Springville, Utah-A national sales-tracking software company announced the introduction of new features to their product package. InsideSales.com, a provider of on-demand sales and customer management software with built-in telephony tools, will now be providing advanced field customization options for its clients.
Called dynamic custom fields, this capability allows customers to individually customize their text and numeric fields to fit with the needs of the company.
CEO Dave Elkington said, "The dynamic custom fields allow customers to change or add any type of field into any object in our system to make it specific to their company. If a construction company needs to record building dimensions, they can add a field to do that. If a shipping company needs to record an order date, they can add a field to do that. We have no way to foresee every need all our customers will have. The dynamic custom fields let our customers adapt the system to fit their needs."
Other dynamic fields include text fields, email fields, date and time calendar fields, whole number fields, real number fields, currency fields and fields that will calculate a mathematical result. They also offer drop-down single and multi-select filters to help customers organize their data.
One of InsideSales.com's customers spoke about the effectiveness of the dynamic custom fields.
Chad Rawlings of Whisper Creek said, "Each company has its own unique needs, so having the ability to customize your own fields is huge. I came to InsideSales.com and told them what I wanted with the custom fields. They were so efficient at recognizing our needs and implementing the system for us timely and efficiently. The dynamic custom fields have greatly increased our productivity."
About InsideSales.com and Sales Team Automation, LLC.
InsideSales.com is a provider of advanced on-demand applications and services that help businesses better communicate with their customers, partners and employees. InsideSales.com's solution provides integrated sales force automation (SFA) with built-in telephony tools that dramatically increase sales numbers. They also address automation needs in the areas of customer service, support, marketing automation, order management and analytics to help companies meet the challenges of effective sales communication.
Sales Team Automation, LLC is the company behind InsideSales.com and offers a unique value proposition to small and mid-sized organizations looking to enhance the effectiveness of their sales initiatives. Sales Team Automation offers custom web programming solutions as well as other web-based applications.
Sunday, October 7, 2007
Saturday, October 6, 2007
Relation between clicks and bricks is silver lining to ho-hum holiday sales - online efforts of retailers
NATIONWIDE DSNRT REPORT -- Continued growth of online sales may have been one of this past holiday season's bright spots, but subtle e-commerce developments of another sort were actually more significant.
During November and December, it became apparent efforts by bricks-and-mortar retailers to more tightly integrate their online efforts with conventional store operations were being effective. In doing so, they have moved closer to fulfilling the potential of the highly touted bricks-and-clicks business model.
"It is clear that bricks-and-mortar retailers are committed to having an online presence that is integrated with their physical presence in a meaningful way," said Russell Jones, a vp in the retail practice of Cap Gemini Ernst & Young.
Several striking examples from the past holiday season involved Target, Wal-Mart, Sears and Circult City. In the category of most extensive use of a conventional advertising medium to promote a creative e-commerce initiative, the award would have to go to Target. The company devoted four pages of a 32-page circular that ran in Thanks-giving Day newspapers. The insert extended from the circular and across the top Target in-quired "Can't wait to save? Go to target.com."
Twenty-one items were featured, and to create a sense of urgency, the prices were good only on Thanksgiving. As an added bonus, if the order was for more than $50 and paid for with a Target Visa shipping was free.
Wal-Mart devoted less real estate in its Thanks-giving weekend circular to online retailing, but the featured promotion illustrates the integration point just as effectively Wal-Mart appealed to the insecurity 01 potential jewelry buyers with this headline across the bottom third of a page: "Learn how to buy a diamond at Walmart.com" that encouraged them to visit the site's jewelry learning center.
Sears and Circuit City took a different approach. Both offered online customers the option of picking up merchandise at stores. On Nov. 28, Sears announced a service that allowed customers to see whether items purchased online were in stock at a local store. They could pick up the merchandise at the store. According to Sears, "In many cases, the product may be picked up the same day as ordered."
