The Little Book of Answers for Creating Happy People and Boosting Profits

the little book of answers
creating happy people 1
Third Edition

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Happy People = Happy Prof its

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new and
updated with
bonus content
RedBalloon
Australia
corporate.redballoon.com.au
Tel 1300 850 940
Fax +612 9566 4887
query@redballoon.com.au
New Zealand
corporate.redballoon.co.nz
Tel 0800 555 029
Fax 0800 555 024
query@redballoon.co.nz
© 2009 RedBalloon. All rights reserved.

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finding your
answers
To help you find the answer you’re looking for we’ve grouped the most
common questions we get asked into sections for quick reference.
Sections Page
About RedBalloon 6
Why do we have the answers? 8
Creating happy people 10
The power of employee engagement 18
Creating motivated and productive staff 28
Rewards and recognition NEW 34
Workplace fun NEW 42
Creating cohesive teams 48
Managing generations at work 54
Building an employer brand 60
Improving sales performance NEW 68
How will RedBalloon get you results? 78

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about
RedBalloon
RedBalloon is the leading online gift retailer for
experiences in Australia and New Zealand.
We ‘package up pleasure’, giving people a good
time by allowing them to experience something
they’ve always wanted to do, like an overnight
romantic retreat for two, shark diving or a jet
fighter flight. With more than 2500 RedBalloon
Day experiences in our range, we are passionate
about giving pleasure and ultimately impacting
organisations large and small. And, we’re
committed to changing gifting in Australia forever.
Naomi Simson
CEO (Chief Experience Officer), RedBalloon Pty Ltd
National Telstra Business Woman 2008 (Innovation)
naomisimson.com

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why do we
have the
answers?
Over the past eight years we have sent Australians and New Zealanders
on more than 500,000 amazing experiences and have been asked a lot of
questions along the way, ranging from ‘How can I get people to change
their actions?’ to ‘What do disengaged employees really cost
my business?’
Having worked with more than 1,400 companies, from large blue chips
to small owner operators, we understand how trends are evolving in
the workplace, how employees like to be treated, the effectiveness of
incentives and the importance of building an ‘employer brand’. Every
organisation is different and our experience enables us to develop a
unique solution that embraces technology and includes the essential
ingredient – FUN!

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As recognition and engagement specialists we practice what we
preach, and in October 2008 RedBalloon were awarded an independent
employee engagement score of 97% by Hewitt Associates. With the
average for Australian businesses at 54%, it is our mission to help other
organisations to motivate, reward and engage.
Quite simply,
happy people = happy customers = happy prof i
ts
The ‘Little Red Book of Answers’ contains some gems, both from our
own experience and research as well as from the experiences of other
organisations. This book will successfully help you identify, plan and
develop strategies for your organisation, whether you are looking to
engage staff, incentivise distributors or ‘woo’ clients.
All resulting in Happy Profits!

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creating
happy
people
It is true; happy staff will create an environment
for happy customers and ultimately that means
great profits. So what makes for happy staff and
how do you keep them happy? We get asked
questions on this subject more than any other,
and so over the next few pages we’ll share the
answers with you.

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“The motto
of successful
CEOs: People
First, strategy
second”
Ram Charan,
Author of Boards at Work

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Q1 What does today’s workplace look like?
“There is a melding between the work week and the weekend.
When we are asking so much of our people, work needs to be far
more fulfilling to keep them engaged and focused.”
Naomi Simson, CEO, RedBalloon
Q2 What are employees looking for?
“We all want ‘A Graders’ working in our business. We want
people who are focused and are prepared to give their
discretionary effort. No matter the economic climate, there
is a finite number of great people and we want them working
harmoniously and productively for us.”
Q3 Why do people leave an organisation?
One in three people leave an organisation because they feel that
they are simply not recognised.
Research by Success Corner Pty Ltd. www.successcorner.com.au

Q4 What does management have to do with
happy staff?
For six consecutive years ‘stress level’, ‘quality of management’
and ‘lack of feedback and appreciation’ are the aspects of a job
that Australians hate the most.
Seek intelligence: 2008 survey of employee satisfaction and motivation in Australia.
www.seek.com.au
If your relationship with your manager is fractured, then no
amount of in-chair massaging or company sponsored dog walking
will persuade you to stay and perform. It is better to work for a
great manager in an old fashioned company than for a terrible
manager in a company offering an enlightened, employee-focused
culture.
Buckingham, M & Coffman C. (2005) First Break All the Rules. Pocket Books
Q5 Can managers make or break relationships?
A 25-year-long Gallup Organisation study based on interviews
with 12 million workers at 7,000 companies found that the
relationship with a manager largely determines the length of an
employee’s stay.
Kaye, B & Jordan-Evans, S. (2005) Love ‘Em or Lose Em. Berrett Koehler.

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Q6 Why does staff loyalty have nothing to do
with money?
“Good news for businesses is that in most cases, staff loyalty in
business has nothing to do with money…If you don’t capture the
hearts and minds of an employee, no amount of money will keep
them long-term.”
Denis Orme – CEO, Insurance Brokers of New Zealand
Robert Half Finance & Accounting (Aug 2005). Retain Staff Without More Cash.
Sourced Aug 2005 from xtramsn.co.nz
Q7 What does a great place to work look like?
Combining the survey of 20,000 employees with the analysis of
HR practices and CEO interviews has resulted in the development
of the Anatomy of a Great Workplace© model. Great workplaces
come in all shapes and sizes, however they share four
characteristics:
• They are values-based organisations with a very clear vision of
the future
• They have created a sense of community, where people feel a
strong sense of belonging and optimism in the future
• They have development strategies to help realise their full
potential
• They have created a performance culture where high standards
of performance are set, and demanded
John Robertson Associates (November 2008) Unlimited Best Places to Work in
New Zealand Survey

Q8 How does a downturn in the economic
climate effect employees?
With a slowing economy and uncertainty, employees are
looking for greater job security with 55% ‘keeping their eyes
open for other options’. They expect that finding a job will take
significantly longer, and in order to stay need to be rewarded
for individual performance.
Seek intelligence: 2008 Survey of Employee Satisfaction and Motivation in
Australia. www.seek.com.au
Q9 How important is work-life balance?
In Australia and New Zealand 1 in 2 people are not satisfied with
their work-life balance, yet 99% of us deem it as ‘crucial’ to our
employment. Excessive workload was cited as the main reason
for work-life imbalance.
RedBalloon Pleasure Survey ‘Work-life Balance’ (Nov 2008) From 2,714 respondents
www.corporate.redballoon.com.au/go/knowledge-bank/surveys
Q10 What can employers do to make it easier to
achieve work-life balance?
Flexible working conditions would make the biggest difference
(27%) to enable us to achieve work-life balance. Working from
home, coming in early and leaving early, as well as days in lieu
are other ways companies can allow their employees greater
flexibility.
RedBalloon Pleasure Survey ‘Work-life Balance’ (Nov 2008) From 2,714 respondents
www.corporate.redballoon.com.au/go/knowledge-bank/surveys

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Q11 What impact can stress have on employees?
Australians take on average 8.62 days of sick leave/personal
leave each year, costing the economy about $26.6 billion per
annum in lost productivity ($3,017 per employee). The survey also
found that more than 63 per cent of employers indicated that
absence through increased stress levels is increasing, and the
main reason for this is workload and organisational change.
2008 Absence Management Survey, Direct Health Solutions, www.dhs.net.au
Q12 Do happy employees mean increased
profits?
“The companies that look after their people are the companies
that do really well. I’m sure we’d like a few other attributes, but
that would be the most important one.”
Sir Richard Branson
“Evidence shows customers report higher levels of satisfaction
when employees report higher levels of job satisfaction. This has
been called the “satisfaction mirror” implying that customers
mirror the satisfaction that employees experience. “
Macey, W and Schneider, B. Employee Experiences and Customer Satisfaction.
Sourced from customersat.com December 2008

Stock prices of companies with high morale outperformed similar
companies in the same industries by more than two to one in
2004. The research found that companies with low morale lagged
behind their industry competitors by almost five to one. The
global study focused on 28 publicly traded companies with a total
of more than 920,000 employees.
Stock prices of these companies were compared to the industry
average for more than 6,000 other companies in the same
industries. It found that high-morale companies provide the three
main things that matter most to employees: fair treatment; a
sense of achievement in their work and pride in their employer;
and good, productive relationships with other employees.
High morale accompanies high stock. (2004) Sirota Consulting LLC, www.sirota.com

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“Engaged employees are
enthusiastic and psychologically
committed to their work”
The Gallup Organisation

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the power of
employee
engagement
Since gaining popularity from when it first
emerged in 1999, ‘Employee Engagement’ has
become the new holy grail for corporate success –
the term reflecting the commitment that employers
are now prepared to make to keep their best
employees. To achieve employee engagement,
the level of commitment from the employer and
employee has to be equal. It is shaped by a number
of factors including the role itself, the quality of work
relationships and perceptions of the ethos and
values of the organisation. It comes back to the
one word – ‘purpose’.

