A busy new year has started. Incentive program managers are focusing forward on what will be important for their 2021 rewards programs. Fortunately, they don’t need to consult a magic 8 ball for insight. The Incentive Research Foundation (IRF) released their 2021 trends report, which has a great deal of data to help plan for the year ahead. We will go over some of their top findings. The IRF found that in 2020 merchandise was used by 68% of incentive programs, and gift card use rose 26% after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. They predict that in 2021 there will be an increase of 33% for gift cards and 24% for merchandise. They also predict that later in the year, as the vaccine rolls out, there may be an increase in demand for experiential rewards. This is why in 2021 incentive program managers should seek out reward distributors with robust incentive offerings, which include cash-equivalents, such as gift cards and prepaid cards, as well as merchandise and experiential rewards. It appears that part of the secret to successful incentive programs is choice and personalization. The IRF found that things like branding and giving incentive program participants choices in what […]
Tag: 2021 incentives
2021 Trends For Market Research Incentive Programs
It’s 2021 and time to consider your New Year’s resolutions for your market research incentive program. Fortunately, you don’t have to start from scratch. Experts have looked at the current trends and made some predictions about what you need to focus on for your 2021 market research incentive program. Market research programs will be looking at updating their technology and reward management platforms. Good program management knows that they need quality technology that is up to date with current trends and able to handle robust program needs. 2021 is the perfect time to reevaluate your market research program technology. With how many ads and sources people have begging for their attention these days, it is harder than ever to attract new panelists and engage current ones. A market research program will have more success if it’s managers know how to engage with their panelists in a personal way and offer rewards that have perceived high value. Peoples’ time and attention is the currency of the day, and you need to make sure you’ve got something worth your panelists’ time. We can’t ignore the impact of COVID-19 and we will likely still be dealing with it through at least the first […]
Your 2021 Business Strategy and Incentives
2020 has been an unpredictable year, and 2021 has a lot of hopes and dreams pinned on it. For businesses trying to put together their strategies for 2021, it may feel like a challenge figuring out what to expect and how to plan. Fortunately, when it comes to incentives, 2021 has some clear best practices that can be followed for a successful 2021. When considering your incentives mix, consider the following: Prior to the 2020 pandemic, people were choosing experiences over merchandise more often than not. When a company offers experiential rewards, the participant who redeemed the experiential reward will treasure the memories from their reward, and it will create a stronger bond between the participant and your company. They’ll want to earn more rewards and will work harder to get them. With the vaccines being sent out, it may be that experiential rewards will make a comeback in the 2nd half of 2021 The number of people working from home has increased significantly in the last year, for obvious reasons, and many companies may continue to allow their employees to work from home in 2021. Employers have struggled this year to find new ways to engage their remote workforce. […]
2020 Incentive Trends and What Incentive Trends to Expect for 2021 – ADR
2020 has been a crazy year full of changes and surprises. In the incentive industry, some interesting things have been happening. The Incentive Research Foundation (IRF) recently released their report on the Industry Outlook for 2021, which included some trends from 2020 and what they are predicting for 2021. When IRF conducted their 2019, 85% of companies expected to have a strong financial performance in 2020. The IRF’s new study showed that only 64% believe their companies will have a strong financial performance in 2021 and 50% think that the U.S. economic outlook is strong for 2021. These percentages are still reasonably optimistic, considering the situation with COVID-19. There was a 10% rise in incentive program cancellations in 2019 from 18% to 28%. The rate of incentive program cancellation in 2020 remained fairly steady at 29%. The IRF study showed an increase in preference for gift cards and merchandise, but a sharp, but not unexpected, decrease in offerings of experiential rewards. Many people still desire experiential rewards, but most program managers have chosen to exercise caution in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. The IRF believes that the distribution and adoption of COVID-19 vaccines may cause these trends to change in […]
