In the continuously evolving tech world, it can be difficult for employees to stay on top of everything that’s going on at their company. The industry experts and techies that usually make up these companies naturally want to share their knowledge and tips with their networks, but how can they share if they don’t feel in the know?
That’s where an employee engagement and advocacy program comes in. An employee engagement and advocacy program keeps employees connected and in the know – and empowers them to credibly share brand and industry content with their networks.
Read on for tactical employee engagement and advocacy advice from technology brands CDW, Service Now and AT&T.
Launch with employees who are already sharing on social
IT service provider and technical reseller CDW knew it would be easiest to get their program off the ground by starting with employees who were already sharing about the brand on social media and those that are recognized industry thought leaders. They surveyed employees to see where everyone stood with social media and company sharing and used this information to form their beta group. In addition to launching with these employees, CDW targeted their sales and marketing teams because these employees are the most in the know about company news, and the most comfortable communicating with prospects and customers.
Provide a variety of content
Aside from making sure that content is easy to access and share, include content from various departments of your organization such as marketing, engineering and solution architect teams. Technology brands have a broad spectrum of content to share: everything from service information, available updates, and industry news can be included in your program. Enterprise cloud company ServiceNow provides employees with a variety of content so that they can share what is meaningful to them. “Employees don’t want to be seen as just social robots in the internet army, but as independent thinkers and valuable contributors—and we want that too!” says Sarah Manning, Senior Specialist, Social Media Marketing for ServiceNow. Employees have different strengths and interests, so providing a wide range of content will keep employees engaged and motivated to share.
Don’t underestimate the value of training
Not only do you need to train your employees before they get started to ensure compliance with company policies and relevant regulations, your employees will want to be trained on how to safely share. Training will make them feel empowered and involved in an important company initiative. AT&T trained their employees with a required two minute video and found it extremely valuable. In the short video, employees learn everything they need to know to participate in the program – including what they can and can’t share, where to get more information, and how to handle consumer feedback.
CDW, Service Now and AT&T share even more advice on running a successful employee engagement and advocacy program at a technology company in our ebook, The Technology Brand’s Guide to Employee Advocacy.
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