The benefits of tighter integration are becoming apparent in the volume of people visiting the Web sites of conventional retailers. During November, seven of the top 15 e-commerce sites identified by Nielsen/NetRatings were operated by conventional retailers, including Toys "R" Us, Barnes and Noble, Best Buy, Wal-Mart, Sears, Target and JCPenney.
On Dec. 11, Circuit City, announced an arrangement with Amazon.com, allowing consumer electronics items offered on Amazon to be picked up and returned to its stores.
"Steady traffic to many bricks-and-mortar sites indicates consumers are researching online with the intent of buying in the actual stores, highlighting the need for retailers to integrate their online and offline operations," said Jupiter Media Metrix research analyst Jared Blank.
Integration is only part of the story, though. The online efforts of bricks-and-mortar retailers have also improved considerably. "We've seen huge improvements in the way Web sites work, and these improvements have made it much faster, easier and more fun to shop online," said Mary Humphrey, director of e-commerce at AOL. "Online shopping is becoming more mainstream, and one of the key reasons is the timesaving convenience. You have the ability to find anything you want without the hassle of parking lots and lines."
The mainstream nature of online retailing was illustrated by a survey commissioned by the International Mass Retail Association in early December. The survey of 1,000 people found 627 people had Internet access, and 54% of them used it as a tool to find product information. Their second most prevalent use, mentioned by 39% of respondents, was to see if a store carried a specific item. Buying products was mentioned by 38% of those surveyed.
Despite the improved Web sites, tighter integration and consumers overall happiness with purchasing online, online sales growth has begun to slow from prior-year levels. Goldman Sachs analyst Anthony Noto's estimate for full-year 2001 online sales of $32.2 billion represents a 20% to 25% increase from 2000, when sales increased 68% from 1999.
"Our survey indicates consumers are only marginally shifting spending online," Noto said. "Respondents indicate their planned holiday budget allocation of online spending for 2001 would only be modestly changed in favor of shopping online, compared to 2000."
Those surveyed by Goldman Sachs indicated 14.8% of their holiday budget would be spent online, as compared with 12.4% last year. An even larger percentage of next year's holiday budgets likely will be spent online, especially if bricks-and-mortar retailers continue to improve online offerings and make them an integral part of their overall merchandising, marketing and operations strategies.
During November and December, it became apparent efforts by bricks-and-mortar retailers to more tightly integrate their online efforts with conventional store operations were being effective. In doing so, they have moved closer to fulfilling the potential of the highly touted bricks-and-clicks business model.
"It is clear that bricks-and-mortar retailers are committed to having an online presence that is integrated with their physical presence in a meaningful way," said Russell Jones, a vp in the retail practice of Cap Gemini Ernst & Young.
Several striking examples from the past holiday season involved Target, Wal-Mart, Sears and Circult City. In the category of most extensive use of a conventional advertising medium to promote a creative e-commerce initiative, the award would have to go to Target. The company devoted four pages of a 32-page circular that ran in Thanks-giving Day newspapers. The insert extended from the circular and across the top Target in-quired "Can't wait to save? Go to target.com."
Twenty-one items were featured, and to create a sense of urgency, the prices were good only on Thanksgiving. As an added bonus, if the order was for more than $50 and paid for with a Target Visa shipping was free.
Wal-Mart devoted less real estate in its Thanks-giving weekend circular to online retailing, but the featured promotion illustrates the integration point just as effectively Wal-Mart appealed to the insecurity 01 potential jewelry buyers with this headline across the bottom third of a page: "Learn how to buy a diamond at Walmart.com" that encouraged them to visit the site's jewelry learning center.
Sears and Circuit City took a different approach. Both offered online customers the option of picking up merchandise at stores. On Nov. 28, Sears announced a service that allowed customers to see whether items purchased online were in stock at a local store. They could pick up the merchandise at the store. According to Sears, "In many cases, the product may be picked up the same day as ordered."
