US incentive travel spend reaches $22.5 billion

Three out of four US companies use incentive travel, merchandise, or gift cards to reward their employees, spending a total of $76.9 billion per year, including $22.5 billion worth of travel, says a study released this month by the Incentive Federation.

The bigger the company, the more likely it is to offer an incentive program. Seventy-three percent of companies with revenues of $1 to $10 million offer one, while 89% of billion-dollar companies do.

Gift cards were the most popular form of incentive award overall, though in corporate gift programs, merchandise was the most popular.

Of the companies that offer incentive travel rewards, roughly equal numbers offer group travel and individual travel.  

The study was based on surveys of 1,952 respondents, including 526 who managed an incentive or a non-cash rewards program.

By Cheryl Rosen