In this episode of Tapped In Sales, Bud and Mikey explore the risks of turning your Performance-Based Pay (PFP) into a predictable, guaranteed monthly bonus – and why that’s a trap you should avoid. Drawing from real-world experiences and their recent seminar at the NBWA convention, they discuss how sales teams can fall into the entitlement mentality when incentives become too reliable and easy to achieve.

Key Topics:

• The Entitlement Trap: Has your PFP structure become so predictable that your sales reps expect their bonus without much effort? Bud and Mikey explain how this can stifle performance and why it’s crucial to introduce variability in your incentive programs.

• Identifying Predictability in Your PFP: Real-life examples from the field show how certain bonuses, like a $100 tap handle, become routine and lose their motivating power. The hosts discuss why predictable, recurring bonuses fail to drive meaningful performance.

• How to Shake Things Up: Learn how to redesign your PFP to introduce new challenges and goals, breaking the cycle of predictability. They share strategies for aligning incentives with actual performance and how to set goals that stretch your team without demotivating them.

• Tough Conversations and Leadership: Bud and Mikey offer advice on how to communicate changes to your team, focusing on the business’s long-term needs and the importance of performance-driven pay. Leaders will need to explain the “why” behind the changes and be prepared for resistance.

• Success Stories: Hear examples of how other distributors have successfully overhauled their pay structures, re-energizing their teams and getting better results.

Chapters

00:00 Introduction and Weather Talk

02:16 Impact of Hurricane Helene on Beer Distributors

11:01 Preparing for Future Storms

13:48 Understanding PFP as an Entitlement

15:42 Challenges with PFP Programs

21:45 Reviewing PFP Structures

25:01 Creating Variability in Goals

28:34 Misalignment of Goals and Relationships

33:17 Shaking Up PFP Programs

38:33 Conclusion and Call to Action

Listener Up!: Bud and Mikey encourage listeners to share their own challenges or success stories with PFP. They’re eager to hear how others are navigating similar issues and to dive deeper into industry-wide solutions.

Contact Us:

• Email Bud: bud@vxptech.com

• Email Mike: mike@vxptech.com

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