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Q13 What does an ‘Engaged Employee’ look like?
Engaged Employees work with passion and feel a profound
connection to their company. They drive innovation and move
the organisation forward. Engaged Employees made up only
18% of the Australian workforce and 25% of the New Zealand
workforce.
The Gallup Organisation (Australia - Q12 Poll Nov 2008/NZ 2006), www.gallup.com
Q14 What does a ‘Not-Engaged Employee’ look
like?
Not-Engaged Employees are essentially “checked-out”. They’re
sleepwalking through their workday, putting time – but not
energy or passion – into their work. Not Engaged Employees
made up 61% of the Australian workforce and 64% of the New
Zealand workforce.
Q15 What does an ‘Actively Disengaged
Employee’ look like?
Actively Disengaged Employees aren’t just unhappy at work;
they’re busy acting out their unhappiness. Every day, these
workers undermine what their engaged co-workers accomplish.
Actively Disengaged Employees made up 21% of the Australian
workforce and 11% of the New Zealand workforce.

Q16 How much does having Disengaged
Employees cost businesses?
Disengaged employees are more likely to leave and take
less pride in their workplace. They are also less likely to be
advocates of their workplace or the products and services
they represent. This obviously comes at a significant cost to
Australian businesses. In fact the Gallup Organization estimates
that actively disengaged employees cost Australian businesses
between AUS $33.5-$42.1 billion per annum and New Zealand
businesses around NZ $5.6-$5.96b billion per annum.
The Gallup Organisation (Q12 Poll Nov 2008), www.gallup.com
Q17 What are the ‘key drivers’ of employee
engagement?
There are four contributors to employee engagement. All need
to work in harmony to create a powerful relationship with
employees.
• Career aspirations – personally rewarding or major
achievement
• Career opportunities – sees future opportunity, growth and
advancement
• Recognition – perceptions of favourable acknowledgement
from others for their work/accomplishments
• Brand – consistency between the promise an organisation
makes to its employees about working at that organisation
and the work experience
Hewitt Best Employers in ANZ Study 2008, www.hewittassociates.com
power of employee engagement 21

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Q18 What are the main requirements for
employee engagement?
According to the Hays Group, there are four requirements for
engagement:
1. Confidence in the organisation’s leaders
2. Collaboration and collegiality (positivity)
3. Development opportunities
4. Clear and promising sense of purpose
The Hays Group 2008, www.hayscompanies.com
Q19 How can employee engagement impact the
bottom line?
Companies that raise employee satisfaction by 20% will increase
their financial performance by more than 42%.
Global Study by David Maister, Practice What You Preach: What Managers Must
Do to Create a High Achievement Culture (2001). Sourced from www.vault.com
December 2008
A detailed study of 40 global companies found that firms with
the highest percentage of engaged employees collectively
increased operating income 19% and earnings per share 28%
year-to-year. Those companies with the lowest percentage of
engaged employees showed year-to-year declines of 33% in
operating income and 11% in earnings per share.
Towers Perrin Global Workforce Study. Sourced from
www.humanresourcesmagazine.com.au December 2008

Q20 What impact can engagement have on
innovation and customer service?
Almost 9 in 10 engaged employees strongly agreed that they
have grown in their ability to positively affect their company’s
customers, while only 2 in 10 actively disengaged employees
strongly agreed. Engaged employees are far more likely to
suggest or develop creative ways to improve management or
business processes. They’re also far more likely to find creative
ways to solve customer problems or to involve their customers in
creating service innovations.
Gallup Management Journal Study, October 2006. Sourced from www.gallup.com
December 2008
“When people performance management is the primary focus in
an organisation, competitive advantage becomes human capital
management: employees become partners not expenses, and
compensation and incentives become total rewards management.
The reward is a connection between employee engagement,
customer loyalty and profitability.”
Mulhern, F. Professor of Integrated Marketing Communications, North Western
University, Illinois. Sourced from Motivation Magazine December 2008

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Q21 How can managers affect employee
engagement?
Hays Group research shows that 70% of engagement is
determined by the employee’s direct manager.
The Hays Group, www.hayscompanies.com (2008)
Many managers claim no responsibility for employee engagement
and retention. They believe retention is largely about money,
perks and benefits – areas where they have little control. We
know that is not true. In addition to fair pay, people want:
• Challenging, meaningful work
• A chance to learn and grow
• Great co-workers
• Recognition and respect
• A good boss
Kaye, B & Jordan-Evans, S. 2005. Love ‘Em or Lose Em. Berrett Koehler.
Q22 Does higher pay guarantee greater
engagement and happiness?
“Increases in our stocks of material goods produce virtually no
measurable gains in our psychological or physical well-being.
Bigger houses and faster cars, it seems, don’t make us any
happier.”
Frank, R. (1999) Luxury Fever: Why money fails to satisfy in an era of excess
“Money never made a man happy yet, nor will it. The more a man
has, the more he wants. Instead of filling a vacuum, it makes one.“
Benjamin Franklin

“I don’t care too much for money, because money can’t buy me
love.”
Lyrics by Paul McCartney/John Lennon, “Can’t Buy Me Love”, A Hard Days Night
album, March 1964
Q23 What effect can engagement have on
productivity?
“Engagement not only increases the speed and quality of
execution, but also nurtures an environment in which employees
are willing to reach outside of their silos and create better
business processes. This motivation leads to more efficient,
productive business processes.”
Gebauer, J. (2005), Building the Global Village, Synnovation: Quarterly Journal of
the EDS Agility Alliance, Vol 1. Issue 2. Sourced from Roadmap to Success: Driving
Bottom Line Results with People Performance, Success Factors, December 2008
Q24 Does engagement help increase employee
retention?
”Engagement has a direct impact on retaining employees. Half
of the engaged employees had no plans to leave their company,
compared with just 15% of the disengaged – and roughly a third
of the workforce overall. Less than 5% of engaged employees
said they were actively looking for another job compared with
more than one in four of the disengaged employees.“
Towers Perrin Global Workforce Study. Sourced from
www.humanresourcesmagazine.com.au, December 2008

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Q25 What are some more reasons why employee
engagement matters?
• Engaged employees average 27% less absenteeism than
those that are actively disengaged
• Engaged employees deliver greater customer service (12%
higher customer scores)
• Teams that are more engaged are more than twice as likely
to succeed…. Averaging 18% higher productivity and 12%
higher profitability
Wagner, R & Harter, J. 12 The Elements of Great Managing (2008) Gallup Press
Q26 Why should employee engagement be a
strategic priority?
Research conducted by Gallup proves that engaged employees
are more profitable, more customer-focused, safer, and more
likely to withstand temptations to leave. Engaged employees
deliver:
• 27% higher profits
• 50% higher sales
• 50% higher customer loyalty
• 38% above average productivity
Who says cash is king?, Globoforce.com, June 2008

