is a great way for them to bond with their families and improve their overall job satisfaction. However, for some, that won’t do the trick. Perhaps tickets to a movie or concert is what will motivate them to aim higher.
With the right employee reward incentive program, there are endless opportunities to reward your employees while improving overall performance. One partner that can help businesses to decide on the best solution for their needs is Online Rewards. If you want to boost sales via improved employee recognition and productivity, contact Online Rewards today.
Set attainable goals for your retail employees and clearly tie rewards and incentives to these goals. Survey your employees to find out the types of incentives that motivate them the most.
A variety of incentives can motivate your retail employees. These can include:
Your incentive plan is the most important first step towards motivating and engaging your employees. This includes defining:
It’s clear that employee incentive programs have a positive impact on employees, and overall company results. Employee turnover is reportedly 25% lower when companies have a recognition program in place, and companies score 10% higher on customer satisfaction ratings. How do you motivate retail staff with incentives?
What are some good incentives for employees?
What is an incentive plan?
Do incentives work for employees?
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