Transforming employees into internal advocates — and passionate brand ambassadors — is a strategic investment that pays off in the long run, often in lower employee turnover, more employee referrals, and better Glassdoor reviews.
Research consistently shows engaged employees contribute to brand success. Gallup’s Q12 employee engagement assessment found that employee engagement predicts key performance outcomes, including customer loyalty and profitability, and “…the strong correlations between engagement and performance are highly consistent across different organizations from diverse industries and regions of the world.”
ROI of employee advocacy programs
Whether employees share about your organization on social media or discuss your company culture among their friends and family, they can be influential brand ambassadors. But what’s the impact? According to a survey by Hinge Research Institute, “High growth firms, those with revenue growth greater than 20%, were more than twice as likely as all other firms to have an employee advocacy program.” The main goals of an employee advocacy program — a strategic initiative that encourages employees to promote their employer — are to enhance brand image, drive company reach, and build positive engagement. Essentially, it’s about empowering employees to act as brand advocates.
How can you build a culture of employee brand advocacy?
- Create a great place to work. The most essential step in creating brand ambassadors is fostering a positive workplace. Building a culture of trust and recognition can impact employee satisfaction and enable employees to praise your organization publicly. According to Indeed, five traits of the best places to work include competitive compensation, a positive culture, a community atmosphere, mutual trust, and fairness (like equal recognition and unbiased promotions).
- Align employee values with the company purpose. Harvard Business Review found that when employees feel valued — and those values are core to the company vision — it significantly drives revenue. However, only 36% of employees reported feeling that way. For employees to be brand advocates, they must believe in your company’s mission and understand their role in it. A goal of leadership must be to communicate your organization’s values and relate how each employee’s role contributes to this broader purpose.
- Recognize employee contributions. According to research by Quantum Workplace, when employees believe they will be recognized for a job well done, they are 2.7 times more likely to be highly engaged. Since engagement directly correlates with brand advocacy, employee recognition is crucial. Recognition can come from peers or superiors, be attributed or anonymous, and occur in a social or private setting. The best recognition highlights a specific behavior (e.g., contributions and collaboration in a team) or an objective metric (e.g., hitting a productivity goal).
- Invest in career development. SHRM reports training and development can significantly impact employee engagement. HR and managers should help employees understand how their roles and day-to-day activities contribute to the organization’s objectives. Additionally, the organization should “…offer skill development training to increase job performance, satisfaction, and self-efficacy.”
- Share Stories about Brand Ambassador Examples. Whenever you catch employees doing the right thing, such as anything large or small that promotes your company in a positive, honest, and meaningful way, turn the spotlight on them. Publicly show your appreciation for that behavior, likely encouraging others to follow suit. You may also want to share suggestions for other ways employees can act as trusted ambassadors for the company.
How can you empower employees as brand ambassadors?
As you create a culture employees are proud of — and organically want to talk about — you can take a few concrete actions to empower your employees as brand ambassadors.
First, it’s essential to educate and train them. Host sessions to teach employees about the company’s mission, values, and key messages. If you want employees to help spread a specific (and consistent) message, you must also equip them with your brand story.
Next, make it easy for employees to share information about your brand. Provide examples of the types of brand ambassadorship you want, and provide the raw materials such as shareable links, ready-made posts, brand guidelines, product collateral, or other relevant information.
Finally, if you build a more formalized brand ambassador program, acknowledge and reward employees for their advocacy efforts. One case study found that “To ensure smooth communication and impact… a company should use a personalized incentive system for employee brand ambassadors, share performance criteria with the ambassador[s], and measure results on an ongoing basis.” You could give acknowledgments through formal recognition programs or casual company shoutouts.
Building brand advocates is a long-term process. You must start with your company culture — creating a great workplace and a place employees want to talk about organically. Through this process, ensure you align employees with your purpose, recognize their contributions, and prioritize career development. When employees are excited about your brand, they’ll be more than happy to talk about you in a positive light, and when they do, acknowledge their extra efforts.