Q27 Can effective communications engage
employees and increase profit?
A significant improvement in communication effectiveness is
associated with a 30% increase in market value. Companies with
the highest levels of ‘effective communication’ experienced a
26% total return to shareholders from 1998 to 2002, compared to
a -15% return for firms that communicate least effectively.
A Watson Wyatt Study, Connecting Organisational Communication to Financial
Performance. Sourced from Towersperrin.com October 2007
Q28 What are the characteristics that make a
company a “Best Employer”?
The 5 key characteristics that make a company a ‘Best Employer’:
1. An effective and committed leadership team
2. Compelling promise to employees
3. Aligned people practices
4. Connection to the company strategy
5. Differentiated high perfomance culture
Hewitt Associates, Best Employer Study 2008, www.hewittassociates.com
“Our employees are most important for us. When they are happy,
the guests are happy. First, we respect every employee. We care
for them as part of a family and provide a very positive work
environment. We empower our staff to take any decisions they
think are needed to please guests. Finally, we make sure we are
transparent. We stay in close touch with the staff. Every once or
twice a month, I hold what I call town hall meetings which are
open to all staff. And we listen to their suggestions.”
Jean V. Mestriner, GM of The Ritz-Carlton,
Millenia in Singapore

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creating
motivated
and
productive
staff
If you want your organisation to be successful,
then you’ll want to align everyone behind the
same vision and overall goal. Salaries and
compensation packages are taken as a given
these days. What else can you do to encourage
excitement or engender a spirit of ‘celebration’ in
your organisation to ensure that every day your
employees come to work wanting to work hard
and take pleasure in all they do? Over the next
few pages we answer questions on increasing
motivation and productivity in the workplace.

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“Pleasure in the job
puts perfection in
the work”
Aristotle

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Q29 What inspires people?
“In short, other people inspire people! They are inspired in such
a way that makes them want a piece of what someone else is
having. This is because it creates a sense of relatedness and
connectedness. It is the power of one person telling another – this
creates desire.”
Gladwell, M. The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference. (2002)
Abacus
Q30 What are the key factors that motivate staff?
The ‘Leadership and Employment and Direction Survey’ compiled
by Leadership Management Australia, found the top five factors
that will positively influence employees are:
• Being entrusted with responsibility/independence
• Interesting and challenging work
• A good working relationship
• Receiving feedback and good communication
• Enjoying a good relationship with other staff
“As the leadership team goes - so goes the rest of the
organisation.”
Verne Harnish, Author Mastering the Rockefeller Habits (2006) SelectBooks
“People want to connect to something bigger than themselves.
They want to know how they contribute to the bigger picture,
what difference they made, what their score card was and were
they recognised for it.”

Q31 Why do people need incentives? Isn’t their
salary and employment package enough?
“It’s never about the money – it’s about their hearts and minds.
While financial rewards tend to receive the greatest focus, non-monetary
rewards are used to support a performance-driven
culture. Just over half of the participants surveyed said that their
current employer uses non-monetary recognition as part of its
reward program.”
Denis Orme – CEO, Insurance Brokers of New Zealand
Robert Half Finance & Accounting, (2005). Retain Staff Without More Cash. Sourced
August 2005 from xtramsn.co.nz
Q32 Why is cash not an effective incentive?
Cash has its place, but it is not as effective when it comes to
recognising people. Quite simply, it is not memorable. 72% of
people said that, if given cash rewards, they disappear on bills,
taxes and necessaries. 70% said that cash begins to become
expected and therefore is confused with compensation.
RedBalloon Winter 2004 Pleasure Survey. www.redballoon.com.au/go/pleasure
“Recent research showed that those working for a cash incentive
boosted their performance by 14.6% over those who did not
receive any incentive for performance… Those who were
working toward a non-cash incentive improved by 38.6% relative
to the no-incentive condition… For the same amount of money,
a non-cash incentive created more than twice the performance
improvement.”
University of Chicago study (2004) Sourced from Who Says Cash is King whitepaper,
Globoforce.com November 2008
creating motivated and productive staff 31

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Q33 Why do experiences ‘work’ as incentives?
“Experiential purchases or life experiences make people happier
than material purchases. The initial thrill of a possession wears
off quickly, but memories last forever. A person’s life is the sum
of their experiences, not their goods. Experiences have greater
social value in their connectivity.”
Gilovich T, Cornell University & Van Boven, L, University of Colorado (2003) US
Journal of Personality and Social Psychology
“The cycle of materialistic pursuits is exhausting in the long run
and can make people perpetually unhappy.”
Professor Robert Arkin, Ohio State University
Q34 What would people work harder for?
People would work harder if they were recognised for doing so.
It comes back to how important people feel their contribution is,
are they noticed and is there a shared experience of achievement.
People need to have a sense of related validation - ‘I feel great
about what I do, I make a difference and others know about it’.
“The most consistently profitable divisions have people doing
what they like to do, with people they like, with a strong sense of
psychological ownership for the outcome of their work.”
Coffman C & Harter, J. A Hard Look at Soft Numbers (1999) The Gallup Organisation

creating motivated and productive staff 33

“There is more
hunger for love
and appreciation
in this world than
for bread”
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Mother Teresa

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rewards
and
recognition
Gone are the days when managers only gave
their staff a pat on the back and a couple of movie
tickets for a job well done. Over the next few
pages we’ll highlight the importance of formal
reward and recognition programs and provide
insight into what types of rewards work best,
what makes a program effective and ultimately
what impact they have to employees and
organisation success.

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Q35 What is it that makes people crave praise
and recognition?
“At a purely chemical level every experience humans find
enjoyable – whether listening to music, embracing a lover or
eating chocolate – amounts to little more than an explosion
of dopamine in the nucleus accumbens, as exhilarating and
epheremeral as a firecracker.”
Nash, J.M., Addicted: Why do people get Hooked (1997)
“Positive words specifically have been found to activate regions
of the brain related to reward.”
Hamman, S and Mao, H, Positive and negative emotional verbal stimuli (2002)
Q36 Why does it feel good to give praise?
“Giving meaningful praise to someone has been statistically
linked to increases in happiness and decreases in depression for
up to a month after the communication. And that’s for the giver.”
Seligman, M. Steen,T, Park N & Peterson C, Positive psychology progress: Emperical
validation of interventions (2005)
Q37 What type of recognition do employees want?
For more than 56% of all respondents, the best reward that an
employer could give for a job well done is a fun thing to do, with
a dinner for two (at over 17%) trailing far behind in second place.
The five least popular rewards were in order: desk accessories
(0.1%), flowers (0.4%), CD/DVD vouchers (1.4%), movie vouchers
(1.6%) and food hampers (1.7%).
RedBalloon Summer 2003 Pleasure Survey, www.redballoon.com.au/go/pleasure

Q38 To be effective, how should recognition be
delivered?
Positive – Comments must always be postive and upbeat
Immediate – The closer the recognition to the actual
performance the better
Close – Recognition is best presented in the employee’s work
environment among peers
Specific – A great presentation is a time to point out specific
behaviors that reinforces key values
Shared – Typically, recognition comes from the top down;
however, recognition that means the most often comes from
peers who best understand the circumstances surrounding the
employee’s performance
OC Tanner, Sourced from www.carrots.com, December 2008
Q39 What is an employee recognition program?
An employee recognition program encompasses any reward
program that is based on recognising people for their behaviours,
and for reaching milestones (as opposed to performance or
achievement related targets). Programs may take the form
of rewarding staff that live the company values, for length of
service, birthdays or other special occasions.
Q40 Why do you need a recognition program?
“Companies that utilised an effective employee recognition
program enjoyed a 109% three-year median return to
shareholders vs. a 52% return for those companies that did not.”
Watson Wyatt Study of 3 million employees, as quoted
in Forbes magazine (2004)
rewards and recognition 37

