Incentivized marketing is the “upselling” of products and services. It’s the new way to sell, so to speak. And it’s no accident that the name incentive marketing platform was coined in 1981 by Ronald Michelson, a professor at the University of California, Davis. When we think of marketing, we usually envision corporate, commercial, and traditional forms of advertising, which tend to be less effective. That said, business-to-business marketing still plays an important role in the public’s buying decisions. And, of course, corporate marketers use incentive marketing platform techniques to sell goods and services to customers.
But as interesting as it may be to consider what incentive marketing does for the firm, it is also crucial to look at the consumer perspective. Especially since, according to the report “Consumers’ Expectations of Advertising and Marketing Services,” consumer-oriented marketing is a key driver of incentives. By tapping into consumers’ need for information, it provides incentives to market their own interests in the market. Incentive marketing also can help businesses retain their market share. Most businesses use both internal and external incentives to keep customers. However, traditional incentives like free merchandise can get old, and new schemes can provide a better alternative.
Many companies offer discounts, rewards, and freebies in the form of “experience points” demo units” to keep customers loyal. Also, there are various “bonus points” programs that reward employees and managers for sales results. These programs are more useful for larger corporations because they provide a direct link between the reward and the customer. When a particular incentive reaches a certain point, customers may become accustomed to that incentive and want to be sure they earn it. There are also many financial incentives for businesses. Employees who are consistently making sales may be entitled to a certain percentage of the company’s profit or a cash bonus. Customers can be rewarded with rebates on purchases, such as cable TV, gas, and groceries. There are a variety of ways to give and take reward money.
While all this is great for business, it is also important to remember that customer loyalty is vital for the growth of any business. When customers buy from the same place as they do now, they won’t go anywhere else. And that’s just good business. The effectiveness of incentivized marketing in the past years has been well documented. Some of the studies that prove the results have even been broadcasted by some of the largest networks. For example, in a test of reward points in certain metro areas, it was found that new companies grew faster than existing ones, and that market share simply went up for the company using this technique.
But this new strategy of providing incentives doesn’t stop there. There is still one thing that it does not tackle: lowering prices. This is something that a company should strive to do because it is important to put a face on its brand, and keeping a brand name affordable will strengthen its “trustworthiness.” As a result, it makes sense to offer incentives to consumers in order to encourage them to go out and purchase high-quality products. This can also increase sales of other merchandise. Even if the incentive marketing strategy is new, it is a proven one. Using it on a large scale is no longer controversial. People buy without ever looking too closely at the process. Because of this, marketers are considering the use of incentives as a new advertising tool. It will be interesting to see how successful this strategy turns out to be.