The benefits of tighter integration are becoming apparent in the volume of people visiting the Web sites of conventional retailers. During November, seven of the top 15 e-commerce sites identified by Nielsen/NetRatings were operated by conventional retailers, including Toys "R" Us, Barnes and Noble, Best Buy, Wal-Mart, Sears, Target and JCPenney.
On Dec. 11, Circuit City, announced an arrangement with Amazon.com, allowing consumer electronics items offered on Amazon to be picked up and returned to its stores.
"Steady traffic to many bricks-and-mortar sites indicates consumers are researching online with the intent of buying in the actual stores, highlighting the need for retailers to integrate their online and offline operations," said Jupiter Media Metrix research analyst Jared Blank.
Integration is only part of the story, though. The online efforts of bricks-and-mortar retailers have also improved considerably. "We've seen huge improvements in the way Web sites work, and these improvements have made it much faster, easier and more fun to shop online," said Mary Humphrey, director of e-commerce at AOL. "Online shopping is becoming more mainstream, and one of the key reasons is the timesaving convenience. You have the ability to find anything you want without the hassle of parking lots and lines."
The mainstream nature of online retailing was illustrated by a survey commissioned by the International Mass Retail Association in early December. The survey of 1,000 people found 627 people had Internet access, and 54% of them used it as a tool to find product information. Their second most prevalent use, mentioned by 39% of respondents, was to see if a store carried a specific item. Buying products was mentioned by 38% of those surveyed.
Despite the improved Web sites, tighter integration and consumers overall happiness with purchasing online, online sales growth has begun to slow from prior-year levels. Goldman Sachs analyst Anthony Noto's estimate for full-year 2001 online sales of $32.2 billion represents a 20% to 25% increase from 2000, when sales increased 68% from 1999.
"Our survey indicates consumers are only marginally shifting spending online," Noto said. "Respondents indicate their planned holiday budget allocation of online spending for 2001 would only be modestly changed in favor of shopping online, compared to 2000."
Those surveyed by Goldman Sachs indicated 14.8% of their holiday budget would be spent online, as compared with 12.4% last year. An even larger percentage of next year's holiday budgets likely will be spent online, especially if bricks-and-mortar retailers continue to improve online offerings and make them an integral part of their overall merchandising, marketing and operations strategies.
Don't sell Print against the WEB: It's imperative that ad sales reps talk about the total customer experience, not the strengths of print versus onlin
I'm sorry Josh, we're cutting our print ad budget in half and putting our money into our Web site." I only had to hear that a few times before my "Web phobia" hit an all-time high. The challenge was how to respond when clients told me that their Web expenses were coming out of the same marketing communications budget as their ads. The knee-jerk overreaction was to start selling against the Web--but this is a huge mistake. The Web is far more than banner ads. And if your Web discussions with clients focus on contrasting the merits of banner versus print ads, you will miss a huge opportunity to sell more space. There are ways to approach this challenge that prove that print advertising is more valuable in today's economy, not less. When I stated using this new approach, I had to adjust my thinking and behavior in four ways:
1 Bring up the Web on Every Call You Make
I know many space reps who take an "Ignore it and it will go away" attitude. They ask, "Why bring up a potential competitor?" The answer is that your customers are dying to talk about the Web. It's new, interesting and confusing--and there are no definitive answers to anything. If you can talk intelligently about the Web, you will have your customers' undivided attention. Most clients would rather talk about how the Web is transforming, or not affecting, their business, than talk about print advertising. Gain access to this level of discussion, and you will be far more persuasive when the topic shifts to print advertising.
2 Start Talking About the Total customer Interface
Ten years ago, I described print advertising as a slice of the overall marketing communications pie. Other slices included direct mail, trade shows, TV and radio advertising, and so on. My job was to lay out the communication options and advocate the importance of print ads over the others. Today, viewing the Web as just another slice of the pie competing for your ad dollars is a mistake, because the Web's impact on a client's business typically goes far beyond marketing communications. While the Web may be a vehicle for exposure, it can also function as its own sales channel (e-commerce), a way to distribute collateral material, a customer service vehicle, a way to offer technical help, a dealer/distributor replacement, a way to offer contests and warranties to customers, a research tool, a way to offer product customization, a tool for customer relationship management, and a tool in building customer loyalty.
