Document Solutions turns surprise vacation into sales incentive

There can be beauty in the unknown.

Connie Meyer, account manager with Document Solutions of Springfield Inc., is preparing to do what she describes as the craziest thing she’s ever done. She’s opening an envelope, packing a suitcase and showing up at a specific location to be whisked away to – somewhere.

“It’s a surprise,” she said. “It’s an adventure. I’m really excited about it.”

Meyer is one of two Document Solutions employees on pace to win a sales contest.

The prize trip is arranged through Pack Up and Go LLC, which sets up the travel and accommodations for two-night, three-day vacations with a catch: Participants have no idea of the destination until en route. It’s meant to encourage people to embrace spontaneity and traverse an unknown path.

Options include less expensive road trips and more expensive “plane, train or bus” trips. Prices range from $400 to $5,000 per person.

In a world of calendars and smartphone scheduling reminders, Greg Tigges, owner of local Xerox store Document Solutions, found Pack Up and Go as an interesting way to break free from routine. He not only plans to take the journey himself, but also made it a creative sales incentive for his company.

“Salespeople always like something new, and this fits the bill,” he said. “We’ve always looked for some creative things to do within the office and have some fun with it.”  

The idea now is being reviewed by senior management at Norwalk, Conn.-based Xerox Corp. as a way to increase sales the second half of the year.

“My senior management asked me if my partner had a program together for their reps. I sent the flier into my management about what Greg was doing,” said Steve McElroy, a Xerox regional manager. “They loved the idea and are reviewing it as something we might want to replicate in other markets.”

McElroy is anxious to hear how Meyer and her colleague, Larry Bechtel, an account manager who also won the sales contest, enjoy their vacations.

“I had never heard of it before,” Bechtel said. “I’ll wait and see. The jury is out at the moment.”

Meyer anticipates their trips will take place in February or March, and she’s hoping for warmer weather.

Tigges, a Xerox sales agent for the Springfield area for 22 years, discovered Pack Up and Go from his daughter, Sarah. She and her boyfriend signed up for their trip in May and traveled in September.

“He turned 31 in August and I turned 31 at the end of September, so we celebrated our 31st birthdays together on this trip,” she said.

Sarah said the process is fairly simple: Go to PackUpGo.com, select a budget, fill out a survey, pick the dates and pay for the trip. She received an envelope via priority mail a week before departure providing weather information for their surprise destination as well as an idea of what to pack. A second envelope inside that revealed their destination was not to be opened until the day of departure. A sticker on the outside would reveal any tampering.

The couple ended up in Philadelphia.

“Sometimes picking where you are going on vacation is the toughest part,” she said. “They made it extremely personal. I think we will do it annually. It was a lot of fun and very spontaneous for very type-A people.”