Making success stick: Gorilla Glue sales incentives

Managing the complexities of a multi-brand business

Our approach was influenced by various key company-specific characteristics. Gorilla Glue’s diverse portfolio of brands, including the iconic Gorilla Glue adhesives, and O’Keeffe’s Skincare, were individually successful, but they were at different stages of their journeys. 

Senior leaders recognized the need to develop nuanced sales incentives that went beyond the company’s annual incentive programs and enabled sales teams to drive growth at a brand level. This involved addressing key questions, including: 

●       How do you incentivize sales across two brands with different growth paths and financial profiles?
Gorilla Glue was expanding into new product categories from a position of market strength, while O’Keeffe’s was still building its presence in its core category. Each brand had different revenue and margin dynamics, requiring a thoughtful, balanced approach to compensation.

●       Which roles should be on a sales incentive plan and which shouldn’t?
In many commercial organizations, not everyone driving sales success actually sells. With blended teams and shared responsibilities, it’s essential to define who should participate in a sales incentive plan and who should be aligned to broader team outcomes.

●       How do you evolve incentive plans as growth strategies shift?
Historically, sales growth came easily through constant new product innovation. But as markets mature, teams need to be motivated to grow revenue profitably and strategically by creating incentives that reward smarter selling, not just more selling.

Building a tailored sales incentive plan 

Our solution was to create a sales incentive plan that reflects Gorilla Glue’s commitment to building brands people love - aligning incentives with business goals, reinforcing brand values, and empowering the teams behind each brand’s success.

The work unfolded over a 10-weekdesign and implementation period. This began by designing an eligibility framework to clarify which roles belonged on a SIP and which would be better served by a team-aligned bonus model.

We created a sales-adjacent SIP to keep roles like sales coordinators and support staff motivated and aligned to team performance. The plan ensured they stayed connected to outcomes without being held accountable for results they couldn’t directly control.

From there, we tackled the nuanced challenge of building a SIP for sales roles that respected the needs of two distinct brands. Our approach included:

●       Balanced brand weighting – ensuring both Gorilla Glue and O’Keeffe’s receive the appropriate focus, based on their growth goals and strategic importance.

●       Profitability incentives – restructuring compensation so sellers were rewarded for delivering profitable growth, not just for top-line sales, reducing the temptation to cut margins to boost revenue.

●       Inside sales framework – developing a new model to help Gorilla Glue reward inside sales roles based on how the role matured and contributed over time.

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Embedding a new approach to deliver long-term value

Since this was the company’s first SIP, we carefully managed its introduction to embed it in the company’s DNA. 

We created tailored manager training and delivered clear internal communications to ensure staff were onboard. By cost-modeling scenarios, we equipped Gorilla Glue’s leadership with insight that enabled them to confidently answer questions and guide the transition. 

It is early days, but the new framework is already having a positive impact. Approximately 60 employees have moved onto newly designed plans, giving Gorilla Glue a robust platform on which to enhance sales effectiveness across brands and geographies.

Beth Giglio, CHRO at Gorilla Glue, said: “The RevenueShift team was a wonderful partner in our recent design of a new sales incentive program. They brought best practices and flexibility to design the best solution for us.  They helped align to our growth goals while staying consistent with our values and culture.  As a result, we made a smooth transition to sales incentive plans to drive brand growth.”

Reshaping your sales team to meet new goals  

Companies juggling multiple brands and evolving commercial priorities such as Gorilla Glue undoubtedly face greater complexity when it comes to developing incentive plans that are effective across a business.   

Our work with Gorilla Glue shows that it is possible to achieve this by designing solutions that are fair, flexible and encourage real-world behaviors that underpin growth.

Join us at WorldatWork Sales Comp conference on August 12 for a deep dive into our work with Gorilla Glue. And if your business wants to take a strategic approach to incentive design, get in touch to find out how we can help: Marc Wallace [marc.wallace@revenueshift.com]

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