Meaning & use
sales incentives
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Meanings
nounplural
Rewards such as money, prizes, or discounts offered to encourage people to sell more or buy more.
Grammar: Used in the plural; a single one is 'a sales incentive'.
Patterns
- offer sales incentives
- sales incentives for staff
- a sales incentive scheme
The company introduced sales incentives to boost flagging winter sales.
Car dealers often rely on sales incentives such as cash-back offers to clear old stock.
Sales incentives for the team include a bonus for every contract signed.
nounpluralbusiness
A program or plan that gives sellers extra rewards for reaching targets.
Grammar: Often appears with 'scheme' or 'program': the sales incentives scheme runs from January to March.
Patterns
- a sales incentives scheme
- run a sales incentives program
- design sales incentives
Our sales incentives scheme pays out quarterly.
They redesigned the sales incentives program after staff complained it was unfair.
Word forms
| singular | sales incentive |
|---|
Common combinations
- offer sales incentives
- The manufacturer is offering sales incentives to shift last year's models.
- sales incentives scheme
- The sales incentives scheme rewards top performers with extra holiday.
- financial sales incentives
- Financial sales incentives can motivate a team but may also encourage risky selling.
- a package of sales incentives
- Buyers were tempted by a package of sales incentives including free delivery.
Synonyms and how they differ
- bonus
- A single extra payment for good performance; 'sales incentives' is broader and can include prizes, trips, or discounts.
- commission
- A percentage of each sale paid to the seller; it is one kind of sales incentive, not the whole idea.
Word family
- incentive noun
- Something that encourages you to act.
- incentivize verb
- To give someone a reason or reward to do something.
- sales noun
- The activity or department of selling.
Commonly confused: sales incentives or sales promotion?
sales incentives vs sales promotion
A promotion is a specific short-term campaign aimed at customers; sales incentives often target the sales staff instead.
Practice
The firm uses sales incentives ___ its regional managers to reach their targets.
Choose one answer.
'Use something to do something' needs the infinitive 'to motivate'. The bare form 'motivate' and 'for motivate' are ungrammatical, and 'motivating' would not express purpose here.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “sales incentives”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.