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5 Keys to a Successful Incentive Trip

Planning the perfect incentive trip can be overwhelming. luckily, dci’s team of experts have years of experience – and know a thing or two about planning an inventive trip that your hardworking employees won’t soon forget..

Let's Connect Looking to enliven your event experiences? You’re in the right place.

he benefits of incentive trips are undeniable. Not only do they encourage employees to go above and beyond, but they also show the company’s appreciation for a job well done. Incentive trips bolster employee satisfaction and retention while improving team chemistry and attracting top talent. Countless companies now offer these customizable trips as a reward for their top-performing employees.   

But we won’t sugarcoat it; planning the perfect incentive trip can be overwhelming. As if managing logistics in an unfamiliar city wasn’t already stressful enough, adding a group of people with differing tastes and comfort levels makes the process feel nearly impossible. Luckily, DCi’s team of experts have years of experience – and know a thing or two about planning an inventive trip that your hardworking employees won’t soon forget. From handling accommodations to orchestrating a fun-filled itinerary, here are our tried-and-true tips for pulling off a successful incentive trip.

Customization

Customization is one of the most challenging but crucial aspects of any successful incentive trip. Since this type of travel is intended to reward individual efforts, it must also feel highly personal. Here at DCi, we know as well as anyone that each employee is unique – one person’s perfect getaway could be another’s worst nightmare.

Customizing these experiences to your group’s preferences takes a lot of strategy and logistical planning, leaving plenty of room for potential hiccups. To ensure the excursions run smoothly, you have to learn the ins and outs of every activity, which requires a hands-on approach. At any given moment, you must know where your guests are traveling, how they are getting there, what they will be doing, and if they are enjoying themselves. The last thing you want is for your honorees to be stranded without transportation or wishing they could be somewhere else.

The DCi team custom-tailors events to create the memorable experiences that your employees deserve. Using our destination expertise, we select off-the-beaten-path locations and activities that the average traveler might not otherwise be able to find. For example, when a group of 45 incentive winners visited Los Angeles to attend the Grammys, DCi organized the transportation, a trip to Magic Castle, and several local, off-site dinners – ensuring that attendees were able to experience a coveted slice of Los Angeles life.

City Knowledge

Pulling off a top-tier incentive trip requires extensive planning. Without a deep familiarity of the area, your trip could fall flat. A simple internet search for venues and activities may leave the trip feeling dull and unoriginal – and your employees deserve better than that.

Here at DCi, we like to approach each city with a personal touch, as if your guests are visiting a friend in their city for the first time. Rather than introducing your guests to the attractions and restaurants that anyone could find on their own, we like to dig a little deeper for a more personalized and exclusive feel. A deep knowledge of the city will allow your guests to experience the best attractions, cultural experiences, and under-the-radar dining options that they won’t soon forget.

For example, we used our extensive knowledge of San Diego to organize an incentive trip for 25 members of a healthcare company. We offered welcome amenities, corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities, a Gaslamp Quarter experience, dinner prepared by a local chef, and a catamaran ride.

Not only is it crucial to understand the itinerary, but you must also have an awareness of further enhancements and customizations that are available. From dietary restrictions to bucket-list items, we brainstorm different ways to customize our trips and create unforgettable memories for your guests. You don’t want the main memory your guests take away to be the difficulty of finding quality dining options – instead, you want them raving about the five-star meals they enjoyed

Giving the attendees something special to take with them after the trip is a great reminder of the amazing time they had even long after the event has ended. Here at DCi, we believe the best rule of thumb is to give gifts in memorable ways. This could be anything from gifting items signed by the celebrity chef your guests met at dinner to bringing your employees to a pop-up market where they can shop for their own gifts. By mixing gifts with the highlights of the trip, your employees will have a permanent reminder of their company accomplishments and memories.

The key to the perfect gift is originality and personalization – thoughtful, unique keepsakes that can’t be found in just any gift shop. Since our trips center around the local culture of a city, a fitting gift might be handmade trinkets from local artisans such as jewelry, pottery, or food items. For a warm weather getaway, opt to give a personalized beach bag filled to the brim with products your employees can use throughout the trip and then bring home for future beach days.

Honoring Your Attendees

When planning an incentive trip, remember that this is not an everyday experience for your employees. They have worked hard to make it here, so they deserve to be treated like the VIPs that they are and feel personally recognized throughout their trip.

If they are at a tasting, for example, ask the chef or owner to come out and congratulate them. For a simple yet effective touch, make sure to set up personalized signs welcoming the group to the area or event space.

Another key way to celebrate your attendees? Taking lots of photos – maybe even with a professional photographer – to commemorate their visit and show that their presence on the trip is important. These photos can also become useful marketing tools to incentivize more trips in the future.

Location and Convenience

The location is likely the most important element to consider when planning a successful incentive trip. It is best to choose a destination that your honorees have never seen before, but have always dreamt of visiting. This way, your employees feel like they are truly on vacation.