38
“In any company the real source of profit is individual actions of
employees. Effective recognition impacts the bottom line by
encouraging individuals to add real value to their actions. What
gets measured gets rewarded, what gets recognised gets repeated.”
Gary Mitchell, Director, The MotivAction Group
A significant 28% of survey respondents indicated that the
presence of an ongoing Rewards and Benefits program was a key
factor in their decision to stay with their current employer.
Incentives and Rewards Study – RedBalloon Pleasure Survey October 2007
www.corporate.redballoon.com.au
Q41 What should a reward and recognition
program focus on?
“Decide what is important to your organisation and align your
recognition program to the positive behaviours your organisation
wants to promote. These positive behaviours will then advance
your company’s mission.”
Christi L. Gibson, Incentive (July 2008)
Q42 What role do leaders play in successful
recognition programs?
“Recognition programs won’t work if they aren’t fundamentally
built into the fabric of who you are as an organisation. Leadership
teams can’t pass out a binder of expectations and expect the
field organisation to simply execute because the CEO said it’s
important. The leadership team needs to be completely aligned
and model the behaviour themselves if they expect success.”
John Berisford, Senior VP and Chief People Officer, The Pepsi Bottling Group

Q43 How can you get your boss to buy into a
recognition program?
You should treat it like any lawyer arguing a case. First, present
the indisputable facts and argue the precedents on recognition
(eg. Based on 10 years of research companies that are most
effective at recognition are three times more profitable than their
peers). Secondly, you would acknowledge and dispute each of the
objections. In a segmentation study we conducted, a full third of
all managers admitted being negative to the idea of recognition,
so it’s not unusual if you find yourself working for such a person.
One option is to pilot recognition in one or two groups within the
company.
Selling to Senior Management, Managers Tools Newsletter, OC Tanner. Sourced
from www.carrots.com February 2008
(Or of course, we would be happy to help you with this and
supply extra copies of the Little Red Book of Answers to give to
your manager!)
Q44 What impact can recognition programs have
on retention?
The impact of recognition on employee turnover is remarkable.
In one case study, the Big Four accounting firm KPMG found that
employees who were presented just one tangible award during a
year were half as likely to leave as those who had not received a
recognition award.
Chester, E. & Gostick, A . The Carrot Principle (2007)

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Q45 Can authentic praise deliver more to your
bottom line than cash rewards?
“Paying people a compliment appears to activate the same
reward center in the brain as paying them cash.”
Japanese National Institute for Physiological Sciences study, 2008
“Acknowledging staff achievements – praising employees – had
the same impact on job satisfaction as a 1% increase in pay,
which would equal £5.2 billion for UK businesses alone.”
White Water Strategies, 2008
“Spot awards to employees resulted in a 10 times greater return
on investment than an increase in base pay.”
McKinsey and Company/Compensation Roundtable, 2008
Sourced from Increase Employee Performance by Meeting Psychic Income Needs,
www.globoforce.com November 2008
Q46 What makes ‘experiential gifts’ an effective
reward?
When asked to choose their own reward preference, the majority
of respondents (49%) preferred an experience based reward
over a cash bonus (24%). Life experience is becoming a huge
factor across society in general as people look to get more
quality and depth from their lives. Providing a rewards program
that recognises this momentum toward experiential growth can
exponentially magnify the impact of this category of reward and
have a lasting impression upon a company’s culture.
Incentives and Rewards Study – RedBalloon Pleasure Survey October 2007
www.corporate.redballoon.com.au

Q47 How much should you spend on a reward
and recognition program?
As a benchmark, to have a real impact the best performing
companies will spend equal to at least 5% of their payroll bill
on engagement and recognition activities. That said, we have
had many great success stories with clients who have spent far
less…. it’s not the size of the prize, it’s what you do that makes
a difference.
Q48 How important is the internal
communication of a recognition program?
In our experience, from the hundreds of corporate programs
we run, a consistent ongoing program of communication and
management is needed to maximise the benefits of the program.
You have to Launch it – Live it – Talk about it. Each element is
crucial to the success of the program. If you have a program, you
have to live and breathe it and make it a part of the daily working
lives of your people through ongoing communication.
Q49 How can you excite your staff about a
rewards program?
Enlist their help. “They, better than anyone else, know the tasks
and requirements of their jobs. With their help, you can establish
a rewards system that not only fills their needs better than one
you create alone, but also has more credibility.”
Deeprose, D. (1994). How to Recognise & Reward Employees. AMACOM

42
workplace
fun
“Workplace fun” for some businesses might sound
like an oxymoron, but at RedBalloon we embrace
this notion whole heartedly (it is even one of our
company values to have a sense of humour and
fun). This doesn’t mean that everyone is clowning
around and they don’t take their work seriously,
far from it. There is a balance to be found and over
the next few pages we will share it with you.

43
“The most
wasted day of
all is that on
which we have
not laughed”
Nicholas Chamfort

44
Q50 Why do we enjoy laughter?
A 2005 University of Maryland study showed that a good laugh is
good for your health because it can increase blood flow by 22%,
while stress decreased blood flow.
Gostick, A & Christopher, S. The Levity Effect: Why It Pays to Lighten Up (March
2008) Wiley
Q51 Why is it important to have fun in the
workplace?
When we choose to love the work we do, we can catch our
limit of happiness, meaning and fulfilment every day. This is so
important when you consider that people spend about 75% of
their adult wake time doing work related activity – getting ready
for work, travelling to work, working, contemplating work, and
decompressing after work. If we spend that much time in that
part of our lives we ought to enjoy it and be energized by it.
Ken Blanchard, Ph.D. co-author of The One Minute Manager and Gung ho!
“Creative ideas flourish best in a shop which preserves some
spirit of fun. Nobody is in business for fun, but that does not
mean there cannot be fun in business.”
Leo Burnett, Advertising Executive, 1891-1971
“No fun at work makes it a boot camp - all fun makes it a
kindergarten... Fun must be tied to commercial returns.”

Q52 What are the organisational benefits if there
is a fun work environment?
“With low unemployment rates and fierce competition for great
talent, fun at work can provide a competitive advantage, help
attract and retain employees, and provide the spark to jump start
creativity.”
Gostick, A & Christopher, S. The Levity Effect: Why It Pays to Lighten Up
(March 2008) Wiley
In Fortune’s “100 Best Companies to Work for in America”
employees that were denoted as ‘great’, on average, 81% of
them worked in a fun environment.
2008 Great Place to Work® Institute. Sourced from www.greatplacetowork.com
November 2008
Q53 Are employees more productive when they
have fun?
The notion of how people feel and react emotionally is
important to their success and to the achievement of successful
organisational performances in the workplace. Good moods
enhance the ability to think flexibly and with more complexity,
thus making it easier to find solutions to problems.
Goleman Ph.D, Emotional Intelligence (1997) A Bantam Book
“Most people who have seriously studied the consequences of the
work environment say that if employees can lighten up on the job,
they will increase productivity, improve morale and boost profits.”
Stephan, E G & Wayne Pace, R. Powerful Leadership: How to Unleash the Potential
in Others and Simplify Your Own Life. (2002) Prentice Hall
workplace fun 45

46
Q54 What impact can fun have on teamwork?
Employees are going to be more likely to volunteer to tackle
challenges and help coworkers out, rather than just doing “their”
jobs and nothing more.
Hiam, A . Motivational Management: Inspiring your people for maximum
performance (2002) AMACOM
Q55 Can being fun and having a sense of humour
help your career?
A study of 737 chief executives of major corporations found that
98% would hire an applicant with a good sense of humour over
one who seemed to lack one. According to a survey of 1,000
workers, those who rated their manager’s sense of humour
“above average” also said there was a 90% chance they would
stay in their job for more than a year. According to a study in the
Harvard Business Review, executives described by co-workers as
having a good sense of humour “climb the corporate ladder more
quickly, and earn more money than their peers.”
Adrian Gostick and Scott Christopher, New York Times, www.nytimes.com March
2008. Sourced in December 2008.
Q56 What role should leaders play to create a
fun environment?
“Great leaders have a way of bringing lightness into the
workplace. The boss is not necessarily the humour giver as much
as the humour enabler, or, at least, the humour tolerator.”
Adrian Gostick and Scott Christopher, New York Times, www.nytimes.com March
2008. Sourced in December 2008.

