In many service industries including insurance, utilities, cable TV, and telecommunications, consumers make payments on a subscription basis. A common challenge of providers of such services is implementing price increases without upsetting customers. This paper reports the results of research on a large regional insurance provider that instituted a program enabling the agent to personally phone the customer with news about price increases or decreases.
Marketing researchers can deliver research with clearer implications for the business by applying specific design techniques early in the project. By crafting the research plan with the end in mind, researchers achieve more relevant and meaningful insights and deliver more value to their internal stakeholders. This investment pays off in the end, because insights happen by design.
By Ed Stalling, Chief Storyteller, Maritz Research
It’s been a rough ride these past few years for the meeting, event and incentive travel industry. As a result, we can’t presume that it will ever be “business as usual”. We’ve learned quite a bit from these events and much has changed. These changes require us to operate differently today, especially when it comes to the areas of contracts, liabilities and bankruptcies.
Instinct, past experience, managerial judgment, beliefs and budgets are simply not enough to effectively drive participant engagement and business performance. Planners need the participants’ insights.
Making an investment in a meeting, event or incentive travel program is a good idea when you want to reward performance, improve customer service, encourage innovation through enhanced collaboration, or improve customer, employee and channel partner engagement.
As organizations consider increasing and decreasing investments, decision out¬comes will hinge on how much meeting, event and incentive travel assets support and demonstrate value. Does it always have to follow a formal or conforming ROI model? The short answer is, not necessarily – we all know how ambiguous that can be. However, there do need to be relevant, agreed upon metrics that align with overarching business objectives in order to demonstrate the value created.
By Maritz Travel Company
The American public is confused and angry about the near total collapse of the financial services industry. Media coverage on this topic has become common, with numerous reporters combining the charge of excessive executive compensation with executives’ attendance at company-sponsored client events, reward and recognition programs and pay-for-performance incentive programs.
While no one would argue with the outrage and need to respond to executive excesses, it is important to step back from the emotion of the times and ensure that the desire to do something does not cause a number of unintended consequences that further damage what has become a fragile economic situation.
By Maritz Loyalty Marketing Chris Gaia, Vice President of Marketing, Maritz Travel Company
Understanding what’s important from the participants’ viewpoint has to do more with what views are shared between the organization and their program participants. Every organization is unique, so too are their incentive travel participants. To achieve successful incentive travel programs, keep your participant at the center of your design strategy.
By Jim Ruszala, Director of Marketing, Maritz Travel Company
Even with the advent of virtual meeting technologies, the expanding pervasiveness of social media and the continued budget pressures facing corporate America, large-group face-to-face meetings and events are an important part of a communications strategy.
By By Christine Duffy, President, CEO, Maritz Travel Company and Mary Beth McEuen, Division Vice President, Executive Director, The Maritz Institute
