Why Travel Incentives Are The Obvious Way
To Increase Sales
by Evan Hill

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How to increase sales affordably is the key question for any company that wants to see profits go up without an accompanying spike in expenses.  Traditional advertising in newspapers, phone books, and via direct mail is no longer effective at turning prospects into buyers and small businesses into big successes.

If you can’t increase sales with traditional advertising, what does work?  The answer may surprise you.  Because, frankly, it’s so basic, so logical, so obvious that you’ll wonder why you didn’t make it the centerpiece of your business marketing plan before now.

The best way to increase sales is a simple tactic that is effective whether you’re selling a product or a service.  It’s can be just as useful for business-to-consumer marketing as it is for B2B marketing.  In a nutshell, the answer to your business marketing needs and high profit goals is

Creating customer satisfaction
with travel incentives.

Travel incentives are magnetic when it comes to bringing in new prospects and equally effective when it comes to helping existing customers stick.  This last point is especially critical because:

• A 5% increase in customer retention can increase lifetime profits from a customer by 75% (source:  The Loyalty Effect by Frederick Reichheld)

• 70% of unhappy customers abandon vendors because of poor service (source:  The Forum Corp.) 

Give The People What They Want
Creatively designed travel incentive programs can be developed according to the needs of any company and the interests of its consumers.  They’re a great way to increase sales at mortgage companies, jewelry agencies, auto dealerships, and even scuba diving shops! 

And since travel incentive programs are easy to administer, they are an extremely cost-effective marketing option

It’s not rocket science.  People love freebies and they love to travel.  That makes travel incentive programs twice as appealing as twice as effective when it comes to increasing conversions.

But travel incentive programs do more than generate leads.  They make it easier to sell more and close more often.  How?  Value-added travel incentives strike a chord with people in more financially secure demographics…from upwardly mobile professionals to comfortably retired seniors. 

These are the ‘quality’ prospects that help drive up closing rates.  Because as well as being willing to buy, they’re able.  And they’ll be highly motivated to do so when you include a quality travel incentive offer.

Connecting With Consumers In A Positive Way
Marketing with travel incentive programs helps you push three key emotional “hot buttons” with prospects and existing customers.  And unlike many marketing strategies that speak to negative emotions such as fear and greed, travel incentive programs tend to make people feel good. 

Here’s why:

Travel Incentives Make People Feel Smart
Travel incentives add tangible value to offers from online and off-line businesses alike.  A vast majority of consumers are guided by price when they make their purchases and they have learned to demand more than what they paid for.  

This is precisely what travel incentive programs provide.

Travel Incentives Make You Unforgettable
Incentives have long been used to make businesses memorable.  On the low-cost end, there are keychains, pens, mouse pads, and refrigerator magnets.   On the high end, there’s logo gear such has hats and t-shirts.  These items may be useful, but they’re not especially memorable.

A travel incentive to an exotic locale or popular destination, however, burrows into a consumers mind like a gopher.  In addition to making you stand out from the crowd, a unique travel incentive program makes consumers feel special and well-taken care of.

Think about it.  Which would make a bigger impression on you:  a coffee mug or a certificate for a free 3-day/2-night trip to Hawaii?

Travel Incentives Make Consumers Want to Say “Thank You” Back
 When we receive a valuable gift, most of us want to say thank you.  A travel incentive is a valuable gift to prospects and customers and they’ll want to say ‘thank you’ the only way they know how:  with their business.

The "Law of Reciprocity" states that when you give people something, they will want to give you something in return.  It's the reason there's a prize in the McDonald's "Happy Meal" and the thinking behind advertising agencies taking prospective clients to dinner.  In each instance, the hope is that the freebie will result in more sales.

The same is true with travel incentive marketing.

The Bottom Line
Do travel incentives work?  Yes!  According to Incentive Magazine’s Incentive Travel Facts survey, travel incentives increase sales by an average of 15%. In addition, half of the responding businesses reported that travel incentives meet 75% - 99% of their marketing objectives.

Want to find out what actually works to grow your business?

Use this link to discover the '4 Steps to Increasing Your Sales >>