Queenslanders are spending $6.9m globally to push their state to the forefront in the competitive worldwide incentive travel arena.

Recognition and rewards are now embedded into the workplace culture and proffer a measureable impact on the bottom line, so Queensland should see an impressive return on investment (ROI).

The rewards of business travel experiences* are proven; with every dollar invested returning on average, $12.40 in increased revenue and $3.80 in new profits. (1)

Last year incentive travellers to Australia spent $1.2bn: 32% going to New South Wales; Victoria saw 30% and Queensland, 27%.

Travel is and will always be the number one incentive. Fortunately, Australian employers have not lost sight of the importance of incentive travel. They realise curbing any type of business travel has a negative impact on corporate profits. The average business would forfeit 15% of its profits in the first year of eliminating business travel and take three years for profits to recover.(1)

Incentives are no longer the exclusive purview of the sales department, but are being put in across the board, ticking each box on the organisational chart from internal operations, franchisees and distributors to the people on the front line interacting with the potential customers. Companies big and small have had a rough ride in the last few years and are even more appreciative of their staff and distributors that have stood by and weathered the storm. The focus is on the business triumvirate of reward, retain and grow.

EVT Incentive Marketing has been incorporating Queensland into incentive campaigns for 25 years and we are the official Industry Partner in the Million Dollar Memo campaign.*

With three international and 14 domestic airports Queensland is easy to access and as soon as you step off the plane there is the instant 'drop-shoulders' moment as one squint's into the ever present sunshine. The extremes of landscape are paralleled by the breadth of budgets, covering the economical to the luxurious. The diversity of sights and activities makes choice the only problem. As incentive trips are usually very short - often just a few days - delegates can revel in contrasts.

The winners of the Million Dollar Memo campaign should aim to create a local immersion experience as the typical Queenslanders laid-back rhythm makes it easy to work with the locals and the weather is always on side.

In 2011, clients are certainly making the incentive budget work harder, where once it was solely about performance and reward, we've seen a trend to include: product training, launches, team building, identification of market gaps and development of initiatives, information exchange and dissemination, change management, customer service and the current biggy: distributor channels - where suppliers are wholly reliant on the business owner and sales people driving one brand in favour of another. The point of difference for the sales person, well accustomed to incentives and rewards, will be the quality and originality of the incentive strategy. The concept has to be unique, underpinned by a well thought out travel experience, that excites and stimulates.

Recently a small automotive parts distributor ran a rewards and points programme that saw an increase in sales of 40 per cent over six months. The travel reward culminated in a progressive gastronomic afternoon which went into the evening with different food stations set up in secluded scenic spots. The 'castaways' were given maps and had to find their choice of activity and food. An oyster shucker was amongst the vines; snorkel and flippers were required to get to the sushi stand on a sand bank; beers were in a submerged wreck and trees had to be scaled for coconut deserts.

Thus, the real challenge for entrants in the Million Dollar Memo campaign is how best to spend that million dollars imaginatively in the most original and expansive way to drive long term motivation and behavioural change.

The incentive marketing industry worldwide is said to be worth more than $46 billion** and Queensland is set to reap a sizeable chunk after the Million Dollar Memo campaign.

**incentive marketing association 2010

* Business travel experiences includes conventions and incentive trips

(1) Oxford Economics (2009,4)
Methodology
• The analysis was comprehensive, covering 14 economic sectors over a span of 13 years. Care was taken to control for other contributing factors to business growth and productivity.
• The findings were verified through a combination of three separate surveys of corporate executives and business travellers and a broad review of related research.

  • The findings were also reviewed by Dr. Martin A. Asher, adjunct professor of finance at the Wharton School.

• This approach has been successfully used by Oxford Economics in previous analyses for European travel and has been documented in academic literature.