Q57 How much fun are Australian and New
Zealand businesses having?
72% of Australian and New Zealanders work in a fun
environment. 40% of us overcome work-related pressures by
sharing a ‘belly laugh’ at work everyday, whilst 20% of us don’t
get to laugh very often. Giving employees something positive
to talk about helps maintain buoyancy and will minimise water
cooler conversations from the rumour mill about redundancies
and downturns.
RedBalloon Pleasure Survey ‘Work-life Balance’ (November 2008) from 2,714
respondents. www.corporate.redballoon.com.au/go/knowledge-bank/surveys
Q58 How can RedBalloon bring fun to your
workplace?
We want to help you to mix business with pleasure – and there
are many different ways we can inject fun into your business.
Ultimately we want to give your employees or clients a memory
of a lifetime from our range of over 2,500 experiences. So
whether it is an exciting incentive, recognition program, launch
event or team building event, we can add the right amount of fun,
fit for your needs.
No matter what, we get people talking - telling stories about the
‘good times’ they have.
workplace fun 47

48
“Coming together
is a beginning, staying
together is progress,
and working together
is success”
Henry Ford

49
creating
cohesive
teams
The power of the collective mind is often referred
to as one of the greatest forces in the business
environment. Teams that work together effectively
have the power to create much more than the sum
of their individual levels of expertise. Over the
next few pages we share with you the answers
we have on how to get teams working together
productively and harmoniously.

50
Q59 How do effective teams impact
organisational performance?
“Effective teams, not abstract commitments to teamwork or
empowerment, are the real drivers of top-flight organisational
performance.”
Katzenbach, J R & Smith, D K. The Wisdom of Teams: Creating the High-
Performance Organisation. (1993) Harvard Business School Press
Q60 What are the benefits of teamwork?
Teams improve:
• Skills: more talent, expertise and technical competence
• Communication: vertical and lateral, cross departmental lines,
more ideas, mutual respect
• Participation: boost morale, “Buy in” to changes, job satisfaction
• Effectiveness: solutions more likely to be implemented, process
ownership.
Mears, P (1994). Team Building: A Structured Learning Approach. CRC Press.
Q61 How can you get your staff to work together
productively and harmoniously?
“Team building is creating a work culture that values
collaboration. In a teamwork environment, people understand and
believe that thinking, planning, decisions and actions are better
when done cooperatively. People recognise, and even assimilate,
the belief that “none of us is as good as all of us.”
Blanchard, K & Bowles, S. High Five! The Magic of Working Together. (2001)
William Morrow

Q62 Where do you start if you want to increase
team cohesion?
Organise an event or team building day starting with an ice-breaker.
Ice-breakers are great, fun activities to help people who
have never met ‘warm up’ and get to know each other. In a team
building context they are often like an appetiser to a good meal –
a taste of what is to come.
Ice breakers:
• Set a positive atmosphere for interaction
• Encourage interest in the overall experience
• Build cohesiveness and trust among members in the group
• Aid members to become acquainted in order to develop a spirit
of teamwork and interdependence.
Q63 How should you effectively utilise team
events for client entertaining?
Entertaining never gains or keeps business - or if it does, the
business isn’t worth having. Never entertain a client to say
‘please’. Entertain to say ‘thank you’. Or just for fun.
It is about building relationships because you want to, not
because you have to.
Bird, D. Commonsense Direct Marketing. (2000) Kogan Page
creating cohesive teams 51

52
Q64 How can RedBalloon help you set up a team
building experience that your staff or clients
will love?
If you want to get your team working together, or if you just want
to give them a rewarding break from the office, we can help
deliver something with real impact. Based on any of our specific
experiences, we can put together an amazing team outing. What
about a sailing treasure hunt, art experience, cooking class,
record your own corporate song, murder mystery dinner, quad
biking, adventure circus workshop, drumming workshop, clay
target shooting or a karting grand prix? The list is endless…
Contact us and we will happily send you some ideas for an event
or team experience which matches your goals and objectives.

54
managing
generations
at work
As the generation of baby boomers nears
retirement age, gloomy predictions of a severe
skills shortage remain at the forefront of
the minds of many HR managers. With
Generations X and Y moving up in the ranks,
the challenge over the next decade will be to
effectively manage this transition by
supporting the unique needs of all generations
whilst keeping them engaged with the vision
and values of your organisation.

55
“The glory of each
generation is to make
its own precedents”
Belva Lockwood (1830–1917)

56
Q65 What are the key differences between
generations at work?
Veterans – born 1922-1943. The era of “doing without”. Their
core values include dedication/sacrifice, hard work, conformity,
respect for authority, duty before pleasure and delayed rewards.
Baby Boomers – born 1943-1960. Boomers got to the top by
paying their dues, by patience and loyalty. For them, the best way
to succeed was to become the workaholic generation.
Generation X – born 1960-1980. The latch-key generation, see
their workaholic lives of their parents as abhorrent. Their work
loyalty is to their career, not to their workplace.
Generation Y – born 1980-2000. Think they have as much to
say as anyone else, that their feelings count, and that there is no
reason to be automatically respectful of authority.
Q66 How is the working population set to
change?
Baby boomers born in the 15 years after WWII have started to
reach retirement age from 2005. They outnumber generation X by
2:1, and it does not take a mathematician to work out that there
will not be enough people to fill the jobs vacated by the boomers.
Fragiacomo, L. Talking about Y generation (2005) Sourced from http://misweb.com
November 2006

Q67 How quickly will we lose the Boomers from
the workforce?
Boomers reject a life of either full-time leisure or full-time work.
When probed about their ideal work arrangement in retirement,
the most common choice among boomers would be to repeatedly
“cycle” between periods of work and leisure (42%), followed by
part-time work (16%), start their own business (13%) and full-time
work (6%). Only 17% hope to never work for pay again.
“The New Retirement Survey,” conducted for Merrill Lynch by Harris Interactive® in
collaboration with Age Wave (2005). Sourced from http://www.ml.com November
2006
Q68 What is Generation Y’s general attitude
towards work?
“For twentysomethings, the unwritten contract with their
employer is understood at the most visceral level to be:
‘I rent you my skills, I don’t sell you my soul. In return for my
contributions, I expect something back in addition to my pay
cheque – interesting development, and a work life that doesn’t
encroach on my personal life’.”
Moses, B. Workers of the world unite! (2006) Sourced from www.theglobeandmail.
com November 2006
“I’ve found that now - no matter what age - people have become
generation ‘why’. Employees want to know why they are doing
something and what contribution they make.”
managing generations at work 57

58
Q69 How does Generation Y view leadership?
“Y’s were exposed to leadership at a very early age, both at
school and in workplaces - it’s no big deal to them. They’re
sceptical of the empowered leader, preferring a collaborative
team-based approach, so it’s unlikely that they will be adopting
the old models of authoritarian leadership.”
Mark McCrindle, Social Researcher. Fragiacomo, L. Talking about Y generation
(2005) Sourced from http://misweb.com November 2006
Q70 How can you attract/retain Generation Y?
The main aspects of work that Gen Y love (considerably higher
than other generations) is ‘the people they work with’ therefore
to retain and attract Gen Y it is important that an organisation
creates a friendly, social and cultural environment.
Seek intelligence: 2008 survey of employee satisfaction and motivation in Australia
Avril Henry, executive director of AHRevelations who has
researched generations at work for over 5 years recommends:
• Redefine expectations: Long-term employment will be four to
five years and ‘nine to five’ is out
• Provide training: Not just technical training. Include leadership
training, conflict resolution and communication skills
• Be inclusive: Do not wait too long before providing an
opportunity for Y to contribute
• Give recognition: A card, movie tickets, dinner or even a
simple ‘thank you’ make people feel valued
Fragiacomo, L. Talking about Y generation (2005) Sourced from http://misweb.com
November 2006

managing generations at work 59

60
“A brand that captures your
mind gains behaviour. A brand
that captures your heart
gains commitment”
Scott Talgo

61
building an
employer
brand
Employer Branding has been defined as the
‘company’s image as seen through the eyes of its
associates and potential hires’. Your company as a
brand is far more than just the product or service
you provide. A brand cannot be delivered without
its people, who create and shape what it stands
for and how it is perceived. Therefore your brand
has to speak to potential employees as something
they want to be part of, not because of the
product, but because of the people.

