If you’ve read any of our previous posts, you’ll know that here at Mobibi we believe strongly in employee advocacy. We not only think it will be good for your bottom line, we think it will be good for your workforce.
We also think it’s the right thing to do.
Empowering Employees
It’s been a hard two years for all of us. Burnout in the U.S. working population hit sky-high levels in 2021, which contributed to the legendary “Great Resignation.” Fear of the virus, worry about friends and loved ones, fights about vaccines and masks, shortages, inflation, stress about working – whether from home, or in the office, or on the front lines. It’s been a lot.
You might be thinking about cutting your employees some slack. One idea to consider is giving them a voice. As we limp into the end of a worldwide pandemic, this is one way to show your employees that you care about what they’ve gone through. Giving them a voice shows that you respect them as human beings, because you want to hear what they have to say.
Here are a few other reasons we think you should try it out:
Equity
Not every business considers social justice an important part of their role in society. If you don’t, that’s fine. That’s your decision. But if you do want to do something about equity, instead of spending big on DEI trainings, consider inviting your employees to the table. Ask them about their stories. Instead of telling them what to think, listen to what they have to say. Especially if you’re proud of having a diverse workforce.
Younger Employees
We’ve written a little about Gen Z entering the workforce. Your youngest employees may not have much experience or responsibility yet. But many of them want “a seat at the table.” That might seem awfully presumptuous to you, but it might actually work in your favor. Generally, people meet expectations.
If you treat your younger staff-members as little more than children, they’ll act like it. If you want them to onboard quickly, then treat them as full members of the team: with all of the rights and responsibilities entailed by full membership.
Give them a voice, but let them know that voice comes with expectations of professionalism and maturity. By showing them a little respect, you’ll teach them to be worthy of your respect.
Open Culture
Some companies pride themselves on having an open culture. Many teams claim to value employee input. If you do, prove it. Give your employees a digital voice. Bring them into your content marketing operation.
Positive Social Media Image
No company wants to have a negative image online. It’s no secret that the people who often feel the most motivation to leave a review are the ones who want to leave a negative review. Maybe you encourage positive reviews from your customers. But what about your reputation as an employer?
There’s little you can do about Glassdoor or Indeed reviews. So, you probably don’t spend much time there. But, if you’re worried about what people might be saying about you online, you might be monitoring your employees’ social media feeds surreptitiously. Instead of snooping behind their back and hoping they don’t complain, try getting proactive about creating a positive digital image.
How? By encouraging your happy employees to say positive things about you online, just like you encourage your happy customers to write positive reviews. Just by asking them, you’ll show your people that you trust them, making it even more likely that they’ll say positive stuff about you.
You don’t want the only people posting on social media about you to be the ones posting negative stuff. If many of your employees really like you, ask them to rep you online a bit.
How Do You Give Your Employees a Voice?
When we talk about a voice, we mean a digital voice. Let your workers write content for you. Let them use social media for you. Let them send a Tweet, or a TikTok, or an Instagram photo, or even create a YouTube video. Let them post on their accounts, or write under their names, for you.
(Of course, you’ll get to manage and approve what they send out, so you will be able to monitor things and ensure they don’t actually say anything bad about you.)
It’s the Way of the Future
We’ve written previously about the democratization of content (and of the Internet in general). Increasingly, audiences want to see a variety of content from a variety of contributors, most of whom will be regular folks, not billionaires and politicians.
That’s why we think employee advocacy is such a good idea. It’s a way for you to get distributed content. Meaning a variety of sources, on a variety of channels, all flowing through you. The rise of blockchain, cryptocurrencies, NFTs, and similar technologies demonstrates that people are hungry for decentralization. Well, this is a way for you to embrace that.
It might be uncomfortable at first, but if you give all of your employees a voice, you’ll be ready for that distributed future Internet. It won’t catch you by surprise.