While your hardworking employees deserve a dream vacation, don’t forget to factor in convenience. For starters, you’ll want to research flights from each of your employees’ cities to ensure simple, stress-free travel days. Additionally, you should have an awareness of your employee’s schedules to guarantee that the trip dates will not conflict with other commitments they may have. For example, you wouldn’t want to plan a tax accountant incentive trip during tax season.

While it’s easy to get wrapped up in all the planning that an incentive trip entails, it’s most important to remember that at the root of it all are your employees. Consider when and where they might like to travel, what attractions they might like to see, and who they might want to meet. From there, our team at DCi can fill in the blanks. Through our advanced, local-level knowledge of any given city, we can help you create personalized and original trips that provide your employees the appreciation and relaxation they truly deserve.

Interested in working with DCi on your next incentive trip? Reach out !

by: DCi Inc.

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Incentive Travel

Guide, help, costs, ideas, and tips for incentive trips, planning an incentive trip.

So you’re thinking about hiring an incentive travel agency? Good for you and better for your audience! Incentive travel is a tried-and-true tactic for nearly half of all businesses in the United States. Whether you want to boost sales, retain your top-performers, or simply build a more cohesive corporate environment, incentive travel will be the catalyst that moves your goals to the finish line.

With US businesses spending over $22.5 billion on incentive travel annually, you can rest assured that an investment in a top-class incentive trip is going to pay off. However, like everything in life, there is a right way to plan and execute incentive trips, and a lot of wrong ways.

Spent on incentive trips from US companies per year

Of US businesses have an incentive travel program

courtesy of The Incentive Research Foundation

Who am I motivating?

There is no one-size-fits-all incentive trip. Understanding your target audience is the first step in designing an effective set of program rules and selecting a destination that will keep your participants excited.

It’s time to put your personal preferences aside and take the time to examine who you’re motivating. Start with the demographics (the data) and psychographics (the feelings) of your audience to focus your thoughts keenly.

It’s easy enough to collect data on gender, age, and income to form a demographic profile, but it’s only one half of the full picture. Psychographics are the often overlooked attributes of an audience that play into deciding how to properly incentivize and delight your group. On average, are your participants more intrinsically or extrinsically motivated? Do they have the capability to improve their performance? What’s their current level of motivation without the possibility of winning a trip?

Once you have a better understanding of not just who your audience is, but how they think, you’re ready to start organizing them into what the marketing world calls “personas.”

“Probably no aspect of program design has a greater impact on outcomes than understanding the audience.”

Rodger Stotz

Incentive Research Foundation

Who is your target audience?

Demographics

Gender Age Income Job Role Location

Psychographics

Motivations Capabilities Attitudes Interests Aspirations

Crafting Personas

Personas are fictional profiles of a standard member of your target audience created using the most common demographics and psychographics from the group. Using these personas helps those managing and executing the incentive trip get a feel for who they’re trying to reach.

From the below three personas, we can see the differences in what it takes to motivate them, how they’ll each take advantage of a trip, and the impact it would have in their everyday performance. Most importantly, we have a better grasp of what destination would serve as a prize worthy of their aspirational goals.

Abel is a sales rep for a tech start-up.

Income: $120,000

Abel wants some free time but also loves any type of high adrenaline activity. Don’t waste your budget on $300 centerpieces and unidentifiable hors d’oeuvres. Abel’s good with a buffet. But throw in a great band at the after-party, and he couldn’t be happier.

Destination preference: Los Cabos

Gifting preference: Maui Jim Sunglasses

Karen sells beauty products, and lots of them!

Income: $60,000

Make sure there’s a dance floor, because she and her team are going to live it up at the award’s ceremony. A spectacular venue and gorgeous décor will make them all feel special and appreciated.

Destination preference: Paris

Gifting preference: Local artisan shopping experience

Paul is an Inside Sales Rep at a telecom call center.

Income: $45,000

He’s looking forward to a fancy hotel and looking like a rock star to his +1 at the awards ceremony. Throw in a welcome gift and a day-pass for the local hop-on hop-off tour bus, and you will have Paul’s loyalty (for at least another year).

Destination preference: San Francisco

Gifting preference: Room credit for a nice dinner at the hotel

Destinations

Selecting an incentive travel destination.

As you’ve seen from understanding your audience, selecting a motivational destination can be a delicate mix of both science and art. This is where the expertise of an experienced incentive travel professional can be extremely valuable.

Professional incentive travel managers and meeting planners are well-versed in matching audiences with the right destinations, as well as flight options, “incentive-quality” hotels, and activities that are crafted specifically for the trip.

They’ve traveled all around the globe, seen plenty of resorts from the inside-out, vetted amazing experiences, and built strong local partnerships. They know the hot-list of new openings and the properties with not-so-hot service.

according to Incentive Travel Index from The Incentive Research Foundation , Society for Incentive Travel Excellence , and Financial & Insurance Conference Professionals

Hot Spots for Incentive Trips

Keeping up with the top incentive travel destinations is a part-time job in it itself. Knowing the trends, risks, and value of each destination is just another strong reason why hiring a professional incentive travel planner is worth the line in the budget.

