Companies of all sizes are using social media to engage with their customers, build brand awareness, and drive traffic to their websites. However, social media is not just a marketing tool; it can also be an effective tool for employee advocacy.
Employee advocacy is the practice of empowering employees to share company content and messaging on their personal social media accounts. By encouraging employees to become social media ambassadors for the company, businesses can increase brand visibility, reach a wider audience, and build trust with their customers.
Having a strong employee advocacy program in place can offer the following gains for engaged employees:
- 81% decrease in absenteeism
- 28% reduction in theft
- 64% reduction in safety incidents
- 23% increase in profitibility
Source: Hootsuite
Here are five important steps to creating an effective employee advocacy social media program.
Develop a Strategy
Before launching an employee advocacy program, it is important to develop a clear strategy that outlines the goals, objectives, and tactics of the program. Consider the types of content that will be shared, the social media channels that will be used, and the metrics that will be used to measure success. Having a clear strategy in place will help ensure that the program is effective and aligns with the company’s overall marketing and branding goals.
Identify Employee Advocates
Identify employees who are active on social media and who are passionate about the company’s mission and values. These employees can become your social media ambassadors and help amplify your message. You can also consider incentivizing employees to participate in the program, such as offering prizes or recognition for those who share the most content.
Pro tip: These social media ambassadors may not be in leadership positions. Look for people who know how to use social media effectively, regardless of their title.
Provide Training and Guidelines
It is important to provide employees with training and guidelines on how to effectively use social media to share company content. This can include providing best practices for creating engaging content, guidelines for appropriate language and tone, and training on how to use social media platforms effectively.
Providing employees with the tools they need to be successful will help ensure that the program is effective and that the company’s brand is properly represented. Be sure they are following the FCC guidelines for sponsored content when they share anything about your brand, as they are considered paid sponsors.
Make sure your employee advocates polish up their LinkedIn profiles so that when they do share your content or talk about your business they are doing so in the best light possible. Download my LinkedIn profile checklist to make sure all profiles are up to standard.
Pro tip: Provide your employees with a copy of your brand guidelines. If you don’t have a brand guide now is the time to make one. This document contains your logos, dos and don’ts about your messaging, your taglines, and your brand colors.
Create Content
To support the employee advocacy program, it is important to create high-quality, engaging content that employees will be excited to share. This can include blog posts, infographics, videos, and other types of content that align with the company’s messaging and branding.
Measure and Analyze Results
To measure the effectiveness of the employee advocacy program, track metrics such as engagement, reach, and clicks. This can be done using the platform’s native social media analytics tools, or third-party tools like Hootsuite or Sprout Social. By analyzing the data, you can identify which types of content are most effective and make adjustments to the program as needed.
An effective employee advocacy social media program can help companies increase brand visibility, reach a wider audience, and build trust with their customers. By developing a clear strategy, identifying employee advocates, providing training and guidelines, creating engaging content, and measuring results, companies can create a successful employee advocacy program that benefits both the company and its employees.
If you need help getting started I’m here for you! I can walk you through the steps with an employee advocacy presentation or facilitate a small group workshop. Let’s get started!
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