Pros and cons of 5 different employee rewards

We love rewards at Love2shop Business Services. It’s what we do. We’re all about making sure your employees rewards that truly delight them. That’s why we stock a few different reward options – no one reward is inherently superior. We’ll outline the ups and downs of five major rewards here.

Gift cards

Pro – Gift cards, specifically multi-retailer gift cards, offer your audience tremendous choice. They also often come with online spend options, if the recipient isn’t into their high-street shopping.

Con – Plastic. It’s an unfortunate but undeniable reality that most gift cards are plastic. Love2shop Business Services supply about three million gift cards a year to businesses, and we can’t guarantee end-users will recycle them. However we are launching green alternatives, so watch this space!

Vouchers

Pro – Tactile, and the more of them there are, the more exciting they are. A stack of vouchers is a very satisfying thing to have in your hand.

Con – It’s easy to lose paper vouchers. And once they’re gone, they’re really gone. Most voucher providers treat their vouchers like cash, and won’t offer any replacements if they’re stolen, barring a few extreme situations.

Digital reward codes

Pro – Anyone, anywhere, any time. Digital rewards take all the problems out of a product actually reaching an employee in order to reward them with something they’ll love.

Con – The only downside to digital-first reward distribution is that they lack a bit of the “moment” you associate with a big stack of vouchers, or a ?? unfinished. You’ll have to inject that buzz yourself, in-person.

Merchandise

Pro – If your company produces hot products, merchandise makes a fitting staff reward. Especially when they’re in demand, scarce, or in the luxury niche.

Con – Not everyone has a product, or accessories to that product, that their employees covet. When this appeal just isn’t there, a business is better off relying on a multi-retailer product where employees pick their own rewards.

Travel

Pro – Travel is one of the most inspiring, uplifting prizes you can offer someone. It’s a dream realised, an ambition delivered, an opportunity to do something unforgettable. Travel is comfortably the most energising, inspiring reward your business could offer someone.

Con – Putting cost aside, booking travel is time-consuming, especially when you’re doing it on behalf of someone else. It can be frustrating, fiddly and take a bit of the shine off the reward for both parties when it comes to booking. Unless, of course, you have an in-house travel team to take care of that for you.

Wrapping up rewards

Love2shop Business Services are a rewards provider to hundreds of businesses in the UK. If you have any questions about your reward scheme, get in touch. Our teams are always happy to talk shop.