Here is a list of the top 20 incentive travel destinations for 2022, 2023, and beyond to draw inspiration and provide fresh ideas.

Umbria & Puglia

Undiscovered Italy

Castles & Green Countryside

Good Value for your Euro

Second-Tier Europe

Northern Lights & Geothermal Baths

Muy Mucho 5-Star Resorts

Rebuilt, Renovated, Reopening

West Indies

Secluded Island Luxury

3 Resort Options in 1

Sub-Sahara Safaris

New Zealand

Fantastic Scenery

Machu Picchu & Peruvian Culture

Journey the Malacca Strait

Bucket-list Bungalows

Deep South, USA

Lowcountry Hospitality

Say Aloha to Hawaiian Renovations

Whistler & Banff

Great Outdoors of Canada

Festival Spots

Local Extravaganzas

Wild West Glamping

5-Star Tents

Euro River Cruise

Explore Villages

Avoiding Common Mistakes

NOT a CEO Getaway

Many CEOs are avid golfers, so the 4-handicapper thinks the most motivational destination would be Pebble Beach or last year’s British Open . However, golf is on the decline with Millennials and Gen-X. It can be difficult to steer the ship away from the boss’s favorite course, but always keep the true purpose of the trip in front of everyone’s mind.

NOT an Executive Committee Retreat

The Sales VPs love the 5-star brands of Four Seasons and Ritz-Carlton , but the rank-and-file folks live on 3-star budgets and feel uncomfortable with $40 breakfast buffets, $30 cheeseburgers, and $20 drinks. Sometimes there’s no need to use up the budget on high-end accommodations or dining options, especially when it comes to the comfort of attendees.

NOT the Meeting Planner Favorite

If you’re the corporate planner tasked with choosing destinations, avoid projecting your personal preferences too – whether it’s beach or mountain, historical or metropolitan, Mexico or Europe, etc. Always hold your audience’s preferences above your own (as difficult as it may be.)

Typical Agenda

Incentive trip itinerary at-a-glance.

Staying on schedule can be one of the most difficult parts of managing an incentive trip.  Providing itineraries that foster relationship-building, celebrate accomplishments, and offer some freedom and flexibility of choice will keep your group happy and organized.

Arrivals Welcome Reception Dinner

Group Activity Dine-arounds

Choice of Activity Award Dinner

Day at Leisure Dinner at Leisure

Choice of Activity Farewell Reception Farewell Dinner

Building a Budget

How much should we spend on our incentive trip.

Recent research from both SITE ( Society of Incentive Travel Excellence ) and the IRF ( Incentive Research Foundation ) pinpoint the average incentive travel budget per person at $5,193.

However, the number of nights and locations will drastically impact the budget. For example, $2,000 per person might be enough for a domestic 3-night trip to Miami, San Diego, or Las Vegas for retail managers or call center reps. But, a budget of $6,000+ per person would be necessary for a Hyatt resort in Hawaii or a 6-night trip to Italy to motivate a six-figure sales audience.

The average cost of an incentive trip per person

Budget Drivers

Number of trip qualifiers (and guests) Destination 3, 4, or 5-star Hotel Duration – # of Nights Airfares Ground Transportation

Events, Receptions, and Gala Dinners Decor & Entertainment Other Meals or Meal Allowances Number of Activities Gifts & Giveaways Promotional Communications

Zero Net Cost

Some may be intimidated by reaching out to incentive travel companies fearing cost or long commitment contracts. Rest assured that incentive travel companies work diligently to keep your business year-over-year by adding fresh ideas, impeccable service, and stringent negotiating to meet your bottom line.

In fact, when most clients ask if hiring an incentive travel company is more expensive, they discover that the ~15% agency fee is offset by savings generated by an incentive agency’s expertise in finding better rates on lodging and events, local partnerships with the best discounts on activities and dining, and avoiding hidden costs and fees ahead of time.

More often that not, clients realize there’s zero net cost overall by hiring an incentive agency due to these advantages, and that doesn’t include your valuable time as the owner of the program internally. Freeing yourself from having to plan an entire incentive trip alongside your day-to-day responsibilities can prove to be invaluable for both you and your team.

Calculate your Budget

The budget drivers are helpful in realizing what factors will need to be considered before making your cost projections, and ultimately, what your incentive trip will include and what will be left out.

But how much does each budget driver affect your bottom line?

Luckily for you, we have a handy incentive trip budget calculator that gives you a decent starting point. Play around with different “what-if” scenarios, like increasing your number of winners or choosing a domestic over international.

Unique Events

Creating unforgettable events.

Extraordinary, memorable events are what separates a top-notch incentive trip from a mere corporate-funded vacation. For new trips, experienced planners can be a huge help in crafting superior, and budget-friendly, events.

A typical schedule will open with a welcome reception on-property to facilitate new relationships and keep the schedule light after a day of travels. Creative planners will highlight the best venues, whether it’s poolside, on the beach, or on a patio or lawn with jaw-dropping views. Don’t be afraid to ask resorts if you can utilize space outside of the ballroom.

