Guide
Apr 04, 2019
Sales compensation is the primary way to incentivize reps, but there are more ways to keep your team engaged. Discover the top five non-financial sales rewards that can boost performance and motivate your team.
It’s no secret that driving sales performance requires motivation. That’s why incentive compensation plays a vital role in your team’s ability to close deals and hit revenue targets. Most often, this motivation comes in the form of sales commissions; however, additional non-financial sales rewards can be useful to keep your team engaged.
Non-financial sales rewards are exactly what they sound like. They aren’t built into your overarching sales compensation plans, but rather, act as short-term, sometimes spontaneous, incentives to keep engagement high and celebrate seller achievements.
When to Use Non-Financial Sales Rewards
Non-financial sales rewards are a great way to provide additional incentives for your team to succeed. They should not, by any means, act as a replacement for your overarching incentive compensation strategy. Rather, you should think of them as a way to give sellers an extra pat on the back for extraordinary performance.
Research shows that salespeople who receive positive feedback and recognition for their work have been shown to increase work-time productivity, proactively engage with their coworkers, and convey enhanced loyalty to the company where they are employed.
At the very heart of it, reps want to feel that their work is valued. While their incentive compensation plan is the primary motivator, that doesn’t always mean they want more money. In fact, motivated and happy sellers create better customer experiences.
Non-Financial Sales Rewards Examples
Non-financial compensation doesn’t need to be fancy or lavish. In fact, it presents an opportunity for you to get to know your sales reps better, understand their career goals, and provide a thoughtful, personalized reward. Here are five non-financial sales rewards you can use to motivate your sales team.
1. Offer Educational and Career Development
Xactly Insights data shows that sales rep performance peaks between two and three years in a role. I can start to decline around the five-year mark, making it a good time to seriously discuss career progression.
But you don’t want to wait until seller performance declines to start having those conversations. When a new rep starts, make a point to have that conversation with them so you know their goals from the beginning.
You can use educational opportunities like seminars, courses, or sales-related events as a way to motivate reps and help them learn the skills they need to reach their career goals.
2. Give Reps the Recognition They Deserve
Sales is a reward-motivated role. Giving successful sellers recognition for their achievements—whether it be a shout-out in a company all-hands meeting or email—shows that their hard work is valued. It can also act as motivation for other reps to push themselves harder.
This form of recognition also provides an excellent coaching and learning experience for your entire sales team. For example, if a seller closes a high-profile deal, they can brag on their win and share their insights from the deal with the entire team: how they approached the deal, what worked and what didn’t, how they differentiated from competitors, etc.
3. Have a Team Lunch on the Company
Taking your entire team or just a couple of sales reps to lunch shows that you care about them beyond the office walls. Even if your team hasn’t returned to the office (or has no plans to ever return), you can still reward them with a virtual team lunch with a meal delivery voucher.
You can schedule a meeting to catch up and eliminate all work-related conversations to give your team a chance to step away from their desks and take a break from work—whether in the office or their remote workspace. A meal delivery voucher can also be a great way to rally the troops for a team meeting.
4. Offer Fun, Culture-based Team Activities
Company culture plays a huge role in morale, and with many businesses still working remotely, it can be difficult to maintain a good work-life balance. Offering activities for your sales team to turn off their work mind will help them refresh, rejuvenate, and get to know their coworkers better—even if you’re all still working from home.
This sales reward offers an opportunity for creativity for both virtual and in-person teams. It gives your sellers a chance to explore some hobbies outside the office together, like cooking classes, painting lessons, rock climbing, or even volunteering together.
5. Let Reps Pick Their Own Reward
Another great option for a non-financial sales reward is to let sales reps choose their own reward. You can give them a list of items to choose from or they can submit their own ideas for approval. This gives each individual the opportunity to a personal and more meaningful reward, which will help keep them motivated and engaged.
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When it comes to non-financial sales rewards, the goal isn’t always to close more deals, but rather, to make sure your sellers feel valued and rewarded for their hard work. At the end, when reps feel their contributions are being rewarded, their morale is higher, which helps create more positive customer experiences, and together, that’s a win-win.
Want to learn more about how you can motivate and incentivize reps more effectively? Download our "2021 Guide to Successfully Managing Sales Compensation.”
