Miss America and Your Employee Incentive Program

Miss America 2014 was crowned last night in Atlantic City following elaborate pageantry. From beginning to end, the show continued to build momentum; witty introductions, sparkling gowns, and curveball questions kept the audience engaged and curious as to which lovely lady would boast the envied title. There are key takeaways from this lavish night that ought to be incorporated in your company’s on-going employee incentive program. No, evening gowns are not required!

• Build Hype
  • 4.5 million viewers tuned in to watch Miss America this year. Coincidence? Last-minute choice? No. There have been nationwide ads running, talk-show hosts dropping the news, and articles highlighting the pageant months in advance.
    • Talk up the new, or existing, employee incentive program once the groundwork has been laid. Get the office excited! Give a teaser each week leading up to the initial launch of the program and periodic reminders/updates once the program is in full-swing. Awards Network’s team of account managers would be happy to provide custom-designed flyers, posters, email campaigns, etc. to help.
• Include Everyone
  • Miss America 2014 shows that the United States is a diverse, well-rounded country; a tattooed Army sergeant competed alongside the winner who is of Indian descent. The pageant fairly judged contestants through a series of events consistent with years past.
    • Keep each employee in mind! Be sure your employee incentive program has diverse goals that are clearly defined, specific steps to achieve those goals, and a desirable prize at the end. Awards Network offers thousands of gifts and even adds custom items that best fit your employees’ tastes!
• Recognize and Praise Across the Board
  • Miss America awards 17 different categories of winners, not including all of the generous gifts from sponsors the contestants enjoy. Win or lose, everyone wins and is glad they participated!
    • Of course you want to recognize top performers and employees who are highly engaged, but don’t forget about the Miss Congeniality of the group! Tangible and intangible goals both have real results in advancing your company, so be sure to incentivize these behaviors. Awards Network will consult with you to strategize unique goals for your organization that will optimize results.

• Make it Fun, Keep it Fresh
  • Everyone looks forward to style trends in the evening gown segment and innovative displays in the talent portion. All the while, contestants flaunt big, genuine smiles.
    • Give your employees something to smile about! Make the program entertaining and vibrant! Keep everyone on their toes, anxious to find out what new ways they will be recognized!

So your office has men and no spotlights? No fear! Miss America offers transferable characteristics that can truly set your company’s employee incentive program on the right track! Whether you have an existing program or are looking to re-vamp your culture of recognition, look to Awards Network as your pageant, er, program consultant. Leave the curveball questions up to us as you focus on enjoying your employees’ crown-winner smiles!