Six degrees of separation: the power of employees for brand perception

For marketers, this begs the question; how have degrees of separation between employee and customer been affected?

Not only can we be sure that we’re far more connected than we were two decades ago, we are also more aware of the millions of online interactions that create and shape brand perceptions. In this world, anyone can become an immediately visible embodiment of the brands they buy, consume and work for.

There are 450 million people on LinkedIn today. With professional and personal networks stretching across different regions and countries, employees have the power to share their voice globally. Should they decide to sing in harmony about the strengths and successes of your business, you have one of the most effective brand tools of the internet age.

HR is the new black

Or should I say, culture. Deloitte research has found that culture, engagement, and employee retention are now among the top challenges facing business leaders.

With so much taking place via social media these days, one of the best places for companies to promote their culture is within their own employees’ worldwide social networks. People focused marketing works because it helps to make your brand human. Whatever product or service a company is offering, employees are always the best ambassadors.

Businesses should be using employees’ personal branding to their advantage. Possibilities for employees include posting company stories, projects they are working on, successes and pictures of the office ‘behind the scenes’ to show off the company culture.

Ziggo and KLM are good examples of companies that have used LinkedIn to post updates, visuals and blogs from their employees. Not only does this build an employee’s ‘personal brand’, it also helps to keep followers and potential new talent up to speed on the company.

Lessons from the pros

More specifically, GoPro. Although users aren’t necessarily employees, it’s an archetypal example of what we mean by a shared voice. GoPro users bring the experiences the camera offers to life and advocate the product daily with the videos they share on social media. The most authentic brands will be the most successful at engaging their stakeholders and companies should aim for this in their employee advocacy strategy.

More traditionally, John Lewis is a great example of a brand that takes a more controlled approach to celebrating working life at the company. If you work for John Lewis at any level you are not called an employee but instead a ‘Partner’. They promote a set of online and offline forums that feeds Partners' opinions back to the Partnership Council and ultimately the Chairman. This is a democratic process that has been adopted by many of the most successful brands in recent years.

This leads us on to Google. The multinational ranked twice in 2014 and 2015 as one of the best places to work. Google has been synonymous with culture for years, and sets the tone for many of the employee perks and benefits that tech startups are now known for. Free meals, employee trips and parties, financial bonuses, open presentations by high-level executives, gyms, a dog-friendly environment and of course, Googlers have access to the whole arsenal of Google’s social media and web sharing tools.

What does this mean for you?

Making the most of employee advocacy calls for a moment self-reflection. Is the environment your employees are working in one that really sells itself? Nurturing the right environment for the workforce where they are excited about the work they are doing is no mean feat.

Forrester recently found that employees are most likely to be company advocates when they are trained on how to promote the company brand effectively. Does your company arm employees with knowledge about how to communicate the brand to their networks?

Ultimately, by guiding your employees about how to talk about the company on sites like LinkedIn, companies can ensure they remain on brand across a vital and growing channel. Remember, employees can become a company’s best ambassadors because they add an organic, human element. There aren’t any shortcuts here though – satisfaction, just like custom, must be earned.

On Thursday 13th October 2016, branding automation company Bynder is holding the Leading Branding Conference for Marketing Professionals, ‘OnBrand’ where Marcel will be speaking. Find out more about the event here.