Mid-trip evenings are often filled with “dine-arounds” to take winners off property to experience popular restaurants. Or, incentive planners will tap unique local venues for a creative group dinner experience, like a Napa wine cave dinner or renting a celebrity’s private estate. You can dive even deeper into local authenticity by finding dining club parties where locals prepare a meal for guests in their own homes.

The final night is traditionally a gala dinner filled with recognition of top achievers, step-and-repeat photos, a refined menu, and upscale décor and entertainment. Creative planners will recommend the best spot, whether it’s on the beach, dressing up a ballroom, or a unique venue nearby. 

Activity Options for Incentive Trips

Unique, local, and authentic experiences are becoming the biggest trend of successful incentive trips. In years past, activities usually included golfing, spa days, and a catamaran sail. Today, it seems every destination has a zip line tour, a snorkel sail, and an ATV excursion!

Incentive travelers crave new experiences, especially the up-and-coming Millennials. Many travel planners are adding new twists to the traditional tours to stray from the beaten path and keep participants excited.

CMPs ( Certified Meeting Planners ) will collaborate with destination partners to offer activities that are unique to the location – such as cenote cave swims in Riviera Maya, Napali coast boats in Kauai, or Lord of the Rings tours in New Zealand.

Gifts that "WOW"

Incentive travel gifting is an art.

Room gifts, or “pillow gifts,” are a fun way to surprise and delight newer winners. They are simple to administer because everyone gets the same item, and they are often less expensive at $25 to $50.

Individualization   was the first trend in gifting by engraving or monogramming the standard pillow gift, such as a monogrammed bathrobe, an embossed leather item, engraved wine glasses, or a Waterford crystal bowl.

Choice   became the next trend in personalization. Maui Jim pioneered gifting experiences by bringing 12 styles of their high-end, polarized sunglasses and letting attendees pick their favorite pair of shades. Recent entrances to the gifting category include other sunglasses brands, Bose headphones and Bluetooth speakers, watches, shoes, sandals, handbags, and more.

One word of caution : executing a gifting experience in a foreign country or small island is not as easy as shopping your local megamall. Adequate inventory, shipping challenges, and high import duties can create headaches quickly.

Localization   is the most recent trend where gifts are sourced locally with artisans, which can be unique and cost-effective in foreign countries. One of our all-time, most popular gifts were custom-fitted, Italian-leather gloves in Florence.

Communications

Don't let your trip be the best-kept secret.

Far too often, the incentive promotion strategy is an afterthought. Like any successful marketing effort, an effective incentive program needs a comprehensive campaign strategy, creative theme, and rhythmic messaging to create top-of-mind awareness.

In today’s world, people are bombarded with media. Emails stuff inboxes at the rate of 200+ per day. Users glance for a nanosecond, with their index finger on the delete-key, rapidly clicking like a teenage video gamer.

It’s vital that your promotional strategy does not depend solely on a few emails. Your message must break through the clutter.

Create a Trip Website

A trip website offers dual benefits – good promotion during the qualifying period and an efficient registration form after winners are announced. A pretty web design can be easy because travel is visually engaging. A microsite serves as a central portal for the schedule, hotel info, activities, rules, and a contact page.

During registration, the online form automates data capture of the winner’s information including guest name, flight departure airport, passport numbers and expiry dates, activity selections, food allergies, and dozens of other preferences. While a microsite provides pull communications, motivational push communications must be sent too.

A clever, attractive theme can go a long way. Use the natural attraction of the travel destination for visual interest. Here’s a quick list of communication recommendations:

Teasers .   Before officially announcing the program, distribute a teaser — something that hints of events to come. It might be a small promotional item or a visually-appealing mailer to pique interest. We recommend one giveaway at kickoff and another at program mid-point to serve as an effective reminder.

Kickoff Announcement.   Custom design a promotional flyer to generate excitement and share high-level details. Promote the trip and direct everyone to the incentive website for full details.

Sales Kickoff.   If you have an SKO (sales kickoff), put together a video or PowerPoint slides. One client rolled in iced buckets of Jamaican Red Stripe beer to announce a Caribbean trip.

Graphical Email.   Create an HTML email template for year-long use.  

Postcards.   Direct mail postcards are making a dramatic comeback. Email marketing is over-saturated with declining open rates and click-through. Mail an inexpensive postcard each quarter. Mail it to their home, and you catch the attention of the family too!

Posters.   18×24 sized posters are super billboards in large offices.

Leaderboards.   Track achievements, promote competition, and give recognition with regularly-updated, online leaderboards. 

Winners’ Kits. Make your qualifiers feel like VIP’s before the trip begins with a themed winner’s kit that has some destination-specific gifts and information on what’s to come. 

High-Touch Logistics

On-site management is key.

While we focus on on-site logistics and hospitality services, it would be a big mistake to overlook the many, many more hours of pre-trip meeting planning. A globe-trotting incentive planner gives valuable advice, manages the hundreds of pre-trip planning details, and guarantees your program goes off without a hitch.