Consequently, while today's marketing discussions go beyond marketing communications, they are still all about the total customer interface. Become part of these discussions, and you will be in a position to recommend print advertising as a way to help augment these other programs. Today I never talk about how print advertising fits into the "marketing mix." I talk about how it fits into the "total customer interface."
3 Explain the new uses of print advertising
The top uses of print advertising just 10 years ago were to generate sales leads, introduce new products, create exposure and build a brand. These four topics were the main areas of discussions with clients. Today, the Web has replaced magazines as a lead-generation tool. So-called bingo card responses are plummeting as readers realize that a quick hop onto the Web can give them instant access to information that would have taken weeks to acquire via bingo cards.
In addition, the whole concept of what a new product is and how it affects company's sales is being revisited by most marketing directors. The new thinking is that new products and new product features are not the magnet they once were. New technology and advanced manufacturing techniques have empowered manufacturers to bring products to market much more quickly and duplicate any advantageous feature a competitor may offer.
For example, one professional lens manufacturer told me that he was once able to achieve four to six years of competitive advantage any time his company added a new feature. Now he sadly reports that that advantage is down to six months. In a world where unique product features don't stay unique for long, selling the overall promise of the company, the brand, has become the new mantra of marketers.
The Web has accelerated this. If you've tried to buy anything on the Web, the good news is that you have tremendous options. For marketers, that's also bad news because suddenly, if your brand or company name is not in the minds of your prospects, it's likely that they will do their buying on someone else's Web site.
What this means for you is what you already know: Print advertising, unlike electronic media, is a brand builder's dream. It has a physical presence that makes the message more tangible. In addition, since your message is physically bonded to the exposure vehicle, it creates an affiliation of quality that helps the branding process.
4 Help Them Find The Money
While using the Web creates expense, it is also a big money saver. Your job is to help your clients realize the savings and help them budget those savings into growing print advertising.
1 Bring up the Web on Every Call You Make
I know many space reps who take an "Ignore it and it will go away" attitude. They ask, "Why bring up a potential competitor?" The answer is that your customers are dying to talk about the Web. It's new, interesting and confusing--and there are no definitive answers to anything. If you can talk intelligently about the Web, you will have your customers' undivided attention. Most clients would rather talk about how the Web is transforming, or not affecting, their business, than talk about print advertising. Gain access to this level of discussion, and you will be far more persuasive when the topic shifts to print advertising.
2 Start Talking About the Total customer Interface
Ten years ago, I described print advertising as a slice of the overall marketing communications pie. Other slices included direct mail, trade shows, TV and radio advertising, and so on. My job was to lay out the communication options and advocate the importance of print ads over the others. Today, viewing the Web as just another slice of the pie competing for your ad dollars is a mistake, because the Web's impact on a client's business typically goes far beyond marketing communications. While the Web may be a vehicle for exposure, it can also function as its own sales channel (e-commerce), a way to distribute collateral material, a customer service vehicle, a way to offer technical help, a dealer/distributor replacement, a way to offer contests and warranties to customers, a research tool, a way to offer product customization, a tool for customer relationship management, and a tool in building customer loyalty.
Consequently, while today's marketing discussions go beyond marketing communications, they are still all about the total customer interface. Become part of these discussions, and you will be in a position to recommend print advertising as a way to help augment these other programs. Today I never talk about how print advertising fits into the "marketing mix." I talk about how it fits into the "total customer interface."
3 Explain the new uses of print advertising
The top uses of print advertising just 10 years ago were to generate sales leads, introduce new products, create exposure and build a brand. These four topics were the main areas of discussions with clients. Today, the Web has replaced magazines as a lead-generation tool. So-called bingo card responses are plummeting as readers realize that a quick hop onto the Web can give them instant access to information that would have taken weeks to acquire via bingo cards.
