With the magnitude at which social media is growing, businesses cannot be built on a simple buy-and-sell ideology anymore. Going way beyond the basic aesthetics of a business and consumer relationship, your employees; the workers who run your businesses, are just as important.
To keep pace with the ever-changing marketplace, you’ve probably created the ‘check-in-the-box’ social media pages of your company. You’ve probably also tried to keep it interesting by posting an achievement in growth stats, motivational quotes, business and product related updates, to keep your employees and potential leads “engaged”. Yes?
But ask yourself – is this really what you want people to see when they Google your brand? Is this what your employees want to see?
With organic reach declining, the employees of a company can prove to be the deciding factor in the digital marketing strategy of a company. They can either make or break you online – so to speak, and this becomes even more important in mid-sized businesses.
If done correctly, there are several benefits that one can expect from converting employees into brand ambassadors. It’s really simple.
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Positivity from employee posts creates a natural pull to both prospective and existing consumers in favor of your brand.
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It becomes easier for HR personnel to get the right people on board because, let’s face it, if you’re shown a place that sounds fun to work in, you’ll sincerely consider working there.
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Minimum investment!
If you need a few examples, these companies are definitely doing it right. Others who’ve successfully taken a stab at employee advocacy are familiar names like Starbucks and L’Oreal.
Starbucks has a dedicated website for their global employees called ‘Starbucks Partners’. Just browse through their Instagram page; it’s flooded with experiences shared by their staff – the work culture, their personal lives, the customers they meet, and more.
Cosmetics manufacturer L’Oreal pulled a similar stint where they asked their employees what made working there so great. The reaction was beyond expectations and their social media pages still flourish with people sharing pictures and experiences of their happy career lives.
Listening and monitoring:
You can’t command a person to share the content of the company. That is the first rule of what not to do with your employee advocacy plan. Rather, talk to your employees. What are your employees actually talking about on social media? Monitoring is key to know what they want to see and hear about on their company’s social pages. Listening in on the grapevine helps.
Target the influencers:
As easy as it sounds, employees do need a push sometimes most of the time. This is where ‘influencers’ come into action. Every office has those select few employees who have somehow charmed the entire office. Target such people, and others are sure to follow suit.
Trust your squad:
When you make employees your brand ambassadors, you need to start trusting them more than often. You can’t sit on their head to make them feel “happy” and post about it on Facebook.
Lastly, have fun:
Business is a serious playground, and your employees understand that very well. But that doesn’t mean one can’t have a good joke cracked around once a while. Remember, a happy place is contagious.
Now that you have some idea about what employee advocacy can do to your business growth and brand presence, get on with it and keep clicking with your employees and start shining all over the world.