An on-site, travel manager serves as a single point-of-contact, ensuring the highest level of service. The experienced manager will coordinate transportation to the hotel, host the hospitality desk, and supervise support staff and suppliers. Additional “TDs” (Travel Directors) will ensure your winners are treated like VIPs and oversee all functions and activities.

CAUTION!  Be careful when sending internal corporate employees to manage the trip as a perk. Not only will they lack the expertise, but more importantly, if their travel was presented as a perk, they will not want to stay up until midnight waiting for delayed flights, advance breakfast preparation at 6 a.m., or sweat with vendors on event décor setup.

Just how much needs to be managed on-site?

Attendee Flight Arrivals Transportation and Pickups Hotel Room Check-Ins Hosting the Hospitality Desk Food & Beverage Management Arranging Room Drops and Pillow Gifts

Directing Support Staff Security and Emergency Planning Setting Up and Checking Audiovisual Enforcing the Schedule and Itinerary VIP Services for Winners and C-Suite and so much more…

Risk Management

The ultimate responsibility of any meeting planner or incentive travel director is safeguarding the health and safety of their travelers. Incentive travel companies are certified experts in preparing for all possibilities because they’ve seen everything that can impede on your incentive travel plans.

Work with a professional agency to create contingency plans for everything: What if a participant gets sick or hurt onsite? What if transportation breaks down en route to an activity? What about if a weather catastrophe forces a cancellation?

There are seemingly endless questions to ask yourself when preparing ahead of time to   manage your incentive travel program’s risk . Hiring an incentive pro will take the guesswork out of the equation and insure you and your group focus on having an amazing experience rather than worrying about what could go wrong at any moment.

Hire an Incentive Pro

How to hire an incentive travel agency.

If your incentive travel group is larger than 40 people (usually 20 qualifiers and 20 guests), we highly recommend that you hire an incentive travel company to take the reigns and work with you on creating an unforgettable trip.

Take Your Learning to the Next Level

This site is an informational resource for companies starting an incentive trip or looking to improve their trip with new ideas, travel trends, or tips from the experts. If you have any questions or want to discuss program needs, feel free to reach out!

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Sales Incentive Trip: How to Make Yours Successful in 2025

You’ve chosen to take your team on an incentive trip this year. The beaches are already calling.

But where do you begin?

A successful sales incentive trip, or President's Club, is important to your bottom line and your employee engagement. But creating a successful trip is more than just selecting a cool spot and wishing for the best.

At its best, an incentive trip will motivate, reward and excite your employees, all within budget. At its worst, you could be facing an expensive flop of a trip.

Let's make sure your sales incentive program isn't a waste of time and money.

Here are our main tips to make it a success.

• Set clear goals (and budget)
• Example incentive trip agenda
• Select your destination and consider logistics
• Send out clear communications
• Create Special Moments with Branding, Gifting, Entertainment and More 
• Make Onsite Amazing: Participant Engagement and Motivation 

What is a Sales Incentive Trip?

A sales incentive trip is an all-expenses paid trip given to top sales performers. These trips are often called President's Clubs. Incentive travel programs give you the opportunity to pamper these sales employees while also motivating them to achieve their sales targets next year.

In fact, the Incentive Research Foundation found , " In 2022, the percentage that found group incentive travel to be ‘extremely’ or ‘very motivating’ increased to 91%, with only 1% stating they did not find incentive travel to be ‘motivating at all’."

These incentive trips also give your team the ability to mingle with other top performers as well as executive teams, which in turn will help teams bond and motivate each other for the year ahead.

Corporate incentive travel programs can include an array of your top-performing sales team, including account executives, SDRs, sales operations managers, and even marketing managers, as you see fit. We recommend analyzing your team on multiple levels to identify the right mix of top sales performers.

The key to successful sales incentive trips is a mix of the right destination, the right activities, and the right people. This article will cover how to make that happen.

1. Set Clear Goals (and Budget) Before You Start Looking at Location

What do you want to achieve with this incentive trip? Connect your employees to executives? Motivate them to perform even better next year? Reinforce company culture? Simply lift company morale?

Whatever your objectives are, make sure you clearly outline them and share them with your planning and executive teams.

These will be your guiding lights throughout the planning process, and will help you measure your program’s success once it’s complete.

Tying Incentive Program Goals to Budget

We often encourage our clients to think of the big picture when planning sales incentive trips. It’s more than just planning a trip on budget.

Sometimes the most important goals are the least tangible: creating inspiration, wowing attendees, or reinforcing your brand purpose.

Understand how these goals weave into your hardline numbers goals, then make sure to revisit them throughout the planning process.

Budget will be an important part of this planning process as well. Make sure you know what your top-line budget is, as well as how much you want to spend per person.

Take into account things like travel costs, activity costs, gifting, and more.

2. Design Your Program: Agendas, Activities, and More

The design of your incentive program is vitally important. Here are some key questions to ask as you craft your agenda.

