Atlas M+M helps companies achieve business goals through the tactical use of sales contests, incentive programs and other motivational initiatives.
Over the past 11 years, we've developed a proven, repeatable process of creating excitement, guiding behavior, building loyalty and producing bottom-line results known as the Big Splurge Solution.
Like most effective solutions, the Big Splurge Solution is remarkably simple, even obvious, once you understand how it works. There are five fundamental principles to consider:
1. Goals are the fuel in the furnace of achievement.
Providing a salesperson with challenging (but attainable) goals produces significantly better results than simply saying, "Do the best you can." Perhaps Henry Thoreau said it best: "In the long run, men hit only what they aim at."
2. What gets measured gets done. What gets rewarded gets done more.
Aligning a desirable reward with the achievement of a goal increases the probability that the goal will be achieved. The operative word is "desirable." The more desirable the reward, the more dramatic the results. When an incentive program fizzles, poor reward selection is often the culprit.
3. Out of sight, out of mind.
Just as real estate has its three Ls (Location, Location, Location), motivational management has its three Fs: Feedback, Feedback, Feedback. For an incentive program to work its magic, the salespeople must be continually updated on the progress they're making toward achieving their goals.
4. There are two things people want more than sex and money - recognition and praise.
When it comes to motivating salespeople to achieve higher standards of performance, nothing works as powerfully as the recognition of individual effort and success. Savvy sales managers understand that when it comes to providing effective recognition, personalization is absolutely necessary. Lack of personalization usually results in an act of recognition that is emotionally empty and has no meaning.
5. Cash doesn't cut it.
When it comes to "compensation," cash may be king, however, when it comes to "recognition," cash leaves much to be desired. We're not suggesting that cash bonuses aren't desirable. Clearly they are. The point is that cash bonuses are too impersonal to provide effective recognition. Furthermore, people don't want to talk about how much they earn, and the money is almost always used to pay bills or purchase everyday necessities. When it comes to trophy value and bragging rights, cash bonuses just don't cut it.