[Buyer’s Guide] What to Ask When Evaluating Digital Rewards Providers

  • author

    Hannah Prince

  • posted

    Dec 15, 2021

  • topic

    Academic Research, Digital Marketing, Market Research

[Buyer’s Guide] What to Ask When Evaluating Digital Rewards Providers

It’s almost the end of the year, and that leftover budget is burning a hole in your proverbial pocket — time to pull the trigger on a rewards management platform! Whether you’re just now implementing incentives in your marketing or research programs or you want to streamline your existing manual reward delivery, the process of evaluating digital rewards providers is key to finding the one that best fits your needs and goals.

The platform you choose could make all the difference in your engagement and response rates. You need a tool that will ensure that you get the results you need while saving you time and keeping your program secure. 

How can you make sure you’re choosing the right one? Here are three questions you should ask while evaluating digital rewards providers.

What Support Will We Get?

You want to know the kinds and level of support that the provider offers both during onboarding and throughout our program. For onboarding, this is particularly critical if you are integrating the rewards management platform with another tool you already use for surveys or customer programs, such as Qualtrics, SurveyMonkey, HubSpot, or Marketo. Some rewards tools can connect seamlessly in a few steps, without IT involvement, but others require involved integration processes that will likely call for support from the provider.

Also make sure to look out for your recipients. Who is responsible for dealing with questions from those who have problems redeeming their reward? Choosing a provider that takes care of recipient support for you means you save a lot of time and headaches, so you can focus on your program’s success.

What Kind of Success Can Your Customers Expect?

You never even buy a product off Amazon without reading the reviews, and a new rewards tool should be no different. Ask providers to give you case studies and success metrics. If they don’t have proven results and references from past customers, you may want to rethink working with them. You can also check independent software review sites, such as G2 and Capterra.

What Security Measures Does the Platform Use?

Cybersecurity concerns are everywhere in today’s digital world, so, like any software tool you’re using, a rewards management platform should protect not only your company and clients but also your recipients. Check that it complies with all the appropriate privacy policies, including the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA). Also look for SOC 2-compliant providers, who have gone through an extensive auditing procedure to ensure they manage data securely and protect respondents’ privacy. 

More Tips for Evaluating Digital Rewards Providers

In addition to these questions, you should also be evaluating digital rewards providers based on countless considerations, including what kinds of incentives they offer, how well the platform can track and scale with your programs, what costs are involved, and how much time it can save you. With a thorough vetting, whatever rewards management platform you choose can help you streamline your processes and reach your program goals.

Our Buyer’s Guide e-book explores the six things to consider when evaluating a rewards platform and all the important questions to ask. Click below to download the one most relevant for you:

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about the author
Hannah Prince

Hannah is a reformed journalist who has more than 15 years of experience and now focuses on content marketing for innovative tech companies.

Hannah is a reformed journalist who has more than 15 years of experience and now focuses on content marketing for innovative tech companies.