In addition, the whole concept of what a new product is and how it affects company's sales is being revisited by most marketing directors. The new thinking is that new products and new product features are not the magnet they once were. New technology and advanced manufacturing techniques have empowered manufacturers to bring products to market much more quickly and duplicate any advantageous feature a competitor may offer.
For example, one professional lens manufacturer told me that he was once able to achieve four to six years of competitive advantage any time his company added a new feature. Now he sadly reports that that advantage is down to six months. In a world where unique product features don't stay unique for long, selling the overall promise of the company, the brand, has become the new mantra of marketers.
The Web has accelerated this. If you've tried to buy anything on the Web, the good news is that you have tremendous options. For marketers, that's also bad news because suddenly, if your brand or company name is not in the minds of your prospects, it's likely that they will do their buying on someone else's Web site.
What this means for you is what you already know: Print advertising, unlike electronic media, is a brand builder's dream. It has a physical presence that makes the message more tangible. In addition, since your message is physically bonded to the exposure vehicle, it creates an affiliation of quality that helps the branding process.
4 Help Them Find The Money
While using the Web creates expense, it is also a big money saver. Your job is to help your clients realize the savings and help them budget those savings into growing print advertising.
Friday, October 5, 2007
UK online retail sales fall for second month in a row claims IMRG - Interactive Media in Retail Group
The industry body for global e-retailing Interactive Media in Retail Group (IMRG) has found that online retail sales in the UK have fallen for a second consecutive month.
Online sales fell 4.4% from January 2002 to February 2002, bringing the total amount spent online in February to GBP397m. The decline was reportedly not as severe as the previous one of 17% from December 2001 to January 2002, however.
February 2002 sales figure were 85.4% higher than in February 2001, down from the 133% increase reported during the second half of 2001.
Online sales fell 4.4% from January 2002 to February 2002, bringing the total amount spent online in February to GBP397m. The decline was reportedly not as severe as the previous one of 17% from December 2001 to January 2002, however.
February 2002 sales figure were 85.4% higher than in February 2001, down from the 133% increase reported during the second half of 2001.
Behind the music: a music site's uploading tool cranks up the sales volume to get things rocking and rolling
DAVE STACK traded a dotcom gig for the music biz when he opened an online music marketplace, Music Stack (www.musicstack.com), and tuned up the buying and selling technology behind the music.
MusicStack is a collection of record stores, all competing on price and selection, offering both new and used music. "Worrying about fresh inventory is not a problem," says Stack of his $5 million business. An uploading function updates site selections in real time and allows the site's 3,000 sellers to manage their own wares.
"The sheer volume of items on the site makes me different," adds the 34-year-old programmer. With 15 million items, including CDs, vinyl, Mini-Discs and 8-tracks, Stack's storefront eclipses retail giants Amazon.com and eBay.
The site runs itself while Stack tweaks the back-end tools from home base--an extra space in his Cleveland home. There, Stack watches sales soar to the tune of 1,000 items each day. Gone are the days of building inventory by personally visiting record shops. Says Stack, "Now sellers find me."
MusicStack is a collection of record stores, all competing on price and selection, offering both new and used music. "Worrying about fresh inventory is not a problem," says Stack of his $5 million business. An uploading function updates site selections in real time and allows the site's 3,000 sellers to manage their own wares.
"The sheer volume of items on the site makes me different," adds the 34-year-old programmer. With 15 million items, including CDs, vinyl, Mini-Discs and 8-tracks, Stack's storefront eclipses retail giants Amazon.com and eBay.
The site runs itself while Stack tweaks the back-end tools from home base--an extra space in his Cleveland home. There, Stack watches sales soar to the tune of 1,000 items each day. Gone are the days of building inventory by personally visiting record shops. Says Stack, "Now sellers find me."
