How do you convince the needlephobes and “I’m too busy” types to come out and get a flu shot?
One option: Consider a flu prevention rewards program.
Incentives can take the form of:
- Contests. One company doubled participation by putting everyone who signed up for a flu shot into a drawing for an iPod.
- Merchandise. A school district in Minnesota got more teachers to get vaccinated by giving away winter hats with sports teams’ logos on them.
- Healthy rewards. Many companies tie flu shots into promoting overall wellness by giving away pedometers, yoga kits, workout videos or electronic scales.
- Gift cards. There’s always the popular standby of providing small gift cards (worth $20 or so) for department stores, restaurants or movie theaters.
Benchmark participation
Not sure if offering incentives will make enough of a difference to justify the added cost? Try this:
Benchmark your past sign-up rate for flu shots against a new drive using an incentive. Compare both the change in participation and the number of sick days taken during flu season by all employees.