• Is this a week-long excursion or a couple nights of fun? IRF found that "Half (50%) indicated that a trip between 4-6 days would be ‘ideal’."
• Do you want your executive team to attend?
• Does your team need multiple scheduled activities or more free time?
• Do you want team-building activities throughout?

Think through all the different aspects of your program, from duration to activity needs. How you can weave in elements like gifting or special events to create meaningful experiences?

Create a draft agenda for your event that you can share with executives.

Example Incentive Program Agenda

Here’s an example of an incentive travel program agenda:

• AM/Day - Arrivals with special concierge welcome, gifts in rooms
• PM - casual welcome dinner
• AM - casual breakfast, optional yoga or morning workout at the beach
• Day - selection of group activities, such as snorkeling, spa, jet skiing, or hiking
• PM - taste of the local culture dinner with local entertainment
• AM - group networking breakfast
• Day - free day at resort, option to participate in give back volunteering activity
• Small activities throughout the day, such as painting sessions, spa, yoga, etc.
• PM - small dinner selections throughout the resort
• AM - casual breakfast, free time
• Day - selection of group activities
• PM - celebration dinner with award ceremony
• Final morning to enjoy free time

The Incentive Research Foundation found that "ample time to relax" is important to guests, " with 89% saying it was ‘extremely’ or ‘somewhat important.’" Downtime is essential for successful incentive programs.

3. Select Your Destination and Consider Travel Logistics

Now that you have an idea of what you want your sales incentive trip to look like, it’s time to start sourcing venues.

There are many considerations to make when selecting your venue, so we recommend checking out these recommendations on how to find the best location for your incentive trip.

Logistics Questions to Ask

• Do you need to fly in people from around the world?
• Or are most of your employees located in a central spot? If everyone is located in North America, it may not make sense to fly them all across the world (unless that’s enticing, of course).
• How far is the location from the airport?
• Will you need to coordinate buses?
• Will your attendees want to visit the city near where you’re staying or do you want everything to stay within the resort you select?
• What unique experiences will your attendees want to partake in?

These questions and more are covered in our guide to selecting the right destination .

Activities, Transportation, Shipping, and More

Beyond selecting your destination, you’ll need to figure out how to schedule activities, what transportation you need, where to order gifts, how to get supplies to your destination, and more.

With an eye on your budget, you’ll want to make sure you are getting the best bang for your buck while still providing local experiences for your team.

Incentive travel is meant to be exciting and rewarding for your team, so make sure they'll actually like what you choose to do.

Once you have these logistics in place, it’s time to start layering in communications, excitement, and more.

4. Create Excitement and Send Out Clear Communications

Communicating your program to your team is key to ensuring engagement and excitement for your sales incentive trip. There are several areas you can level up your communications, including social media graphics, registration communications, and pre-event gifting.

Custom Graphics

Many companies will create custom graphics for their incentive programs that employees can share on networks like LinkedIn to promote their selection for the trip. We love a custom "President's Club" logo for these graphics too. ( This kind of sharing is a major reason why incentive trips fare better than cash rewards .)

Registration Communications

Registration should include all the logistic info that your attendees need to know. This includes how to book their flights (or what company will be coordinating for them), how to reserve their +1’s spot, what to wear, what to expect, and where they should go for emergency info.

These can all be housed in one registration site that they can reference. Also consider sending a PDF option for them to download in case they don't have WiFi while they're traveling.

The Fun Stuff

There are many other ways you can create excitement and make your team feel special before the trip. Other touchpoints we like to include prior to the sales incentive trip are:

• Gift box inviting them to register . This can include items they can bring on the trip, like a nice beach towel or sun hat.
• Printed or virtual trip brochure. Build excitement for the trip and relay important information with a custom trip brochure.
• “Hype” emails. Ongoing outreach that gets your team excited for the event.

5. Create Special Moments with Branding, Gifting, Entertainment and More

Your goal for your incentive trip is to drive home brand loyalty throughout the trip. Otherwise, it’s just another vacation for your team. Here are some suggestions for branding, gifting, and more.

Incentive Program Branding

There are several ways we like to reinforce branding during incentive programs. The key here is to make the brand feel like it’s part of the experience without being too obvious about it.

• Custom incentive trip logo. Create a logo that’s used throughout your event and is exclusive to this trip. Any gifts that attendees take home will feel exclusive and they’ll want to sport the new swag.
• Pillows, coasters, and more. Sprinkle your brand throughout the event with custom pillows and decor that is subtle but still consistent.
• Fun surprises. We’ve had everything from the company name written in sand to logos projected on the walls at nighttime events. Think of unique ways to bring your brand into different scenarios throughout the event.

Incentive Gifting

Gifting is another area where you can reinforce your brand. We often like to mix luxury gifts with some branded opportunities. This could include local gifts wrapped in your branded gift bags or non-branded gifts coupled with branded postcards. If you’re looking for ideas, we’re happy to brainstorm with you.

Entertainment Branding

Think about how you can weave your brand into areas like entertainment as well. Does the sailboat you take out have a flag with your company logo? Will the evening entertainment sport a hat with your logo? What are some creative ways you can tie in your brand to areas beyond the decor?

