It’s the cheapest form of advertising. It can yield gigantic results without costing you anything… It’s magical! What is it? I can tell you this much: it has to do with people. Your own people, to be exact. Advertising through your own colleagues? Yes. I’m talking about employee advocacy here. It works. And I should know because I ‘fell’ for it too.
The concept of employee advocacy is simple. Colleagues act as ambassadors for the brand they work for. Remember that person who always talks super enthusiastically about the company they work for, at a party. Or the LinkedIn contribution in which your connection shares personal experiences about their work. And from (influencer) marketing we know: nothing is more credible than hearing from other people.
There are no costs per click or extensive campaigns with this form of advertising. What should you bring to the table to make employee advocacy happen? A strong brand. A brand that you enhance time and again. And a brand which you keep on investing in. A brand that you build. A brand that you and your colleagues represent as ambassadors, organically. I’d like to take you through this cycle.
The stronger your brand is, the higher the chances of attracting the people that fit you. That has a lot to do with brand familiarity. If you score high on recall, there is a greater chance that people who recognise themselves in your brand can’t get you out of their heads.
That’s how it was for me. Although I wasn’t looking for a job, I regularly saw updates from Factor Tachtig. The interest grew, and it stayed with me. It hooked me in, if you will. I thought: they get it.
Plant seeds
And then it continues to grow. For example, by receiving a branded tote bag when signing my contract, right there and then my promotion of the brand started—consciously or not. Enthusiasm gets the ball rolling. By continuing to invest in people, it ensures that their suspicions are increasingly confirmed: “This is a great fit!” This way, without asking for it, you create fans who express your brand to the outside world.
That enthusiasm also contributes to the character of your brand. If your colleagues share a lot of information on LinkedIn—the latest blogs and updates—this contributes to your visibility. It shows what your brand and the people behind it stand for, and gives insight into the brains behind your company. This in turn plants seeds in the network of your colleagues. The moment someone’s aunt, neighbor or former colleague is looking for a communication agency or a new job, a bell starts ringing: Factor Tachtig. And voilà, your ambassador circle is complete.
At the beginning of this blog I called employee advocacy magic. I’d like to come back to that: don’t be fooled by the pragmatic nature of this blog—employee advocacy happens naturally. If you just focus on your brand, this phenomenon will be set in motion automatically. That’s magical!✨
Do you also want your brand to automatically attract new people? Send me a message, I’d be happy to help.