Online Retail Sales Continue to Rise
Sluggish economy or not, online retail sales continue to surge upward, according to the latest data from BizRate.com.
Average order size is slightly down though, from $145 to $142.
ComScore Networks reported a similar increase, tallying last week's online shopping at $1.5 billion, up 41 percent from the same week last year. "Black Monday," the Monday after Thanksgiving, saw a 49 percent increase year-to-year, to $380 million.
For last week, the home and garden category saw the biggest year-to-year increase, up 114 percent. Online sales of computer hardware however were flat year to year.
Average order size is slightly down though, from $145 to $142.
ComScore Networks reported a similar increase, tallying last week's online shopping at $1.5 billion, up 41 percent from the same week last year. "Black Monday," the Monday after Thanksgiving, saw a 49 percent increase year-to-year, to $380 million.
For last week, the home and garden category saw the biggest year-to-year increase, up 114 percent. Online sales of computer hardware however were flat year to year.
Wednesday, October 3, 2007
Online recognition: Like other HR functions, employee recognition programs move online with fewer administrative headaches, lower costs - Agenda: Awar
That's when Wilhelm contracted with a vendor to provide the company with an online program. Now, the company hands in a list of people eligible for service awards at the beginning of the year, and the vendor handles the rest.
But isn't L'Oreal USA paying a premium for such service? "It's actually less expensive than the paper program when you factor in the zero amount of time anyone here spends administering this," Wilhelm explains. "The lost work time was really the hidden cost in the old program."
As more HR functions go online, there's an increased interest in bringing awards programs online, says Bill Termini, national sales manager for Hinda Incentives Inc. in Chicago, a longtime industry vendor that began offering web-based awards programs in 1999.
Online awards systems can be connected with HR management systems, payroll systems or the company's enterprise resource planning system, says Kevin Jorgensen, president and CEO of Beyond Work Inc., a provider of incentive and recognition programs based in San Jose, Calif.
The ease and convenient access for employees is what prompted Southern Company, a Fortune 500 energy producer in the Southeast, to move its program online.
"When we moved the benefits enrollment process onto the web we saw immediate interest. In one year, online participation went from 26 percent to 82 percent," says Tripp Cagle, HR communications manager. "Based on that, we knew employees would be interested in an online awards program."
Mercury Interactive Corp., a software company in Sunnyvale, Calif., reaped financial rewards from its online incentives program. Amit Ronen, vice president of field technical operations, wanted to motivate field staff who maintain and troubleshoot computer systems.
"We asked them to voluntarily lot notes about opportunities they saw when on assignment, but the program was so-so. I thought that if we could create an incentive program we'd generate more interest," he explains.
For example, the field staff should look for holes in existing client systems and be alert to hear about weaknesses from client staff. Such situations could provide sales opportunities. The company implemented an online program in which field staff receive points for such leads and even more points for leads that generated business.
"The administration of this would have been way too much if the program wasn't online," Ronen says. "A $7,000 investment has generated more than $600,000 in new business."
Tracking Data
Dana Hubbard, a compensation analyst with Southern Company, says the online system has simplified administration of awards for the company's 26,000 employees.
"We can see what's being redeemed; so we know what's appealing to employees and can keep the program meaningful," she says.
PacifiCare Health Systems Inc., in Santa Ana, Calif., made the move to an online program for its 9,500 employees in June 1999 after an IRS audit turned up discrepancies.
"Each business unit had its own awards, nothing was centralized and it was a nightmare to keep track of," explains Tonia Rockwell-Koren, a senior compensation analyst.
Now that the online program automatically deducts taxes and keeps records for PacifiCare, Rockwell-Koren says, "I don't know how we ever managed the other way."
Online programs also give managers easy access to data and the flexibility to adjust information. "You can capture data easily and keep information current," says Michelle Smith, vice president of strategic sales for Bravanta Inc., an online awards program provider in San Francisco. "As priorities change, so too can programs. They can be altered with a click of the mouse."
