The small business guide to employee discount scheme
Everything feels more expensive these days, which means we’re all looking for ways to save money. If a pay rise isn’t within your budget, one cost-effective way you can support employees is with a staff discount scheme.
In this guide, we’ll explain what a staff discount scheme is, how they work, and how you can set one up for your small business. We’ll also introduce you to a way to make the whole experience even easier.
What is an employee discount scheme?
An employee discount scheme is a type of benefit or employee reward scheme that allows employees access to discounts negotiated by the employer. Discounts are usually available with a large range of retailers and suppliers across multiple categories including supermarkets, electronics, fitness centres, and more.
Many small businesses use an employee benefits and rewards platform to facilitate their schemes, but you can also offer employees discounts by negotiating with retailers (especially other small businesses) individually.
Types of employee discount schemes
Vouchers for money off a purchase are a popular type of staff discount to offer, but they’re not the only option. Here are the most popular ways to offer your employees some much-appreciated money off a purchase.
Vouchers or gift cards
Companies can use vouchers or gift cards in different ways to help secure a discount for their employees. You could offer physical vouchers for use in-store with high street brands, or e-vouchers that can be used online.
You can negotiate with retailers or service providers to offer a voucher for a specific percentage off a purchase that exceeds a total. This can encourage people to spend more with the retailer to secure money off — making it a great option for providers.
Another way to use vouchers is to allow employees to purchase them at a discount. For example, an employee deposits £45 into the platform and can then purchase £60 worth of vouchers or gift cards for a specific retailer. This method allows employees to save money — especially when it comes to bigger purchases or gifts.
Discount codes
Discount codes enable employees to get a small amount of money off when buying something. An example of this is a beauty retailer offering a discount code for £5 off when buying a trio of skincare products.
For retailers, discount codes allow them to promote specific product bundles or services that they want to draw attention to. It can also be a useful way to track what’s popular with customers.
Negotiating with providers to create a custom discount code featuring your company name makes it easy for employees to remember and adds to brand visibility.
Cashback
A popular way for people to save money is to get cashback on purchases. This is especially for large items like furniture, vehicles, or appliances — or to save money on the everyday essentials. The initial cashback amounts might seem small, but they grow over time, and offer your employees a reliable way to build their savings and make their funds go further.
While there are platforms where individuals can access cashback outside of work, being able to do this all from one perks and benefits platform streamlines the experience for them. It’s also easier for you to add custom deals with other small businesses that aren’t readily available on larger cashback websites.
Benefits of introducing staff discount schemes
The main benefit of staff discount schemes is that they offer another way for employees (including you) to save money on everyday purchases and large-ticket items. But that’s not the only reason to invest in them for your small business — they also offer these perks too:
Better ability to attract and retain the best talent
The job market is highly competitive, and in a situation where the role and salary are similar then it’s typically the perks and employee benefits that encourage someone to pursue one opportunity over another. Give your small business the best chance of attracting (and keeping) top talent with discount schemes, cycle to work schemes, childcare vouchers, and more.
Employee discount schemes are beneficial for employee retention, too. If an employee is used to using your platform to earn discounts and save money, they’re less likely to want to leave for a role where this isn’t on offer to them.
Increased employee satisfaction
It’s not enough these days to just offer a competitive salary and flexible working as perks. Employees want to feel like they’re taken care of in all areas, and that includes feeling like they’re more than just a number on a spreadsheet.
As a small business, you’re often better placed than larger companies to create a benefits package that feels personalised, thoughtful, and useful — leading to higher employee satisfaction.
Improved employee wellbeing
Staff discount schemes enable people to save money or make their existing salary reach further — something that’s more appreciated than ever in this cost of living crisis. These small savings can enhance overall employee wellbeing and soften some of the challenges of everyday life. You can also promote wellbeing with discounted gym memberships, a cycle to work scheme, or savings at fitness retailers.
As well as wellbeing at work benefits, offering employee discount schemes also empowers your employees to improve their financial wellbeing. They’re in control of what discounts they use, what savings they make, and figuring out how to make the smartest money decisions for their needs.
Better employee engagement
People that feel supported, secure, and happier are more likely to not just thrive in their personal lives but in the workplace too. Introducing the right perks and benefits can improve employee engagement and lead to an increase in communication, teamwork, and productivity.
You can also get your employees involved in the process of deciding which discounts to offer. This is a great way to increase engagement and show that you care about offering valuable benefits that are more than just a tick-box exercise.
