Jack Welch, former CEO of GE, once wrote …
“Any company trying to compete should figure out a way to engage the mind of every employee.”
Why is employee engagement so important?
Enterprise IG has uncovered one reason through their research:
70 percent of customers’ brand perception is determined by conversations with employees.
Simply put, your brand is only as strong as your employees’ ability to bring it to life in the customer experience.
Customers and prospects engage with your organization through numerous channels: your website, face-to-face marketing, thought leadership content, social media, etc. However, the most powerful and influential channel that drives business is the communication channel that exists between your employees and customers / prospects.
To ensure the conversations your employees have with customers and potential customers are aligned with your Corporate Messaging Platform, an intentional and disciplined approach to bringing the corporate message to life must be deployed.
Follow these five critical steps to ensure your employees bring your story to life throughout the customer experience.
- Give them a reason to believe in your Corporate Messaging, Vision, Mission and Values: Employees are your most valuable customers. Give them the clarity, confidence and conviction they need to believe in your story. Create a work environment where they can experience this first-hand and utilize key messages in the customer experience.
- Help them internalize and personalize what it means to them and their job. For employees to be fully engaged, they must understand the importance their roles play in the customer experience. Every employee must deeply understand how their daily work activities play a role in bringing the corporate message to life.
- Empower employees to be active “messengers.” Implement sustained messaging training and education programs to ensure your employees have their pulse on the business and can communicate your story on a consistent basis.
- Make the learning process fun. Internal communication programs can increase energy and engagement throughout the learning and organizational change process. Ensure employees are motivated to take the journey with you by making training fun and rewarding.
- Stay the course. When you feel you are over-communicating — you are only a third of the way there. To create behavioral and organizational change, you must commit to and implement a disciplined and persistent communication strategy. This will require the unwavering support of your leadership team.
So, if you want to cultivate lasting and positive change in your customer experience, weave your corporate story into the fabric of your business. And remember — it’s not a one-and-done approach, but rather an ongoing process that will reap significant financial rewards.