62
Q71 What is an ‘Employer Brand’ and why is it
important?
‘Branding’ as a generic term is often assumed to belong to the
marketing function. However, organisations are increasingly
waking up to the recognition that directly or indirectly most brand
promises are delivered by people and not products.
Experience has shown that in order to develop an employer/
organisation brand it is important to articulate the image and
vision of the future and to invite all employees to unite behind it.
Thorne, K. Blending Learning: How to Integrate Online and Traditional Learning
(2003) Kogan Page
“People build brands. And brands are a collective set of
relationships. The brand is a promise held in the hearts of the
people who know us. How people talk about us is the most
powerful way to build a brand.”
Q72 Why should you synchronise your brands?
You can create and work on your employer brand all you want.
If your employer brand is in sync with your product brand, you’re
good to go – the two brands will reinforce each other. However,
if your employer brand is running contrary to your product
strategy or financial needs, your employer brand is going to
suffer.
Branding and Employment (2006) Sourced from http://systematichr.com November
2006

Q73 Is customer experience linked with
organisational culture?
“My take though is that it is difficult, if not impossible, for
employees to deliver a customer experience if they in fact are not
operating and living in a culture that offers them a really cool,
compelling, beautiful, inspiring — whatever kind of experience
you want to create with your brand and a simultaneous internal
employee experience.”
Regina M. Miller, CEO and Founder of the Seventh Suite TM (2006) The Employee
Experience. Sourced from http://blogs.bnet.com/hr/?p=378 November 2006
Q74 Is employer branding only the domain of the
HR department?
While employer branding is predominantly seen as the domain of
HR, marketing also plays an important role. In a 2003 Economist
survey into employer branding, respondents who had HR as the
major part of their job function (59%) said that employer branding
is too important to be left solely to a HR department. In fact,
15% of respondents felt that responsibility for the day-to-day
management of the employer brand lay with the CEO or MD.
building an employer brand 63

64
Q75 What’s the difference between employer
branding and becoming an ‘Employer of
Choice’?
Although becoming an ‘employer of choice’ involves improving
recruitment and retention, true employer branding goes farther
and involves motivating employees and generating improved
alignment between personal goals and the vision and values of
the company.
Cees B. M. van Riel & Charles J. Fombrun. Fame & Fortune: how successful
companies build winning reputations (2004) Prentice Hall
Q76 Why are company values strongly linked to
employer branding?
The Ritz’s employer brand has long been “We are ladies and
gentlemen serving ladies and gentlemen.”
“If you say you’re going to implement the employee promise and
you say you’re going to treat everyone with respect, you just have
to do it. I find with a lot of companies these are just words that
are hanging on a plaque on the boardroom wall, but in reality
people don’t reward with those behaviours associated with the
desired state.”
Lawrence Chi, director of HR at the Portman - Ritz Carlton, Shanghai.
Living values the Ritz-Carlton way (2006) Sourced from http://www.
humanresourcesmagazine.com.au November 2006

Q77 Why embrace employer branding now?
Studies by both the U.S. Census Bureau and the United Nations
assert that the supply of workers 25 to 44 years old will decline
15% over the current decade. That means there will be fewer
prospects to recruit for mid-level jobs – the core of the workforce.
Nicholas C. (EDT) Burkholder, Libby (EDT) Sartain. On Staffing: Advice and
Perspectives from HR Leaders (2003) John Wiley and Sons
“The cost of replacing an existing employee can be up to 2.5
times their salary. Faced with the challenges of an employment
market with a shrinking pool of talented workers, companies will
need to start focusing their employer branding efforts more on
existing employees if they are to decrease employee turnover.”
Minchington, B. Your Employer Brand-Attract, Engage, Retain (2006)
Q78 Why is having an employer brand important
to Generation Y?
“Generation Y will put your company’s culture under the
microscope and if they don’t like what they see they’ll walk away.
Y’s will not apply for jobs with organisations they perceive have
poor policies and stupid procedures. If they don’t believe in what
the organisation stands for, they won’t bother applying,”
Avril Henry, Executive Director of AHRevelations. Fragiacomo, L. Talking about Y
generation (2005) Sourced from http://misweb.com November 2006

66
Q79 What impact does employer branding have
financially?
A 1999 UK Institute of Employment Studies report found that an
increase in one point in employee commitment (on a five point
scale) delivered a 9% increase in sales, “In the case of service
brands in particular, it is recognised that customer satisfaction
and loyalty is closely related to the expected and perceived
behaviour of employees, which in turn is directly linked to
employee engagement.”
Kevin Lodge, Group General Manager of employment marketing communications at
Adcorp. Making your mark with employer branding. (2006) Sourced from
http://www.humanresourcesmagazine.com.au November 2006
Q80 Why should the new mantra be ‘the
employees are always right’?
“The mantra should be the employee is always right and the
customer is why - because they are in the frontline interacting
with the customers. If you expect frontline employees to care
about the customer, you must show them you care about them.”
Hilary Dreiling, Senior Manager of Reward and Recognition, T-Mobile USA.
Presentation to The Motivation Expo, Chicago, October 2008

Q81 Why is managing your employer brand
crucial?
“What keeps me awake at night are the intangibles. It’s the
intangibles that are the hardest thing for a competitor to imitate.
If we ever do lose that we’ve lost our most valuable competitive
asset”
Herb Kelleher, CEO, Southwestern Airlines (US)
According to the Brookings Institution, 85% of a company’s value
is now intangible assets including knowledge, reputation, brand
and human talent. This is up from 38% in 1982.
The Economics of Humanity in Business, Forum For People Performance
Management and Measurement. Sourced from http://www.performanceforum.org
December 2008
“Candidates have become much more selective in the positions
they will consider and accept. They will thoroughly research an
organisation’s opportunities and culture before deciding to submit
an application or accept any role.”
Grahame Doyle, Director, Hays (August 2008) Sourced from
www.humanresourcesmagazine.com.au December 2008
“It’s not what you do, but who you are that makes the
difference.... consistently living the values – always, no matter
the circumstances.”

68
improving
sales
performance
No matter what business you are in or what
products and services you sell, you will always
need to have highly motivated sales staff,
effective incentives and unique promotions.
We have worked with many companies to deliver
sales incentive programs to boost individual
performance or customer up-take of products, so
here are a few of our learnings and an introduction
to experiential marketing.

69
“If you work just for money,
you’ll never make it.
But if you love what you are
doing, and always put
the customer f i
rst, success
wcll be yours.”
Ray Kroc

70
Q82 What objectives can sales incentives be
used to achieve?
According to the latest Incentive Federation research of consumer
marketers, incentives and rewards are used to achieve the
following objectives:
• Increase or maintain sales
• Create new markets
• Gain a larger share of existing markets
• Acquire new customers
• Build customer loyalty or trust
Sourced from www.incentivecentral.org November 2008
Q83 How to choose the right type of sales
incentive?
”Don’t presume to know what will excite a person. Everyone is
different. Ask what special something would excite him or her.
If they say something monetary, probe to see what else. You’ll
be amazed.”
Sam Manfer. Sourced from www.detroiteronline.com November 2008

Q84 What are the top incentives to motivate
sales staff?
When surveyed 168 media sales staff said that ‘lifestyle’ rewards
such as holidays, experiences and sabbaticals would motivate
them to achieve over and above their targets. More time off was
also a popular option with 31%, and more commission/bonus
only came in at 8%.
Sales is a stressful job and being able to let off steam by doing
something completely different – and having it paid for - is often
more satisfying than an extra one or two per cent commission.
Lester, N. Managing Director of Regan and Dean Recruitment,
www.regananddean.co.uk/downloads/survey_motivating.pdf
Q85 How can you motivate your sales force for
optimum performance?
“It’s not just about the paycheck. Effective incentive
compensation management is based on an understanding of
basic human motivation – on the importance of trust,
self-esteem, social recognition and improved chances to fulfill
one’s potential. “
Bakosh, R. Outlook Journal, September 2007. Sourced from www.accenture.com
December 2008
“Incentive programs can improve performance in teams by up to
44%, and in individuals by 25%.”
Stolovitch H, Clark R, & Condly,S. Incentives, Rewards, and Workplace Motivation
(2002) Society of Incentive and Travel Executives Research Foundation. Sourced from
Iloverewards.com November 2008
improving sales performance 71

