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Commissions and Their Effect on Sales Behavior

Sales commissions have long been a primary incentive for driving individual performance in competitive industries. As a direct reward for sales achievements, commissions motivate employees to maximize their efforts in achieving—and often exceeding—targets. However, the commission structure has also drawn concerns, with critics arguing that it can lead to aggressive, short-term-focused behaviors, undermining customer satisfaction and organizational ethics. Despite these challenges, well-designed commission plans can promote responsible and customer-centric selling

Consumption-Based Sales Compensation Plans

The Consumption-Based Sales Compensation Plan is a dynamic and performance-driven incentive program designed to align the interests of sales teams with the organization’s objectives in a consumption-driven business model. This innovative compensation measure is well-suited for businesses that primarily generate revenue through the ongoing usage or consumption of products and services, such as subscription-based software, utility services, or consumable goods. Key Features: Variable Compensation Structure: The plan incorporates a variable

Call Center Commissions—Effective Tool or Self-Serving Threat?

In the frenetic landscape of call center sales and customer service, the debate surrounding commissions as a motivator for performance remains a hot topic. While some argue that commission structures can lead to aggressive and unethical sales practices, others contend that well-designed incentive programs can foster a positive environment that prioritizes customer satisfaction and long-term relationships. This article explores the effectiveness of commissions in driving sales results while addressing concerns

Issues & Best Practices Regarding Earnings Caps in Sales Compensation Plans

Implementing earnings caps into a sales compensation plan can be a highly contentious and often focal point for discontent with the plan. No feature of an incentive plan causes more resentment than a cap. In most cases, the application of caps is a result of perceived overpayments in the previous year or as a risk avoidance measure when there is the potential for large deals or significant over achievement on

What to Do If You’re Unhappy with Your Incentive Compensation Management (ICM) System...

Incentive Compensation Management (ICM) systems are essential tools for managing and automating sales compensation. A well-functioning incentive compensation management system ensures accurate payouts, drives sales performance, and aligns the sales force with business goals. However, when your ICM system falls short—whether due to inefficiency, inaccuracies, or lack of flexibility—it can have serious consequences for both sales morale and company performance. If you’re unhappy with your current ICM system, it’s crucial

sales commissions

At Sales Resource Group, we believe that the question of when and how often to payout commission is dependent on a number of factors. The first thing to take into consideration is your sales cycle. If you have a long sales cycle and you attempt to pay out commissions too quickly, you’ll find you end up with periods when your sales reps aren’t earning, which is far from motivational. But

Effective Sales Compensation

Practical Tips For Developing an Effective Sales Compensation Plan – Part 2 Your sales comp plan is essential to finding and keeping your best salespeople. Striking the right balance, however, is not easy – you need to find the sweet spot between keeping your expenses low and yet your pros’ compensation competitive. If salespeople don’t feel incentivized by the plan, they’ll seek other opportunities or simply become complacent and stop growing your

Effective Sales Compensation Plan

Practical Tips For Developing an Effective Sales Compensation Plan – Part 1 Your sales compensation plan is the key to hiring and retaining top sales talent. But striking the right balance is no simple feat — you need to find the sweet spot between keeping your expenses low and yet your pros’ compensation competitive. If salespeople don’t feel incentivised by the plan, they’ll seek other opportunities or simply become complacent

sales compensation

By 2025, Millennials will account for three-quarters of working-age people. Although Gen Y will soon make up a majority of the workforce, it will still be a number of years before they constitute the lion’s share of the top-level of leadership. For now, the focus remains how to compensate and motivate your Millennial workers. To achieve this, we need to understand who they are and what they want from their

SRG President Addresses Toronto Tech Innovators

InnovateWork Toronto #5 Review Companies are realizing that workforce data is a strategic asset. Once used for only sales and marketing functions, companies today have access to technology that can help them use their HR data effectively to make better people decisions and continue to incentivize in order to achieve top results. Sales Resource Group President David Johnston was recently a panelist at the popular InnovateWork summit in Toronto. Dave