With the data centralized in online systems, HR also can improve the effectiveness of the awards program and demonstrate that the program is making a difference.
For example, say you're running a safety program. HR can pull data to show a direct correlation between reduced accidents and incentives. In addition, the computer can run comparisons to highlight differences in accident costs before and after implementing the safety program. Then, those figures can be compared to program costs. The online program calculates these statistics, so no one has to spend weeks tallying and tracking information.
"Online programs prove what we already knew instinctively, that incentive programs motivate people and have an effect on the bottom line," says Smith. "An online system enables HR to keep data on ROI that generates board-level interest."
But isn't L'Oreal USA paying a premium for such service? "It's actually less expensive than the paper program when you factor in the zero amount of time anyone here spends administering this," Wilhelm explains. "The lost work time was really the hidden cost in the old program."
As more HR functions go online, there's an increased interest in bringing awards programs online, says Bill Termini, national sales manager for Hinda Incentives Inc. in Chicago, a longtime industry vendor that began offering web-based awards programs in 1999.
Online awards systems can be connected with HR management systems, payroll systems or the company's enterprise resource planning system, says Kevin Jorgensen, president and CEO of Beyond Work Inc., a provider of incentive and recognition programs based in San Jose, Calif.
The ease and convenient access for employees is what prompted Southern Company, a Fortune 500 energy producer in the Southeast, to move its program online.
"When we moved the benefits enrollment process onto the web we saw immediate interest. In one year, online participation went from 26 percent to 82 percent," says Tripp Cagle, HR communications manager. "Based on that, we knew employees would be interested in an online awards program."
Mercury Interactive Corp., a software company in Sunnyvale, Calif., reaped financial rewards from its online incentives program. Amit Ronen, vice president of field technical operations, wanted to motivate field staff who maintain and troubleshoot computer systems.
"We asked them to voluntarily lot notes about opportunities they saw when on assignment, but the program was so-so. I thought that if we could create an incentive program we'd generate more interest," he explains.
For example, the field staff should look for holes in existing client systems and be alert to hear about weaknesses from client staff. Such situations could provide sales opportunities. The company implemented an online program in which field staff receive points for such leads and even more points for leads that generated business.
"The administration of this would have been way too much if the program wasn't online," Ronen says. "A $7,000 investment has generated more than $600,000 in new business."
Tracking Data
Dana Hubbard, a compensation analyst with Southern Company, says the online system has simplified administration of awards for the company's 26,000 employees.
"We can see what's being redeemed; so we know what's appealing to employees and can keep the program meaningful," she says.
PacifiCare Health Systems Inc., in Santa Ana, Calif., made the move to an online program for its 9,500 employees in June 1999 after an IRS audit turned up discrepancies.
"Each business unit had its own awards, nothing was centralized and it was a nightmare to keep track of," explains Tonia Rockwell-Koren, a senior compensation analyst.
Now that the online program automatically deducts taxes and keeps records for PacifiCare, Rockwell-Koren says, "I don't know how we ever managed the other way."
Online programs also give managers easy access to data and the flexibility to adjust information. "You can capture data easily and keep information current," says Michelle Smith, vice president of strategic sales for Bravanta Inc., an online awards program provider in San Francisco. "As priorities change, so too can programs. They can be altered with a click of the mouse."
With the data centralized in online systems, HR also can improve the effectiveness of the awards program and demonstrate that the program is making a difference.
For example, say you're running a safety program. HR can pull data to show a direct correlation between reduced accidents and incentives. In addition, the computer can run comparisons to highlight differences in accident costs before and after implementing the safety program. Then, those figures can be compared to program costs. The online program calculates these statistics, so no one has to spend weeks tallying and tracking information.
"Online programs prove what we already knew instinctively, that incentive programs motivate people and have an effect on the bottom line," says Smith. "An online system enables HR to keep data on ROI that generates board-level interest."
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