• Use goal incentives to increase productivity.business 2 image by Nathalie P from Fotolia.com
  
  Sales goals are based on the company's annual budget. The company figures out how much revenue it would take to break even, then the percentage growth it would like to see. Incentives are good ways to inspire sales people to become more creative and generate more revenue.
  
  

Bonus Money

• A good way to motivate the sales staff is to only offer a bonus to anyone who exceeds his goals rather, than just rewarding minimum goal achievement. Offer a percentage on top of the current sales commission that will inspire the sales staff to reach for higher revenue numbers. Make sure these bonus percentages do not interfere with company profits, but also make it enough to inspire the sales professionals to keep selling.
  
  

Vacations

• A vacation goal incentive can be used for an extended period of time, possibly even an entire fiscal year. A good example of an effective vacation incentive program are often referred to as the "President's Club" or some sort of elite listing of performers. Keep track of sales numbers throughout the year, and reward top performers with a vacation in a tropical area. Keep costs down by keeping vacation time at three days. The most common approach is a long weekend during a holiday, or during a slow sales time of year. If the company can afford it, allow sales support personnel to be involved as well. Get your vendors involved in sponsoring the vacation incentive by offering increased advertising presence and sales exposure in exchange for partial funding.
  
  

Event Tickets

• Use season tickets to area professional sports teams as incentives for your sales staff. If you can develop a relationship with a local ticket vendor, try to get concert tickets, family shows at local theaters, or openings to popular movies as incentives as well. Do not rely solely on sports events as not everyone on your staff enjoys sports.