Learn About Employee Advocacy and Why It’s Important

When you buy a product or service, what are the driving factors behind your purchase decision?
Ads, coupons, or a company’s Facebook page can all be helpful sources. But, there’s helpful – and there’s influential. More likely than not, you’ll be influenced to finalize your selection by someone you know and trust: perhaps a friend, a close family member, or a loyal coworker.

The same holds true when it comes to marketing your company and its brand image. Your strongest advocates – and those most likely to influence their peers and contacts – are your rank-and-file employees. In a nutshell, that is what employee advocacy is all about and why it can be such a win-win strategy for your organization.

The Value of Employee Advocacy

Employee advocacy is an effective method for boosting your brand and initiatives through people who work for your company, typically using social media and other digital channels. You empower high-performing employees to become your spokespersons, ideally reaching out to people who work in various roles, who are willing to promote your messaging voluntarily.

As noted by the Marketing Advisory Network, company messages have 516 percent further reach when employees share them. They are shared 24 times more frequently, and 44.5 percent of people say they are more likely to apply for a job they saw through a friend’s social media post than on a job board.

How to Make it Work

To reach your full marketing potential via an employee advocacy program, you need to put the right processes in place, with a well-designed and communicated plan.

Start by defining your goals, as well as the key performance indicators (KPIs) you’ll use to measure the success of your efforts.

Get C-suite level buy-in. From the top-down, build a company culture conducive to employee advocacy and engagement. (Yes! Advocacy and engagement go hand in hand.) Explain the concept of advocacy to senior executives as it pertains to their position within the company. Focus on the bigger picture, and long-term improved business results.

Then, get employees to participate. Explain to your best team members how being part of an employee advocacy program will help them understand their company and industry and be more valuable to their company.

Show your appreciation for employee support. Include them in your marketing efforts and provide regular, consistent feedback

Last but not least: Content is key. It’s up to your marketing team to curate high-quality, relevant content for employees to share. You need a diverse content strategy that utilizes different messages, photos, videos, and infographics to make people want to share it.

For more ideas as you perfect your company’s employee advocacy strategy, contact PrideStaff Fresno today. Let it be part of a customizable solution to keep you competitive and ahead of the game regarding your talent management success and overall business growth.