Brand Ambassadors by Heidi Ellsworth

Sitting in a recent roofing association meeting, I found myself visiting with colleagues about the importance of building ongoing relationships in the roofing industry. One woman, in particular, shared with me that recently her boss had congratulated her on significantly increasing the exposure of their company within the industry. In fact, he believed that their record-making quarter could be attributed to the emphasis they are placing on industry networking through their employees.

Many companies are seeing the importance of encouraging professional involvement as a marketing benefit. They understand that the commitment to keeping employees involved in associations and community outreach is an extremely important marketing tool. Not only does it help sales and marketing but it engages employees at a stronger, more professional level that helps build the overall business.

This trend is currently being referred to as the establishment of employee brand ambassadors. Companies are starting to realize that their best brand ambassadors are working side-by-side every day in the form of employees. The 2012 Edelman Trust Barometer, a trust and credibility survey that collects data from more than 30,000 people, found that regular rank-and-file company employees have more credibility than executives. (http://www.edelman.com/post/building-trust-from-the-inside-out-engaging-employees-as-the-new-influencers/)

According to Forbes Magazine, “It is very visible when the company has passionate employees who love the brand they work for. Having an adoring employee base isn’t just great for word-of-mouth marketing, but for the bottom line as well. In one of their studies Gallup showed that companies with high employee engagement levels have 3.9 times the earning per share compared to their industry peers or competitors.” (http://www.forbes.com/sites/ekaterinawalter/2013/10/15/want-to-find-brand-ambassadors-start-with-your-employees-2/)

There is a strong opportunity here for companies to build not only their brand but their high-quality reputations. It is opportunity to let employees promote the business they believe in. The passion for what they are doing will show as they work with their local and professional organizations. Employees are one of your best marketing tools.

How can you and your management team encourage your employees to become brand ambassadors?

1. It starts with asking for their opinion. Don’t just ask them to promote the business but ask for their feedback on what they believe are the company’s strongest assets and where there may be room for improvement. By including them in the process of improving the company they gain ownership for the overall enterprise, gaining pride and confidence.

2. Create channels of communication. Be sure your employees know what is going on within the company. Take the time to educate and get them excited about new products, projects or services that make your company distinctive. Include them on company newsletter mailings or emails. Make it easy for them to share the excitement.

3. Encourage social media interaction and advocacy. This is an area that is still hard for many companies. Is the employee engaged or just scrolling through Facebook? In this day and age, it is both. Employees live their lives at work and at home. They are liking posts, commenting on new information and making referrals. How powerful is it when they do it for their own place of work?

4. Allow employees to help strengthen customer relationships. Every positive meeting is a great sales and marketing opportunity for the company. Whether it is accounting, production, sales or the front desk, employees should leave the customer smiling and happy. Employees need the time to introduce themselves and be a part of fixing or improving the process. It is ok to ask for referrals after a good experience, but it takes every employee being an amazing brand ambassador to create that perfect referral and sustainable business model.

5. Financially and emotionally encourage involvement. Help employees be involved in professional and community associations. Having employees attend Chamber of Commerce events, sponsoring school sports or helping with community service projects gives them the time to advocate for their place of work while being involved. It shows that the company is committed to the community it works in and is willing to support their employees’ involvement.

6. Make sharing easy. Help employees share this information with each other and your customers. Monthly lunch and learns that share how to be a brand ambassador, social media discussion groups and company newsletters are all ways to engage and educate employees. Encourage employees to follow the company on all social media. These exercises can make a huge difference in building morale, commitment and helping employees message the uniqueness of the company!

7. Make sure every employee is enabled to be a brand ambassador. From the rooftop to the front desk, every employee should be able to talk about the mission and differentiating qualities of the company. Why is this the best roofing and exterior contracting company? What do we offer that is different? How can our employees help create raving fans or amazing customer brand ambassadors? By asking these questions and taking the time to train employees on the company’s marketing materials and messaging it will reap great rewards. Share how this important employee engagement will not only help the company but will help their own personal performance and potential financial benefits.