South Africa, Dubai, Shanghai, Bangkok, Hong Kong, Seoul, London A passing list of destinations that vendors/distributors are taking their favored partners to, all part of promotions of the last quarter of the calendar year.
For the hosts, taking partners overseas is a milestone. It s interesting how the partners themselves view this! One partner complained of the ill-effects of leaving out of a suitcase for days at a stretch, zipping from one end of the world to the other on sometimes non-stop flights. Another complained that taking up the opportunity to be overseas, he was compromising his business, a one-man show. A third, a sub-distributor, said that the cost of travel, especially to south-east nations, is so low that he can afford to take a set of partners abroad himself. He preferred a front-end discount.
The sunnier side those who said they have seen enough of the world that they have now given up on travel. They have decided to now pass on the ticket to their best sales people. Also, the added advantage of interacting with the top management and partners from other parts of the world of the vendor/host, learning the ins and outs of technology on the factory floor and the much-needed break.
In promotions that involve redeeming points gained on sale of products, all that one achieves is negated by the delay in redemptions. And it loses value if the vendors/distributors themselves sell to customers at prices less than dealer transfer prices.
All said, the overwhelming consensus was that such incentives never deserve selling products at a discount to cost, customers should never suffer during the absence of one individual, and never to take up a verbal commitment or agreements not backed up by authority.
For vendors and distributors though, building loyalty among partners should go far beyond such incentives. In most cases, what works is simply listening to partner grievances and finding solutions ASAP.