Geopolitics, Inflation, Staffing: Incentive Planners Share Their Top Pain Points and Solutions

Skift

5 hours ago

Incentive experts stress the importance of a Plan B and C as the geopolitical landscape shifts and costs continue to skyrocket.
Incentive planners play the role of the middle man between their clients/senior management and their attendees — with both groups having high expectations for each year's trip.
Despite tight budgets (some having remained the same since 2019), planners are expected to design an experience that will excite even the most seasoned winners. Now there's the added stress from new government policies such as tariffs andthe fact that a third of industry companies are struggling to find talented workers, according to research from the Incentive Research Foundation.
So it's no surprise that the room was packed and the frustration level high during a discussion of 'pain points' at the IRF Invitational at AVA Resort Cancun in early June. The panel featured Jeremy Bielski, vice president of sales, ITA Group; Rachel McInnis, vice president, solution strategy, Maritz; and Janielle Peacock, director experiences & learning, RDV Corporation, and was moderated by Melissa Van Dyke, senior vice president, integrated marketing and innovation, Creative Group.
Panelists at the IRF Invitational: Rachel McInnis, vice president, solution strategy, Maritz; Janielle Peacock, director experiences & learning, RDV Corporation; Jeremy Bielski, vice president of sales, ITA Group, with moderator Melissa Van Dyke, senior vice president, integrated marketing and innovation, Creative Group
Following are the top four pain points identified by the group:
1. Safety and Security
Whether a company works with its own internal security experts or hires an outside firm, destination and attendee safety concerns are heightened due to the geopolitical climate in the U.S. and around the world.
ITA's Bielski said his company's security partner helps provide context to what everyone is hearing in the news. 'They're in the trenches globally and they understand what's going on,' he said.
'We have them come in pretty early on and do a risk assessment of every destination we're looking at. It gives a sense of security and trust to the client to know that their well-being and the well-being of their participants will be taken care of.'
Building partnerships with hotel brands is key to being able to pivot if there's a need to change destinations, along with including force majeure protection at the contracting stage.
2. Impact of Tariffs
The incentive merchandise industry has had to quickly adjust to the threat that tariffs will impact both pricing and availability. The key, panelists said, is to have a wide range of choices, so that if there are certain items that are impacted, recipients can still find something of the same value.
More companies are turning to local vendors for on-site gifting, a strategy that the IRF practiced at its final evening event, where attendees were given 'fun money' to shop at a marketplace of goods from Mexican artists and vendors.
3. Crippling Costs
'If you have the same budget in 2025 that you had in 2019, your costs are 23% higher for travel,' said Van Dyke.
But a 23% degradation in the experience is not an option. 'How do we start to look at these programs and make the best decisions with rising costs and inelastic budgets?' she said.
One option is to increase the perceived value of the experience without increasing hard costs.
'Focus on things like access, or status,' she said. 'Who gets the priority seating at an event? Who gets first access to redeem their reward? Those are things that you can add without adding a whole lot of cost to a program.'
Another strategy would be to add a meet-and-greet if the program includes an entertainer. 'That would add a little bit of value and maybe not impact the cost, depending on the relationship you may have with the vendor,' she said.
Other cost-cutting suggestions included:
• Cutting out one day's hosted activities
• Adding more free time, which IRF research has shown is a top priority for incentive attendees
• Cutting the number of hosted meals
• Doing away with on-site gifting
• Having attendees arrange their own transfers
• Capping air credits so that attendees cover the cost of their own upgrades
• Cutting lavish entertainment and relying more on background playlists
• Replacing signature cocktails with beer and wine, or using drink tickets.
4. Staffing Concerns
IRF research has found that a third of incentive planners are concerned about staffing. Most people don't begin their careers thinking they want to be an incentive planner, so the first step, the panel said, is to grow awareness of the industry.
The two major industry associations, the IRF and the Society for Incentive Travel Excellence, have created various initiatives such as podcasts to attract young talent to the industry. SITE's Texas chapter brings hoteliers and planners together with hospitality students and represents the industry at job fairs.