72
“Motivation of sales people commonly focuses on sales results,
but nobody can actually ‘do’ a result. What matters in achieving
results is people’s attitude and activity and the areas of
opportunity on which the attitude and activity is directed.”
Chapman, A. Sourced from www.businessballs.com December 2008
Q86 Why do non-monetary incentives have a
higher perceived value than cash?
There are four different psychological processes which contribute
to increasing the perceived value of tangible non-monetary
incentive awards over cash-based awards:
1. Evaluability - Recipients are likely to place a higher value on
the award than its actual cost.
2. Separability - Cash incentives tend to be thought of as
compensation.
3. Justifiability - When a non-cash award is something they
would not purchase on their own, they can justify the award because
they won it through achievement. So if a sky dive would be too big
of a splurge normally, the recipient will enjoy it all the more.
4. Social Reinforcement - Non-cash incentives can be awarded
publicly in front of other employees with a lot of fanfare. Also,
the recipient is likely to talk about it openly, where they would
not feel appropriate discussing a cash award - just as they don’t
openly discuss their salary. This means you generate additional
good feelings toward your company among many employees - not
just the incentive recipient.
Jeffrey, S Dr. (2004) The Benefits of Tangible Non-Monetary Incentives Study,
University of Waterloo

“Non-cash incentives were 24% more powerful at boosting
performance than cash incentives. ”
University of Chicago study, 2004. Sourced from Increase Employee Performance by
Meeting Psychic Income Needs, www.globoforce.com November 2008
Q87 Why are sales incentive programs effective
in uncertain economic times?
Five fundamental reasons explain why incentive programs,
unlike other sales and marketing strategies, withstand economic
downturns:
1. Low fixed costs, variable costs driven by performance, high
potential return
2. Ability to effectively target audiences (no pay and spray)
3. Relative ease of measurement
4. Flexibility
5. Potential for both short-term and long-term results
Incentive Performance Centre. Sourced from www.incentivecentral.org
November 2008
Q88 How much does a company need to spend
to change behaviour?
It takes an increase of 5% to 8% of an employee’s salary to
change behaviour, but behaviour can be influenced at a cost
closer to 4% of the employee’s salary using non-cash incentives.
Jeffrey, S Dr. (2004) The Benefits of Tangible Non-Monetary Incentives Study,
University of Waterloo

74
Q89 How can RedBalloon experiences promote
your products or services?
RedBalloon experiences are ideal because apart from providing
an amazing memory, they are exciting and inspirational. They
offer a unique tool that can be used to increase sales uptake and
enhance marketing campaigns. Our clients have used them for
consumer and corporate campaigns such as:
• ‘Free Gift’ with purchase eg. Buy a widescreen TV and get a
$100 experience voucher
• Themed to products or marketing campaigns creating a
stronger brand tie-in
• Time bound promotions
• Competition prize draws
• Promotional products or giveaways
Q90 What are the key factors when choosing an
incentive or promotional product?
When choosing a promotional product for an incentive or gift
with purchase, it’s crucial you get it right so you need to ask
yourself, does the gift:
• Fit in with my product’s brand positioning?
• Make sense for my target market?
• Support usage of the brand you are promoting?
• Tie in well with an overall promotional theme?
William Kestin, CEO APPA, Published in Marketing Magazine August 2006

Q91 What impact does a ‘gift with purchase’
promotion create?
The true power of promotional products is the response elicited
by the correct delivery of that product in a properly constructed
promotional campaign. Increased sales are the major factor
but they also increase customer goodwill; Retail and employee
excitement about your product and offer; Generation of repeat
store visits or purchases; and faster sell-through.
William Kestin, CEO APPA, Published in Marketing Magazine August 2006
Q92 How can you capitalise on the new era of
the ‘Experience Economy’?
“Goods and services are simply props to engage the customer.
Customers want memorable experiences and companies must
become stagers of experiences. While the work of experience
stager perishes upon its performance, the value of the experience
lingers in the memory of any individual who was engaged by the
event.”
B. Joseph Pine II and James Gilmore, Welcome to the Experience Economy (1999)
Harvard Business School Press

76
Q93 How can experiences create positive
conversations about your company?
“We enjoy talking about our experiences much more than our
possessions. Talking about our experiences – including our
shared experiences – is the stock in trade of our relationships...
Good relationships are strongly associated with happiness.”
Gittins, R (2004, February 18). Activity is the goods for true satisfaction. The Sydney
Morning Herald.
“If you do build a great experience, customers tell each other
about that. Word of mouth is very powerful.“
Jeff Bezos, CEO, Amazon.com
Q94 How can positive conversations impact your
bottom line?
“Recommendations from family and friends is most important
over all other consumer touch points when it comes to influencing
purchases.”
Public is Media Network Zenith Optimdeia, AdAge, April, 2008
According to a global Nielsen survey of 26,486 Internet users in
47 markets, ‘consumer recommendations’ are the most credible
form of advertising among 78% of the study’s respondents.
Word-of-Mouth the Most Powerful Selling Tool, Nielsen Online Global Consumer
Study (April 2007)

“The story is what drives the bond between the company and the
consumer.“
Klaus Fog, Christian Budtz. Baris Yakaboylu. 2005 Storytelling: Branding in Practice.
“Stories can be used to communicate visions and values, to
strengthen company culture, to manage the company through
change and to share knowledge across the organisation.”
Fog,K, Budtz, C & Yakaboylu, B. Storytelling: Branding in Practice (2005)
“Commodities are fungible, goods tangible, services intangible,
and experiences memorable. “
B Joseph Pine II, James H Gilmore. 1999. Welcome to the Experience Economy –
Harvard Business Review Article

78
“People will forget what
you said, people will
forget what you did,
but people will never
forget how you made
them feel”
Maya Angelou

79
how will
RedBalloon
get you
results?
We are passionate about delivering pleasure
to people in organisations, and have done so
with great success for many years, working with
the largest employers through to small micro-businesses.
This section is dedicated to the ways
that we can assist you successfully introduce the
concept of pleasure into your organisation, and the
results it will bring you.

80
Q95 How long has RedBalloon been around and
where did it come from?
RedBalloon was launched by Naomi Simson in October 2001.
Naomi has an extensive background in corporate marketing roles,
working with IBM, Apple Australia and Ansett.
Naomi took a view very early on that in her business CEO actually
stands for Chief Experience Officer because it is up to her how
people (customers, suppliers, employees and stakeholders)
experience RedBalloon.
With this in mind she has built a strong values based business,
which uses an amazing product (life experiences), to deliver
results based on our natural ability and desire to have fun and tell
stories.
RedBalloon started with a story, a story to change gifting in
Australia and New Zealand forever. It’s what we are committed
to for every individual at home or at work.
Since its inception, RedBalloon and Naomi have received a
number of acknowledgements - most recently:
• 2008, 2007, 2006, 2005, 2004 BRW Fast lists
• 2008, 2007, 2006 Deloitte Technology Fast 50
• 97% Employee Engagement score by Hewitt Associates (2008)
• 2008 Telstra Business Women’s Winner – Innovation
• 2008 NSW Telstra Business Women’s Winner –
Business Owner
• 2007, 2006 & 2005 Finalist Telstra Business Awards –
20-50 employees category
• 2008, 2007, 2006, 2005 & 2004 Hitwise Award - # 1 Gifts and
Flowers category - most visited website

