Motivation is one of the key factors that drive sales performance. Close to 40% of companies missed out on meeting their sales targets last year. This needs to change and sales incentives will help you do just that! Sales incentive compensation plays a crucial role in your team’s ability to close deals and hit sales numbers — they simply motivate and push teams to do better.
A fair compensation plan is undoubtedly one of the most important aspects that contribute to a happy, efficient, and productive team. But financial incentives are not the only way to reward your employees. Apart from monetary needs, people have psychological, social, and emotional needs. Satisfying these needs will play a crucial role in the motivation of the salesforce. Non-financial incentives work to fulfill these needs and are equally important as monetary incentives in creating a healthy and balanced environment that enhances your team’s talent and productivity.
One of the best ways to motivate your team is by getting to know them well.
For instance, you may be able to boost the productivity of a sales rep who is crazy about football by offering them tickets to an upcoming football match. You might motivate another team member who is a passionate singer with tickets to a musical concert.
Non-financial incentives need not be fancy or lavish. It gives you a chance to get to know your team members better, understand what their career plans are, and offer them creative and personalised rewards that lead to higher morale and productivity in sales.
Let’s take a look at the top non-financial incentives that you can use to motivate your sales teams.
7 powerful non-financial incentives to motivate your team
We have compiled a list of the best non-financial incentives that have proven to be effective. Here are some great ideas to help you motivate sales.
1) Training and career development
Personal and professional development can be a great motivator for reps who are looking to improve themselves. This type of incentive has not gained as much popularity as expected. A lot of companies do not go beyond the initial training that is given when a rep joins the sales team. However, professional development opportunities can serve as an exceptional motivator for those who are serious about career growth.
You can offer educational opportunities like seminars, courses, or sales-related events as a way to motivate teams. Other opportunities that you can provide are workshops to develop technical skills, special training events where you get a sales coach to speak to your team, and online courses to enhance their skills.
Your teams would also enjoy personal development opportunities like art classes, fitness club membership, or cooking classes.
2) Public accolades for good performance
Recognition is a powerful motivator. People get motivated when they are recognized for the hard work they put in. It’s a lot like stage performers who often care more about the applause than the paycheck they take home.
Public accolades are extremely effective. There is something very unique about the desire for recognition before a group of peers.
It stems from the deep-rooted need to be seen as a contributor. Those who consistently perform well are considered important and are respected in a team.
Salespeople need to feel that they are doing a good job. If a sales rep is praised for something they put a lot of effort into achieving, they will try to do it again.
As Dale Carnegie has said in one of his books “be lavish in your praise“. So go ahead and use recognition as a motivating factor.
3) Vacation
A recent study has revealed that 96% of all employees are motivated by travel incentives and 72% of employees who got the incentive say they feel more loyal to their organisation.
There are two ways in which vacation time improves your team’s efficiency-
- Before a vacation: Salespeople will work extra hard to earn travel incentives and more vacation days. If you offer more vacation time off to reps who meet a certain sales target, they will work harder to earn it.
- After a vacation: Sales reps are energised and happier after a vacation. According to a study conducted by the University of Oxford, happy workers tend to be 13% more productive.
So as a sales manager, remind your team that if they take a break, they will come back to work stronger, happier, and more productive leading to increased sales.
4) Leadership opportunities
Giving your top performers a chance to don the hat of the boss for a day is not only a great way to acknowledge their contribution but it is valuable training that can benefit your company in the long run.
Although this might force some people to step out of their comfort zones, working in tandem with their boss is a learning experience that they don’t want to miss. Opportunities like these create transparency and mutual respect across the different levels of your company.
You may also hand over a few of your responsibilities to top performers. It could include training new reps, handling a section of your sales meeting, or writing blog posts. This will keep them excited and happy. Let your reps know that you are adding on to their responsibilities because you are impressed with their work.
5) Organise a team lunch on the company
Taking your entire team out for lunch is a great way to show that you care about them beyond the office setting. This will give your reps a chance to step away from their workstations and take a break from work. This is a good way to let your reps unwind and engage in conversations that don’t include work. Team outings are essential to build team camaraderie and forge stronger bonds.
So go ahead, fix a target and let your team know where you are headed for the next team lunch if they surpass the set target. Or even better, let your reps take turns to plan the team lunch outing.
6) Let reps choose their own rewards
Another great option for a non-financial incentive is to let your reps choose their own rewards. You can prepare a list of items to choose from or you can let them share their ideas for approval. This gives each one of them a chance to enjoy a more personal and meaningful reward that is sure to make them feel elated and motivated.
7) Culture based team activities
The culture of your company plays a big role in enhancing morale and with a lot of businesses continuing to work remotely, it might be difficult for your reps to strike a good work-life balance. Team activities will help your reps get rejuvenated and are also a good chance for them to get to know one another, a little better. It provides your sales reps an opportunity to explore their interests outside the office space along with the rest of the team. They can develop personal skills at a cooking class, take up painting lessons, or volunteer for a cause together.
Winding up
When it comes to non-financial incentives, the goal is to ensure your reps feel recognized and rewarded for all their hard work. It’s easy for your reps to stay motivated when they are really doing well. The tough thing to do is stay motivated when things aren’t going as planned. Continued struggle and failure can snuff out the fire in them. As their leader, it is your responsibility to keep that fire burning, even when your reps are unhappy with their performance or on the verge of giving up.
To keep their motivation levels high, you can even opt for an incentive gamification platform like Unomok — this top-ranked gamification platform is widely used by businesses to keep their sales reps pumped and happy!
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