For small companies a simple post-it note or a scribble on the memo board is all that’s needed to communicate with its employees. But for SMEs, larger organisations and global conglomerates, company to employee communication is not quite so simple. Internal marketing is increasingly being recognised as a vital way of raising staff morale, and ultimately, organisational performance. Whether it’s used for important corporate announcements or simply to let you know that Karen from HR is doing a charity skydive – almost every organisation is implementing it. Here, Carl Plant, CEO of digital technology expert bITjAM, discusses how digital tools can improve internal communication.
While it’s true that external communications will always be a top priority for marketers, strong internal communications play a key role in improving the external reputation of a company. Who better to praise the company than its own employees?
In addition to a positive reputation, organisations that work to engage employees through internal communications will benefit from superior performance at work. In fact, highly engaged employees are 38 per cent more likely to work at above-average productivity, resulting in an increase in customer satisfaction by up to 12 per cent, according to research conducted by Madison.
Basic internal marketing enables companies to communicate with every member of their organisation, however, digital tools mean that managers can now go beyond the basics. By using data management to target employees by criteria such as management level, department or location, organisations can design and distribute bespoke content. By refining marketing material according to each individual employee’s preferences, the information will always be relevant and, subsequently, positively received.
Another useful advancement for internal communications is the improvement of marketing automation. While this concept has been around for some time, this time-saving tool has only been perfected in the past few years. You’d be forgiven for thinking that automating a service designed to engage with employees on a personal level would be counterproductive, but with the right content, effective segmentation and correct personalisation, marketing automation is a golden tool for marketers.
While customers always have been – and probably always will be – the most important audience for a company, building and maintaining a strong employer brand is also critical to success. There are an abundance of digital tools to choose from, in fact, most organisations will already be using a handful of these for their external marketing efforts. But perhaps it’s time for organisations to use these tools a little closer to home.
By Carl Plant
CEO
bITjAM