In promoting your organization’s employer brand to the outside world, your greatest asset can be found within. Getting your team on board as employee advocates of your brand is the easiest and most effective way to secure your organization’s reputation. According to the 2013 Edelman Trust Barometer “Employees rank higher in public trust than a firm’s PR department, CEO, or Founder.” Read on for five easy tips to gain and obtain employee advocacy through your best resource: your employees.
- Develop your Ambassadors
Take a look at your organization’s staff: which employees show special initiative and demonstrate extra enthusiasm for the company? Once you’re identified these people, approach them about becoming Employer Brand Ambassadors. Of course, you must make sure this position goes beyond the title. It is also very important to work with your ambassadors. As Forbes notes: “A strong brand requires employee engagement, which is driven by integrating the personal brands of your people.” Find Ambassadors that have strong personalities, but also embody the brand your company stands for overall.
- Set Goals
Another essential step when training Ambassadors is to help them set goals. Defining clear targets for success will help Ambassadors know what direction they should be heading in. Social media is one of your most important tools, and should be focused on when setting goals. Develop social media policies, creating specific do’s and don’t’s for their personal and professional profiles. Help them use their profiles by doing things like creating a personalized hashtag for your company, like Red Bull’s #PutACanOnIt. By aiding Ambassadors in setting goals, especially with social media, you can ensure their success.
- Get Them Involved
An Ambassador’s role is also crucial beyond the work place. As management, it is your job to invite Ambassadors to events outside of their day-to-day jobs, such as career fairs or community gatherings. This will give employees the opportunity to network, and be grassroots promoters for your organization. Encourage Ambassadors to take and post photos from events, to show that being employed at your organization goes beyond a clock-in, clock-out daily grind. You can also throw your own events for employees, like McDonald’s Founder’s Day, where they can learn about the company’s history and engage with their coworkers. Engagement like this is a great way to foster the best from your Ambassadors.
- Feature Them
A good Ambassador should be praised for their hard work. Make sure to recognize them, both within your organization, and in the external world. Ambassadors should be featured on your organization’s website, and through your social media channels. By publicly celebrating your Ambassadors, you encourage employees to also bring their ‘A’ game to the workplace.
- Ask for Their Feedback
There is always room for improvement within an organization, and Ambassadors are a great insight into the employee experience. Turn to your Ambassadors for creative ideas regarding keeping your employer brand at the forefront, and for ways in which your organization can differentiate itself from your competition. Your Ambassadors act as a gateway between you and your employees, and may bring ideas to the table that wouldn’t occur to management.
One recent Gallup poll showed that 41% of employees don’t know what their company’s branding is. By selecting Ambassadors and getting them to work with you to obtain the best employee experience, you can help educate your workers, and create an atmosphere within your workplace that will radiate to the outside world, with your brand at the forefront.
About Blu Ivy Group
Blu Ivy Group is a leading employer branding and employee engagement consultancy that aligns your organization with contemporary workplace paradigms. Blu Ivy Group’s mission is to help client’s build award-winning people practices, inspire extraordinary employee engagement, and cultivate unique and desirable workplaces.
We provide integrated solutions in employer brand and engagement research, strategic consulting, employer brand integration, creative and talent communications. Blu Ivy Group is a trusted partner to many of North America’s most respected employer brands. For more information, go to www.bluivygroup.com
