Employee advocacy on social media has emerged as the go-to strategy thanks to thousands of companies across the globe that have already pioneered the trend by launching successful employee advocacy programs. Today, it is clear that marketers are taking full advantage of employees as assets that can drive company sales and brand awareness.
Marketers are now partnering with employees to drive awareness, increase reach and realize tangible business outcomes. The mission of every organization should be to harness and leverage the great power of employee advocacy by encouraging team members effectively and enthusiastically to turn to their personal social media platforms to share and post content that supports their organization’s objectives.
Implementing an employee advocacy program isn’t that difficult since some of your employees are probably already be doing it on their own, whether they are aware of it or not.
Sustaining an employee advocacy program, on the other hand, is a much more challenging and daunting task. Without proper planning and specific goals in mind, even the most successful and well-meaning organizations can fail miserably to encourage employees to participate in an employee advocacy program.
Here are some tips on how to get your employees to participate in your employee advocacy program:
Make participation fun and easy
Contest and any rewards that you may offer your employees are great for improving employee advocacy. Contests are exciting and break away from the monotony of day to day work activities.
Additionally, contests make it easy and fun for employees to take part. Organizations can run polls and quizzes to get a firm understanding of which type of contests your employees want.
Research quality content
Researching quality content particularly in relation to what your competitors are doing is essential because it will allow you to position yourself and your employees as industry leaders, offering content that your competitors are not.
Your content should illustrate the value that you offer and it should burst with engaging content, branded web series, and interactive presentations that encourage sharing.
Limit your social media platforms
By limiting your social media platforms, you are leveraging the platforms that your employees use the most, which will award you a wider reach and increased engagement. Ensure that you conduct your research prior to find out which platforms your employees are already using to actively share your brand’s content.
You can then reach out to your employees and encourage them to share more as brand ambassadors, which will more likely cause your employees to have more drive and pride in spreading the word about your business.
Creatively incentivize the program
No two employees within the organization are alike. Similarly, their likes and preferences are going to differ too. You can’t imagine a CMO of the company to be motivated by the same things that would entice a junior marketer straight off the college boat. Range your rewards from monetary compensation like gift vouchers to training or conference seats or a rest and relaxation day.
Measure metrics
Determining the performance of your advocacy program is important because it will allow you to assess whether the program is failing or succeeding. The main metrics that you should track are the reach and influence that your employees have on various social media platforms.
