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Incentive Options

Immediate rewards increase employee engagement.

Cultivate a high-engagement culture

Implementing an immediate rewards strategy in organizations can be a powerful tool for promoting engagement among employees. An immediate rewards system, which provides prompt recognition and rewards for achievements, fosters an environment where employees feel valued and appreciated. This immediate feedback leads to heightened morale and enthusiasm for work, which in turn drives higher levels of engagement. It promotes a more connected and involved workforce as employees can directly see the impact of their efforts. Furthermore, the immediacy of the reward can reinforce desirable behaviors and outcomes, making employees more likely to repeat those actions and stay engaged in their work. Hence, such a strategy can cultivate a high-engagement culture where employees feel motivated to contribute their best to the organization.

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Why adopt immediate rewards?

Immediacy effect

Employees feel more engaged and motivated when given small rewards for achieving specific goals or completing tasks in a timely manner. This observation is known as the instant gratification effect or immediacy effect and may be a useful tool for your employee engagement efforts.

When employees feel valued and believe that their efforts are being recognized and rewarded, they are likely to feel a stronger sense of accomplishment which can motivate them to perform well. Rewards can encourage hard work and inspire a quest for excellence.

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Research on immediate awards

Recent research published in Frontiers “Do Immediate External Rewards Really Enhance Intrinsic Motivation?” suggests that smaller but more frequent bonuses after employees complete their work at different times throughout the year may perhaps have a better effect on stimulating employees’ interest and enthusiasm for work than giving employees a massive bonus at the end of the year.

 

An earlier Cornell study, “It’s About Time: Earlier Rewards Increase Intrinsic Motivation” published in the American Psychological Society’s Journal of Personality and Social Psychology found that immediate rewards could increase motivation. Kaitlin Woolley, assistant professor of marketing at Cornell conducted the research as part of her dissertation at the University of Chicago, in collaboration with Chicago faculty member Ayelet Fishbach.

Increased motivation

“The idea that immediate rewards could increase intrinsic motivation sounds counterintuitive, as people often think about rewards as undermining interest in a task,” Woolley said. “But for activities like work, where people are already getting paid, immediate rewards can actually increase intrinsic motivation, compared with delayed or no rewards.”

Immediate rewards can take many forms. Public praise and recognition as well as small gifts and rewards can be particularly effective in situations where employees are working on short-term projects or tasks that can be completed quickly.

“… immediate rewards can actually increase intrinsic motivation, compared with delayed or no rewards.” (Kaitlin Woolley)

engagement

Increased engagement

The implications of these studies are that motivating employees earlier may increase engagement, work quality and satisfaction. More frequent rewards and bonuses may be more effective than just a larger year-end bonus. There has often been reluctance to early rewards. Many managers and HR professionals viewed early rewards as demotivating. But more evidence suggests that immediate rewards are beneficial.

 

Positive feedback and recognition can make employees feel valued. Positive feedback can help increase camaraderie and build a community where employees feel supported and valued at work. It can also build deeper connections between managers and teammates.

When employees feel valued, they are likely to feel a stronger sense of accomplishment

Access to tools

Give managers easy access to tools to help encourage their team. A quick thank you with a personalized message and a selection of gift cards for coffee, lunch, or other activities magnifies the sentiment, and the impact on your organization.

 

Encourage employees to give each other shout-outs for a job well done. You can also share compliments during team or company-wide meetings. In addition to task-based rewards, occasionally send a digital gift, for example food or coffee awards during the meeting to everyone’s email or mobile phone.

Digital gift cards are one of the easiest and most cost-effective ways to deliver rewards and incentives that motivate. Studies show that programs using non-tangible rewards such as gift cards are more effective than cash-based incentives.

access to tools

44.07% of employees agree that gift cards are the “best rewards to receive  (Incentive Research Foundation)

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Gift cards are efficient

The Incentive Research Foundation found that 44.07% of employees agree that gift cards are the “best rewards to receive,” while 27.12% agree that they are “good rewards to receive.”

 

If you’re using TruCentive digital gift cards there isn’t any waste. The industry average for unclaimed cards in a B2B environment is around 21%. That saving is automatically recouped and added back to your account with TruCentive. Once expired, unclaimed incentives (forgot about it, felt guilty receiving it (gift guilt is real), no longer have access to their email, etc.) will have the value of their incentive automatically returned to your account.

 

The other major cost that is often unmeasured in organizations is the overall soft cost to send incentives. Giving rewards and incentives should be fast and fun. And while rewards and incentives are great motivators, programs often fail because they are just too hard to administer. It’s often the logistics or soft costs associated with delivering rewards and incentives that make the programs too cumbersome. If it takes more than 15 minutes to create a program or more than a minute to send a one-off incentive, you’ll have fewer programs, fewer incentives, and less engaged employees.

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Using Incentives

Increase engagement:

Incentives can motivate employees to perform well. When employees feel valued and believe that their efforts are being recognized and rewarded, they are likely to feel a stronger sense of accomplishment.

Encourage productive behaviors:

Incentives and rewards can encourage employees to excel by stimulating employees’ interest and enthusiasm for work. Positive feedback and recognition can make employees feel valued.

Improve morale:

Offering incentives can show employees that the company values their contributions This can improve morale and increase employee engagement, which can lead to increased productivity and job satisfaction.

Provide a sense of accomplishment:

Incentives can provide a sense of achievement for employees. Gifts can memorialize the achievement. This can boost self-esteem and motivate employees to continue to contribute.

Make your company stand out:

The implications of these studies are that motivating employees earlier may increase engagement, work quality and satisfaction.

Ready to design something brilliant?

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Schedule a free design session

Our design sessions are the perfect way to show you how TruCentive can help you realize your rewards, gifts, or payout goals in a real-world scenario, building a complete project with everything from your logo, design options, and messaging to incentive selection, deliveries, and reminders. 

When we’re done, you’ll:

  • Possess a solid grasp of constructing your project.
  • Have a comprehensive understanding of best practices for incentive delivery.
  • Learn the secrets of the incentives industry and the savings and advantages of utilizing TruCentive for your next program.
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