A good incentive plan requires a fine balance of achievable goals and driving rewards. Planning is essential when attempting to motivate employees to increase their performance. Travel programs are only as successful as the preparation put into them. A few basic guidelines can make certain an incentive travel program takes off as expected both in regards to execution and acquired results. An organization must know the exact goals desired before any type of incentive approach can be prepared. What does a company want its employees to accomplish over a set timeframe? Objectives may revolve around sales generation, morale, safety, enhanced service, attendance, or other organizational wishes. A good understanding of incentive purposes and the culture of an organization makes it easier to plan the most appropriate reward program.Incentive Travel: What Planning Aspects Must Be Covered Upfront?Goal attainability, frequency, involved staff members, time-frames, and the offered reward are most important when beginning the initial incentive travel decision making process. Selected staff members or departments must be given an attainable as well as realistic achievement they are willing to meet. A company should determine the frequency of award programs both as a whole and in regards to the goal at hand. Specific one-time goals may receive better results with a larger enticement while on-going achievement requirements could be more cost effective with smaller frequent incentives. Employees need the bar to be raised consistently when it comes to acquired motivational items. Once one type of award is received, staff members may be less inspired to work toward the same aim. Travel awards provide the flexibility needed to keep things interesting. An organization does not want to be put in a position where these programs are expected or offer a non-motivational item. A fine balance between frequency, goals, and awards must be present for increased effectiveness.The type of incentive provided will also have a significant impact on the overall program success. While cash payouts are common, they do not offer the motivation required for long term goals or extensive achievements. Many organizations are finding that non-monetary motivational tools provide better results. This can be things such as incentive travel planning where the end product of hard work offers a great once in a lifetime experience to an amazing destination. A memorable cruise, getaway destination, or overall experience is something people hold onto and desire as future objectives are set within a company. Budget availability will be a driving factor when making the final decision on the provided encouragement. An organization must also decide their incentive travel program funding source in addition to the worth of achieved goals. Travel awards are sometimes more efficient when put together by a professional service. Experts have the ability to work with a set budget, can make recommendations, and handle all time consuming planning concerns. Non-monetary focused programs are considered to be a one-time opportunity where those who do not succeed have truly lost out. They provide additional motivation and are highly effective for various types of organizational objectives. A company can improve end results by taking the time to thoroughly consider these planning aspects before finalizing a program.