The most widely used form of the sales incentive is the commission based salary program. With this type of incentive program, a small percentage of each sale goes to the sales rep. Other sales reps are paid with quarterly or monthly bonuses that supplement a moderate base salary. Typically those bonuses are based on growth or current account revenue, and are more stable than commission based incentives. To find out what the best breakdown of salary and bonus amounts should be for your reps, look at similar businesses that have succeeded. Incentive programs will have been time tested, and sales growth will be high.

There are several other ways of motivating your sales team outside of salary structures. Going that extra little step of recognizing personal achievement can go a long way in growing sales. The first heading of Bob Nelson and Dean Spitzer's book The 1001 Rewards and Recognition Field Book is “You get what you reward,” and they're right. After I landed my first big account in the chemical industry I was given a leather jacket and treated to a wonderfully expensive steak dinner. For a young rep just out of school it was grand, and you can be sure that the next day I contacted all my prospects with increased vigor.

Other incentives include monthly awards. “Outstanding Salesmanship”, or “Largest Sales Growth” awards are good examples. Some companies also hold annual achievement ceremonies Sales clubs are also effective. Realtors have a Million Dollar club where the percent commission jumps incredibly. Some phone sales companies have Gold and Platinum Seller levels. Setting goals for your reps is a great way to keep them focused.

Here's a partial list of rewards from the Field Book:

• Dinner for two
• A “pass around” trophy
• Time off work
• Choice of assignment (i.e. a corporate account turned over to them)
• Small cash prize
• E-mail praise for good work
• Increased responsibility (e.g. new products to rep)

In sales, keeping the reps motivated is the most important task of a manager. For the best results you should tailor your rewards to the individual rep. Some reps like verbal praise or to be respected by their co-workers, others prefer cash rewards. Some value their time off, while others desire to be constantly challenged. Find out what works best, use it, and watch the sales grow.

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