We like to mix in local entertainment with branding to give an authentic travel experience while still reinforcing the brand.

6. Make Onsite Amazing: Participant Engagement and Motivation

Everything pre-event has fallen into place. Your attendees have successfully arrived at your destination and you’re excited to get the week kicked off.

The next part is key to ensure your goals are met: engaging and motivating your attendees.

If you’ve put all the right pieces into place, such as an engaging agenda and effective branding, then your attendees should be excited to participate.

Making sure all the activities run smoothly is key to making sure people actually participate and don’t just skip off to tan the whole weekend. 

But it’s also important that you, as the host, are able to give attention to your attendees and not spend the whole time trying to put out fires. This is where an incentive travel agency can really make sure the onsite portion runs smoothly so you can focus on your attendees.

Next Steps: Creating the Trip of a Lifetime

Your sales incentive trip is an opportunity to inspire and motivate your sales team for another great year.

Careful planning and facilitation will ensure you hit those goals.

This includes choosing the right destination for your group, planning a careful agenda, and making sure everything runs smoothly onsite.

There’s a lot to balance when planning a successful incentive trip. Having the right partners can help you create a successful incentive program without pulling your hair out in the process.

GoGather offers fully-managed or a la carte incentive travel programs for your incentive travel experiences, and can help you manage everything from site selection to gift sourcing. Learn more about our incentive travel offerings and reach out to us to brainstorm your next trip.

Frequently Asked Questions: Incentive Trips

What are incentive trips for employees.

Incentive trips are reward-based travel programs that companies can plan for employees. Incentive trips seek to reward and motivate employees in a group setting, with travel to exciting and new places.

Why are incentive trips important?

Incentive trips motivate, reward and inspire sales teams to perform. They also allow top-performing employees to connect and motivate each other in ways they might not be able to in a traditional office setting.

What is an example of incentivized travel?

An example of incentivized travel is: a biotechnology company had an excellent year and decides to plan a trip to Cabo to reward its sales teams. The company (and their events agency) plan everything from the 5-star hotel to flights to daily activities like sailing and horseback riding. Attendees are rewarded with fun evening events, upscale gifts, and time to relax with their plus-one.

How do you plan an incentive trip?

• Begin with your goals and budget
• Source locations based on your goals and budget
• Select activities that your attendees will enjoy
• Communicate travel arrangements and agendas clearly
• Allow for leisure time and relaxing activities, like spa days
• Create special moments with gifting and awards
• Leverage an events agency, like GoGather, to help you manage all the moving pieces

Katie Moser

Related articles.

• Dictionaries
• Ins Deutsch

Translate incentive from English to German

• Anstoß ; Aufstieg ; Anreiz ; Aufschwung ; Impuls ; Ansporn ; Stimulanz ; Reiz ; Anregung
• incentive → Bonus , Anreiz , Ansporn , Stimulus , Stimulation , Incentive
• incentive → Anreiz

Detailed Translations for incentive from English to German

Incentive [ the ~ ] noun, the incentive ( incitement ; stimulus ; impulse ).

• Anstoß [ der ~ ] noun
• Aufstieg [ der ~ ] noun
• Anreiz [ der ~ ] noun
• Aufschwung [ der ~ ] noun
• Impuls [ der ~ ] noun
• Ansporn [ der ~ ] noun

the incentive ( boost ; stimulus ; impulse ; momentum ; spur ; drive ; impetus )

• Stimulanz [ das ~ ] noun
• Reiz [ der ~ ] noun
• Anregung [ die ~ ] noun

Translation Matrix for incentive :

Related words for "incentive":.

• disincentive , incentives

Synonyms for "incentive":

• inducement; motivator; rational motive
• bonus ; payment

Antonyms for "incentive":

• disincentive

Related Definitions for "incentive":

• a positive motivational influence 1
• an additional payment (or other remuneration) to employees as a means of increasing output 1

Wiktionary Translations for incentive :

• incentive → Bonus
• incentive → Anreiz ; Ansporn
• Stimulus → incentive ; excitation ; stimulus
• Stimulation → incentive ; stimulation
• Incentive → incentive
• Ansporn → incentive
• Anreiz → incentive

Related Translations for incentive

• incentive wages
• incentive money
• incentive prize
• 1 WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University

Travel Incentives & Employee Getaways

In today’s competitive market, businesses must keep their employees motivated and engaged to continue being successful. One way to do this is by offering travel incentives. These incentives serve as a motivation to achieve specific goals and targets. At Incentives Marketplace , we offer a wide range of travel options to help you choose the perfect reward for your employees.

Why Travel Incentives?

Travel incentives are more than just rewards; they’re an opportunity for your team to relax, unwind, and experience new things together. A well-planned travel incentive can help foster a sense of community within your team, and that feeling of togetherness can boost productivity levels. Offering travel incentives can also improve employee retention rates by demonstrating that you value your employees and are willing to invest in experiences that directly benefit them.

