Why Employee Advocacy is Important for Your Brand
Employee advocacy is a powerful way to authentically share your company’s message and build relationships.
When done right, it can boost awareness, increase traffic to your website and social profiles, and help with lead generation and sales.
Your employees are a trusted source of information since they experience your brand firsthand on a daily basis. When they share updates about your products, services, culture and values on LinkedIn, their connections are more likely to pay attention compared to if it came directly from the company.
Employee advocacy humanizes your brand and shows potential customers that real people stand behind the work you do. It helps position your company as an employer of choice and inspires others to want to work with you.
Getting Started With an Employee Advocacy Program
To empower your employees as LinkedIn brand advocates, start with these steps:
Provide guidance and training. Educate them on your key messages, brand guidelines and best practices for online sharing. Review dos and don’ts so they feel comfortable representing you authentically.
Make it easy. Give them ready-made templates, images, and video clips to quickly post from their LinkedIn profiles. The lower the barrier, the more likely they are to participate.
Incentivize participation. Recognize top contributors on staff communications. Offer rewards like extra paid time off for meeting advocacy goals. People will engage if they see value in it.
Monitor and measure. Track which updates perform best to see what resonates. Provide analytics and feedback so employees understand the impact of their efforts.
Express appreciation. Thank advocates regularly for representing your brand. Small gestures of gratitude go a long way in motivating continued participation.
Popular Content Formats for Employee Advocacy
There are many types of content your employees can share that will help increase your visibility on LinkedIn:
- Company updates – Posts about new products, clients, events, milestones, acquisitions etc. This builds awareness of your business.
- Behind-the-scenes – Sneak peeks at your culture like photos from meetings or team outings. It shows potential candidates what it’s like working there.
- Thought leadership – Sharing industry insights and your expertise positions the company as a thought leader.
- Customer testimonials – Highlighting real customer success stories and the impact of your work is very persuasive.
- Career opportunities – Spreading the word about open roles in your company through their networks helps with sourcing quality candidates.
The format that works best depends on your business but a mix of these content types ensures varied engagement over time.
FAQs About Employee Advocacy Programs
Q1. How much time should employees spend on advocacy each week?
A minimum of 30 minutes per week is recommended for employees to meaningfully participate. Managers should be flexible and allow for more time as needed.
Q2. What if an employee shares something negative about the company?
Guidelines on representing the brand should be clear from the start. Address any issues privately to correct misunderstandings and set expectations for positive advocacy.
Q3. How do I get shy employees more involved?
Lead by example with your own advocacy first. Also encourage sharing others’ content to reduce pressure of creating original posts. With time and success stories, confidence will grow.
Q4. What type of content gets the best engagement?
Updates with images almost always outperform plain text posts. Also, personal stories that evoke emotion tend to resonate more than product descriptions alone. Experiment to see what your audience connects with.
Q5. How do I maintain advocacy momentum over time?
Keep things fresh with new templates, highlight reels from different departments, and occasional contests. Recognize top advocates quarterly/annually to sustain long-term motivation. Consistency is key.
A strategic employee advocacy program can provide great value when done right. With the right training, incentives and content formats in place, your employees will become passionate brand ambassadors for your company on LinkedIn.
