Airlines report increased corporate groups both during the World Cup from mid June to mid July, with some groups opting to forgo the global event and simply bathe in the afterglow with South African suppliers keen to maintain business post-WC.

Thevan Krishna, head of South African Airways Australasia and India, said group inquiries were up 40 per cent.

While some organisations left their run late and were struggling to find tickets to the beautiful game, let alone accommodation in major cities such as Durban, Cape Town and Johannesburg, one group of New Zealand’s top Mercedes Benz car dealers opted out of the World Cup ticket scramble, visiting Cape Town and a Kruger Safari camp in mid-April.

One group of Australia’s top performers who will be at the World Cup finals are the top 30 sales staff (and partners) from a major telecommunications company. Solterbeck has spent more than a year organising the incentive trip for the telco to reward its top 30 achievers.

Sue Jackson, executive chairman, describes Solterbeck as a performance improvement company. Its reward program has been offered to the client’s 1000 sales staff and is part of an annual performance improvement program Solterbeck has run for the telco from Melbourne over the past 12 years. Apart from the incentive element, there is also a conference attended by up to 400 sales staff who achieve budget plus a merchandise program.

“They look forward to the incentive trip every year – it is highly prized and not just because they get to go on once in a lifetime travel, they get to go with wives, partners, girlfriends, boyfriends...and so some of the motivation comes from home,” she said. Marketing to potential attendees employed a website, live launch event, DVD and launch pack, animated html and large environmental signage.

Sue says there’s considerable social capital attached to winning this trip, and while some of the incentive winners have been before, few manage to qualify every year “because it is just so difficult”. Other incentive programs, for dealers or agents, she says could often see up to 80 per cent of the same people winning each year, “but this program rewards only the top performing three per cent”.

The Mint organisation has arranged numerous corporate inventive groups to Africa, including one in 2008 for 600 delegates from the financial services sector. This year it has three groups going, two comprising 25 delegates and a smaller group of 20, all from the automotive industry.

Nicole White, account director at Mint Sydney, is arranging the incentives which will include South African Airways business-class, helicopters, Harleys, golf, watching the Socceroos play in Durban, followed by visits to game reserves, including Sir Richard Branson’s Private Game Reserve, Ulusaba in Sabi Sand – a treat reserved for only the highest achievers (rack rates are from 13,800 rand, or AUD$2000, a night).

“This will be an amazing trip for the winners and having the ability to market to their partners is quite powerful,” Nicole said.

While typical high-end events such as these cost $10,000 - $14,000 per head, Nicole says the addition of the World Cup and hotels in Cape Town asking $1000 a night for a standard room during the event, has pushed the cost beyond $20,000 a delegate. Sue Jackson agreed this would be a $15,000 - $20,000 per delegate spend.

Both Mint and Solterbeck spoke to mice.net on the condition that their clients were not named. Were these clients reluctant to speak about incentives for fear the public or shareholders would see them as inappropriate, or a junket?

“The whole junket discussion occurs in every industry…it gets good and bad press,” Sue says.

“However, it is very easy to look at these high-end programs and see the reason the company has done this is that sales people are highly motivated by reward and recognition... it makes sense to hold back on some of their salary package and offer a high-end incentive,” she said.

Nicole says it was noticeable that clients tightened their belts last year, “but their business has picked up again and now they’re doing all they can to take it to the next level... they want to do these programs again to help staff reach their goals.”

Less coy is South African DMC, Dragonfly. Sales and marketing manager, Robin Mcleod says the Mercedes Benz dealer incentive run by Australian incentive house, Golden Carrot, “was an easy choice for the client.”
Robin said the eight day program for 12 plus a Golden Carrot representative, featured a three night stay at Ngala Safari Lodge near Kruger with an option to partake in a unique conservation program to microchip rhino in Klaserie Private Nature Reserve. Their Cape Town accommodation is also unique: three nights at Grand Daddy Hotel which has seven Slipstream Trailers perched on the roof – recreating a trailer park, complete with outdoor movie screening and BBQ.

By the time you read this Australia may have already been bundled out of the FIFA 2010 World Cup in South Africa. If that’s the case (unfortunately deadlines and no crystal ball prevent me from knowing their fate as I write this), then us Aussies will have to wait another four years for another shot.

Those who don’t watch soccer, or football as they call it in most of the rest of the world, may, like me, be disappointed if the Socceroos are gone in the early stages. But those who do have a strong knowledge of the game should understand that simply qualifying for the World Cup is an achievement in itself.

Like most sporting events of this size and calibre the event is far bigger than the games themselves. For South Africa, this year’s host nation, the opportunity to showcase the country’s unity and attractions cannot be underestimated. If the month-long festivities are not marred by unrest of any kind then South Africa’s reputation, along with its tourism potential, could be measured in the billions.

Such is the power of the World Cup that major sponsors will be spending up big to capitalise on their investments, bringing in groups from all corners of the globe, but particularly Europe and the United States, to experience not only matches but South Africa.

Australian corporations too are expected, mixing matches with tours of game reserves, wine regions, and some of South Africa’s most stunning scenery.

We can only hope that the event goes off without a hitch and it does leave South Africa with a lasting legacy well beyond the confines of the new stadiums constructed just for the event.

Whatever the case, I for one will be emerging bleary eyed in early July, having thoroughly enjoyed watching some of the greatest football nations battle it out for their place in the history books. Of course I hope that Australia is up there too.

And, if I have to, I may even be rooting for New Zealand this time around!



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