What We Offer

At Incentives Marketplace, we understand that one size does not fit all, so we offer a variety of travel incentives to choose from. Whether you’re looking for a weekend getaway, a luxury cruise, or an all-inclusive resort trip, we have you covered. Our team of experts is here to help you plan the perfect travel incentive that suits your business’s goals and budget.

Weekend Getaways

Weekend getaways are perfect for those who want to take a short break without using too much of their holiday allowance. Our weekend getaway packages offer a range of options, from scenic countryside retreats to bustling city breaks. Each package is carefully chosen to provide a unique experience that fits your budget and your team’s requirements.

Luxury Cruises

Luxury cruises are perfect for those who wish to experience ultimate relaxation and luxury at sea. Our cruise packages offer a variety of options, from sun-soaked Mediterranean voyages to exotic trips to the Caribbean. We take care of every detail, from transportation to dining reservations. All you need to do is sit back, relax, and enjoy the experience.

All-Inclusive Resorts

All-inclusive resorts offer an experience that covers everything from accommodations to meals, drinks, and activities. Our all-inclusive packages offer a variety of options, from tropical Caribbean hideaways to exotic Asian destinations. We customize each package to meet your specific requirements, so all you have to do is enjoy the experience. Contact us today to learn more about our travel incentive program.

In addition to our enticing travel options, our travel incentive program at Incentives Marketplace is designed to offer businesses a comprehensive solution for employee motivation and engagement. Here are some key reasons why our travel incentives stand out:

Tailored Solutions for Your Business

We understand that every business is unique, and our team works closely with you to tailor travel incentives that align with your company’s culture, values, and goals. Whether you’re a small startup or a large corporation, we have customizable packages to suit your specific needs.

Global Reach and Diverse Destinations

Incentives Marketplace goes beyond the ordinary, offering a global array of destinations to choose from. Whether your team dreams of exploring historical European cities, lounging on tropical beaches, or embarking on adventurous escapades, our diverse range of travel options ensures there’s something for everyone.

Memorable Experiences for Lasting Impact

We believe that the best incentives create lasting memories. Our travel packages are curated to provide a change of scenery and memorable experiences that employees will cherish. These shared moments contribute to team bonding and create a positive work environment.

Seamless Planning and Execution

Planning a group travel incentive can be a logistical challenge, but with Incentives Marketplace, you can leave the details to us. From coordinating transportation and accommodation to organizing group activities, our experienced team ensures a seamless and stress-free experience for both you and your employees.

Flexible and Adaptable Programs

Recognizing the dynamic nature of businesses, we offer flexibility in our programs. Whether you want to reward individual achievements, team milestones, or departmental successes, our travel incentives can be adapted to various performance metrics, ensuring a fair and motivating reward system.

Continuous Support and Communication

Our commitment to your satisfaction doesn’t end with the booking. We provide ongoing support and communication throughout the incentive program to address any questions or concerns, ensuring your employees are well-informed and excited about the upcoming travel experience.

Incentives Marketplace is not just a provider of travel incentives; we are your partners in enhancing employee engagement, fostering a positive workplace culture, and ultimately contributing to the success of your business. Contact us today to explore how our travel incentive program can elevate your company’s motivation and performance levels.

Schedule a Demo

Make your incentive trip last all year long.

Documents, Messaging & Maps

Easily share trip documents with your traveling group and communicate with built-in messaging and mapping. Keep your team safe and in touch.

Group Photo Sharing

Incentive trip travelers can share photos privately with the group and those following along at home. No email or phone number required.

Lasting Memories

Your incentive trip experience is turned into a keepsake video — shareable online and options to be delivered on DVD or USB to each traveler . Share the memories, relive the fun and motivate the rest of your team.

1. Place your Order

Call (888) 533-7637 , x205 to talk to our team to get started today, even if your trip is just one week away.

2. Download the App

The group is given a unique ID to login. No email, phone number, or personal info required.

3. Share the Fun

While on your incentive trip, travelers privately share photos, itineraries, passenger lists, and more with the entire group. And, built-in messaging and mapping tools help your team stay connected.

4. Motivate with Memories

The included keepsake video helps you share the trip experience with the rest of your team, reinforcing the positive impact of the trip all year long, and can be used as a tool to promote the next trip. Lots of photos for marketing, too.

Branded to Your Business

Your company’s brand is highlighted on the app, materials, and the  final video.

Relive the memories. Share the memories.

Who Loves Incentive TripKit?

Incentive companies.

Companies who provide travel as an element of the incentive program use the post-trip DVD, USB flash drive, or online streaming video to create a positive emotional response that helps the trip payoff well after everyone is home. 

Incentive Program Leaders

The ease of implementation and usefulness of the document sharing, messaging, location mapping features of the app make it a breeze to use while on the trip.

Meeting Planners

When a meeting includes elements of fun, planners now have a unique product that creates an emotional connection and reminds attendees of the meeting purpose. The communication feature of the app is invaluable, too.

Watch Our Video

… and learn how Incentive TripKit can improve the impact of your incentive program.