Big Picture PR Part 1: Harness the Power of Brand Ambassadors

When thinking about a long-term public relations plan, it is important to think “big picture.” How can you keep your company’s name and/or brand top of mind with your key audiences even when there is no “news” to announce? Part 1 in this series will focus on leveraging the power of brand ambassadors within your company.

Public relations can be a complex tool involving research, campaigns, analytics, etc. Used effectively it projects a positive image of your company and/or brand to the public. It can require much time, effort and dollars to produce the right results. However, there often lies a large, untapped resource within many companies that can potentially become your most effective company mouth piece – employees. By creating brand ambassadors from your employee roster, you create positive, personal touch points between your company and its customers. Think about it. No matter how much press coverage you garner in a particular month or the amount of dollars you donate to a local charity, a customer’s most revealing impression comes from their interactions with employees. If it is positive, they are likely to think the same of your company. However, if it is not, the reverse is often true. So how do you turn employees into effective brand ambassadors?

Some ways include:
Internal Marketing Efforts
Ask yourself these questions and honestly answer them. Do your employees know the mission of your company? Do they actively strive to follow it while on the job? Do your employees know what your brand stands for and promote this brand? If you answered “no” to the above questions, it is time to think about ways to educate your staff about your company. Hold monthly staff meetings, develop an in-house newsletter or make use of intraweb services. Your first PR priority is to start making stronger connections with your employees.

Promote a Positive Employee Culture
Internal marketing efforts will not only will help your business in the long-run, but it will allow you to cultivate a positive employee culture. When employees feel they are part of something bigger, they have a shift in attitude and work performance often improves. So how do you go about creating a positive employee culture? I’ve already mentioned some ways including in-house newsletters. Use these newsletters to highlight employee anniversaries, after hour accomplishments and other company news. Encouraging your employees to learn more about each other will lend to cohesion within your offices.

Tap Individuals with Strong Personal Brands
Face it – with the dawning of the many social networks your employees have created their own online brand. Sometimes employees are able to keep that brand separate from their professional brand – in most cases they are not. Recognize those individuals with a strong personal brand and use it to your advantage by asking them to promote your company through their networks.

Coming soon: Corporate Community Outreach