The relationship between workers and bosses is highly dynamic. It is influenced by countless factors, whether within the company or from the outside. As a result, any managers who are effectively pursuing professional success need to continuously reevaluate how they interact with their team. Incentive travel has become the latest tool to be used for everyone’s benefit.
In short, that term consists of a company offering a trip with all expenses paid as a reward to its best-performing staff members and/or business partners. It is easy to see that incentive travel is a truly VIP reward, so it is only offered in special cases. In this article, you are going to learn all about the “I” in MICE travel as well as a few suggestions in case you want to try it yourself.
What is incentive travel?
It is the gesture of offering a trip as a reward to your staff members who have achieved the best performance numbers on the team, or to business partners in situations such as celebrating a new contract. Incentive travel is usually booked to idyllic locations, to promote relaxation and enjoyment, and typically comes with all expenses paid by the company as a key part of the gift.
In other words, the company does more than simply buy plane tickets. Companies that want to make the best use of incentive travel offer a whole tourism package, including comfortable and pleasant accommodation, private transportation, and several interesting options of city tours, weekend adventures and more. DMC travel is now a trend among companies all over the world.
Why should companies offer incentive travel?
There are many other ways to boost morale in your company, sure. However, let’s give it some thought. Giving money, for example, is great but easily forgotten – the workers will enjoy it away from the company. Offering products, such as a new laptop or a car, brings the risk of choosing something that the person does not need, does not like or, which is even worse, does not want.
Choosing incentive travel over those other options shows that your company truly cares about that group of people. It cares enough to plan a whole tour as a gift, where they can have a great time with peace of mind. While people tend to dislike spending too much time with coworkers, that activity will surely become more pleasant with beautiful views and exciting activities to do.
What benefits does it bring?
While it is obvious that everyone loves DMC travel, we can pinpoint some benefits in a specific way. Incentive travel strives to reward the best of the best among your staff members and/or business partners, so everyone will work hard to deserve it. The good thing is that, since we are talking about group travel, they will naturally channel that effort towards group collaboration.
- Increased engagement
- Lower staff turnover
- Stronger company culture
- Higher customer loyalty
Increased engagement
The business world is filled with catchphrases such as “increase productivity”, “cut costs”, and “improve customer retention”. However, how does one measure that? How much is the actual goal? Incentive travel is a concrete reward, so it encourages the managers to define a concrete goal. Since that goal is scarce, everyone will do their very best as a group to reach those goals.
Lower staff turnover
The possibility of winning such a prize encourages employees to stay in the company. They will not want to give up on such a chance, let alone when they are so close to getting it. In case you set group goals, you will be able to see magic happen: the very employees will encourage one another to stay because they will surely want to enjoy their incentive travel together, as a group.
Stronger company culture
People who feel appreciated at work tend to give back. They develop pride of working there and interest in reaching higher goals. They will also say great things about the company to everyone around them and recommend the company to potential clients and business partners. When a company adds the possibility of getting incentive travel, that bond only becomes even stronger.
Higher customer loyalty
There are important benefits to partner companies as well. By associating incentive travel with high sales, the source company can persuade its partners to lower supply prices, prioritize its orders, negotiate better deadlines, and many other perks. Besides that, since those trips often appear on the news, they automatically become a source of positive publicity for both parties!
What else to know about incentive travel?
The main drawback is cost, of course. Providing group trips with all those perks comes at a cost that not every company can afford. Therefore, it is essential to restrict those rewards to people who truly deserve them. Then again, there are ways to mitigate that problem: the company may hire a DMC, for example, to help find the event venues with a more favorable cost/benefit ratio.
We should also mention that incentive travel can be divisive. It creates a sense of competition among the employees, which not everyone takes in a healthy way. Besides, people who do not qualify or have to forfeit such a trip for unforeseen circumstances will surely feel demotivated to work afterwards. You should carefully weigh those issues compared to the possible benefits.
What are the best destinations to choose?
Most companies like to think outside the box. They plan incentive travel to sunny locations like Hawaii, Costa Rica and Mallorca, where the staff group can unwind at gorgeous beaches while sipping fruity cocktails. Those places are excellent options when the goal is to relax, but most of them also offer ecotourism, which can be a great reflection on the company’s public image.
On the other hand, historical cities like Tuscany, Munich, and Boston offer a variety of cultural tours for the group to enjoy. In that case, the company can boost its image by associating itself with local history and values. In the end, it is a matter of understanding the type of people who are going to travel and planning this type of MICE travel that aligns very well with their interests.