Q96 What is a RedBalloon experience and what
types are there?
We package pleasure in the form of experience vouchers. We
offer over 2,500 experiences so it’s impossible to list them
all here. On our site we have them grouped into 12 different
categories which include Water, Driving, Spa & Wellbeing, Flight
& Flying, Gourmet, Getaways, Creative, For Kids, Anywhere,
Outdoor, Gift Boxes and Group. So whether you want adventure,
an adrenalin rush or the ultimate relaxation, we have some great
ideas to suit everyone. You can easily search and check out all
our experiences at: www.redballoon.com.au
Q97 Why do we believe experiences work?
We enjoy talking about our experiences much more than our
possessions. Self-storage is a fast growing industry, as people
are hoarding so much ‘stuff’. But if we think about it, we can’t
take it with us. It’s the memories, the stories and our shared
moments that we hold close. When we reflect on our lives,
experiences form the bulk of what we remember. People talk
about their experiences much more than their possessions and
relive these experiences with colleagues, friends and family.
For example, think of the reaction you have when you experience
something you enjoy, for example, you eat a delicious meal or
have an amazing holiday – you tell people about it! People like
to ‘brag’ about fantastic experiences they have… “Guess what I
did… look what happened to me…”!
how will RedBalloon get you results? 81

82
As a motivator cash is just not effective. Whilst it has its place,
it simply isn’t memorable, disappearing on bills and necessities
and eventually becoming expected and hence confused with
compensation. Store cards are the same as cash. If you go and
buy a new iron, are you going to rave on to your family and
friends and excite your colleagues about the hows and whys you
earned your award?
We are firm believers that life is the sum of your experiences and
memories define who you are. We are in the business of making
people happy and we want to extend this to your organisation.
Imagine the employer branding potential you could unleash by
giving your people the gift of a memory… as opposed to more
stuff!
Q98 Why do RedBalloon vouchers make easy
rewards and incentives?
It’s so easy to give a RedBalloon voucher and put a smile
on someone’s face. You can choose a voucher for a specific
experience like a Tiger Moth flight or, give a gift certificate
that lets them choose what they want to do (with or without a
denomination written on the front).
Our email vouchers can deliver ‘thanks’ to any inbox within 10
minutes, you can print your own voucher and hide it somewhere
for them to find, get the postman to deliver it or watch as three
bouncing helium red balloons with a voucher attached make their
way across the office via courier for maximum impact!

Q99 What services can RedBalloon provide my
organisation?
In addition to offering vouchers for ad-hoc corporate gifting,
RedBalloon also has a range of program products which
effectively structure reward and recognition/incentive programs
based on organisational objectives. Structuring a program
involves the design of award types and consideration of the
optimum frequency to incite the right behaviours. For details and
case studies visit: corporate.redballoon.com.au
Voucher Programs
Our voucher programs provide structure so that you can
personally recognise your people or customers with our
beautifully presented vouchers co-branded with your
logo and message. Voucher programs are great for public
acknowledgement and sales incentives.
Online Points Programs
Our online points programs run in a similar way to a frequent
flyer programs allowing participants to accumulate points to put
towards their choice of experience. Points can allocated on an
ad-hoc basis or for meeting awards based criteria. Our online
platform has all the bells and whistles to meet any of your needs
- from an employee loyalty program, length of service awards,
employee of the month recognition or just simple corporate gifts
for birthdays and special events.
Team Events
We have lots of suitable experiences for groups which are
fantastic for team building, celebrating team achievements or
just as an excuse to get out of the office.

84
Marketing Communications
Communication can make or break a program’s success, it’s not
enough just to tick a box and say you have a program running.
The quality and consistency of messages to put rewards on
the company-wide agenda is crucial and our in-house team of
talented writers and designers are here to help you launch and
promote your program.
Engagement consultation
We have learned that engagement is not an activity but a
journey. We have done it many time times before and want to
share all our knowledge, and over 20 years combined experience,
with our clients. We take the time to listen and discover who you
are and where you want to go and provide a proven methodology
to take you there.
Q100 Who uses RedBalloon?
Organisations large and small across every industry! We have
more than 1,400 corporate clients. Some of Australia & New
Zealand’s best known brands like Qantas, Vodafone, Network
Ten, Telstra, Ernst & Young, Alcatel Lucent and Nestle through
to smaller businesses such as CA Australia and Creative
Promotions.
To view case studies of organisations using RedBalloon with
amazing results go to:

Q101 What difference has RedBalloon made to
organisations?
You can view more than 25 case studies online, but here’s a
snippet of one we are very proud of:
APHS, who provides pharmaceutical supply and clinical
services, approached RedBalloon to create a formalised
reward and recognition program for its 400 staff. The Online
Points Program had positive results across the company with
marked improvements in employee engagement and creating a
more cohesive team aware of each other’s contribution to the
business, despite geographical barriers.
“It’s amazing to see in an 18-month period how deeply engrained
in our culture the program has become. It’s really helping the
organisation to create a forum of appreciation – it leads to better
relationships” said General Manager, Cathie Reid.
Q102 What is the 100% Price Guarantee?
You’ll pay the same through us for an Experience Voucher as you
would by going direct to our suppliers. If you find the supplier is
advertising their standard RRP at a cheaper price than ours for
the same experience, we’ll give you a complete refund.
Please note: The majority of our accommodation package prices
are based on peak rates as usage demonstrates this is when our
customers want to use them.

86
Q103 What are the Fringe Benefit Tax (FBT)
implications?
It depends on how much you are spending, how often and on
whom. Please seek your own tax advice on FBT implications.
Q104 What are the benefits of setting up a
corporate account with us?
We like to treat our corporate clients with extra special care, so
we offer a premium service:
• You’ll have an account manager who’ll be available to answer
any questions you might have
• We’ll set you up with a login to our corporate purchase
options, which allows you to make bulk purchases with
ease and pay via invoice (14 day terms, subject to a credit
application)
• You’ll be able to add your logo to have your vouchers
co-branded (charges apply)
• Support with promotional elements such as images and
design
• We provide assistance and training to internal coordinators on
maximising the return on your investment
• You’ll receive our free corporate newsletter, packed full of
information, survey results, case studies and more

Q105 How can you engage RedBalloon?
The best thing to do is pick up the phone and call 1300 850 940.
Whether you are ready to implement a program or just want
some advice, one of our “engagement specialists” will be happy
to talk to you and will guide you through a list of considerations.
Depending on how complex your requirements are, we’ll send a
RedBallooner to you to take a detailed brief in order to help you
design a program that is as closely aligned to your goals.
They’ll then be with you all the way, from initial proposal to the
launch of your program.

88
where can
you find more
information?
There are a variety of ways you can contact us. Our experienced
team is ready to help you, whatever your needs or questions.
Give us a call
Australia: 1300 850 940
New Zealand: 0800 555 029
Go Online
naomisimson.com (Our CEO’s blog on all things from leadership,
engagement, marketing to fun)
Email Us
Australia: query@redballoon.com.au
New Zealand: query@redballoon.co.nz

89
like
another
copy?
We would be delighted to send you another copy of the Little Red
Book of Answers for your friends or colleagues.
Simply, order online at:
www.redballoon.com.au/go/answers
www.redballoon.co.nz/go/answers

“May you live
all the days of
your life”
Jonathan Swift
Mix business with pleasure.

Ever wished you had
‘all the answers’?
This little book will place them all at your fingertips if you
have ever pondered….
How do I nurture happy, motivated and productive staff?
How do I create unbreakable employee engagement?
How do you manage generations at work?
How do you build an employer brand?
How do you create an effective reward and recognition program?
What tools can I use to boost sales?
How can I foster a fun work environment?
How will RedBalloon get me results?
‘The Little Red Book of Answers’ contains some gems, both from our
own experience and research, as well as that of other organisations.
This book will help you identify, plan and develop strategies for your
organisation whether you are looking to engage staff, incentivise
distributors or ‘woo’ clients.
RedBalloon – Australia / New Zealand
corporate.redballoon.com.au corporate.redballoon.co.nz

The Little Book of Answers for Creating Happy People and Boosting Profits

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