How to set up an effective employee discount scheme
Having a staff discount scheme makes sense for your employees, but it’s also beneficial for employers too. Wondering how to get started? Use this step-by-step guide to introduce an employee discount scheme.
1. Identify your needs
Before you invest in a scheme, figure out what your needs, goals, and priorities are. Do you want to secure the highest percentage of discount? Offer a wide range of retailers and service providers? Find the best cashback deals for grocery shopping? Focus on a specific area, like fitness and wellness?
Decide what your needs are, then write down what you’re looking for in an employee benefits platform. Use this to inform your search so you find the right software to match your specific goals.
2. Search for potential vendors and benefits platforms
There are plenty of perks and benefits platforms out there. Some are well known and popular, while others are lesser known. Some cater to companies of all sizes, but others are designed with small businesses in mind — like Charlie.
- Do some research into what’s available and compare this against your needs and priorities.
- Build a shortlist, test the different software platforms, and come up with a recommendation or decision on which is the right one for you.
- Negotiate a discount package with vendors directly. This works best for other local or small businesses. Talk to them and see if you can agree on an employee discount scheme that benefits everyone involved.
3. Finalise your plans
Once you’ve selected the right platform or vendors, it’s time to finalise everything so it’s ready for employees to use when the scheme launches. Confirm which subscription plan you’ll use, which retail discounts you want access to, what types of discounts you’ll offer, and more.
At this stage it’s also helpful to plan a launch date, figure out what support you’ll need internally, and decide how you’ll let employees know about the scheme.
4. Introduce your employee benefit scheme
Before you launch, plan a communications schedule that helps you introduce the new employee benefits package, how it works, what the benefits of using it are, and how employees can make the most of the discounts.
When it’s time to go live, your employees will have a good understanding of what the new scheme is and how they can use it. This should encourage employees to start using the discounts straight away.
5. Review and update the scheme
Keep the momentum going after the launch. Introducing an employee discount scheme isn’t a “set it and forget it” situation. Ask employees for their feedback on the scheme, then use this to refine it so it’s even better.
This might mean changing the list of retailers, negotiating more useful discounts, or partnering with other small businesses in your local community on new perks. Listen to your employees and work with them to create a scheme that they want to use.
Enjoy a smoother route to staff discounts with Charlie
There are lots of employee benefits platforms out there, but they’re not all designed with UK small businesses in mind. Charlie is, and that’s exactly why so many small businesses use our perks and benefits feature to keep their employees engaged.
No need to source vendors or negotiate
Big businesses can negotiate huge discounts and attractive cashback deals with major brands. As a small business, that’s not always possible and it would certainly take too much of your valuable time. With Charlie, all the hard work is done for you. You get a ready-made employee discount programme, without all the hassle.
You also don’t miss out on deals just because you’re a small business. Enjoy access to industry-standard perks and discounts — the same offering as companies like Google and Tesla. Bring a best-in-class offering to your team members, no matter the size of your company.
Wide range of perks and benefits
Small businesses that use Charlie gain access to over 30,000 deals and discounts, so there’s truly something for everyone. With a huge range of discounts, it’s the best employee discount platform for UK startups and small businesses.
Employees can enjoy exclusive savings and discounts with major brands like Apple, BT, Sky, John Lewis, Tesco, and Sainsbury’s. They can save money on train tickets, cinema tickets, holidays, and car rental. We also have a wide range of health and wellbeing discounts for brands like Graze, Mindful Chef, Fitbit, and Hello Fresh.
All your HR operations, in one place
Although you can integrate some discounts platforms with your HR software, nothing beats having everything available to you in one place. With Charlie, you can manage your perks and benefits programmes from the same platform as your everyday HR operations.
Go from onboarding a new employee, to scheduling a performance review, to reviewing your list of staff discounts seamlessly. Avoid context-switching and distraction by keeping all your HR tasks within easy reach. Charlie doesn’t just help you streamline employee discounts, but your entire HR operations.
Create a better experience with staff discount schemes
Employee discount schemes are beneficial for everyone involved. They introduce employees to useful discounts, help boost employee retention, and increase spend with retailers. Use this guide to help you introduce a staff discount scheme that’s attractive and easy to use.
Make it easy for employees to find discounts with Charlie’s perks and benefits feature. Give them access to over 30,000 best-in-class benefits and discounts, as well as our streamlined onboarding, performance management, time off management, and engagement surveys. Take a free trial to see how Charlie can help you keep your employees engaged.
