Most people prefer interacting with people rather than with objects. In regards to marketing, these ‘objects’ can include abstract things like your company or an advertisement. This is why 65% of people prefer to choose a brand based on the recommendations of a fellow consumer or an employee.
The logic behind this is quite simple; when another customer recommends a product, it’s considered to be more trustworthy as the review would be considered entirely objective. only the good things about a product.
The thing about leaving the promotion of your brand to regular customers is that you cannot control the process. How do you know when or if an individual recommends your brand to a friend? ? This is where an Employee rand Ambassador Programs would come in.
An employee can be regarded as a brand ambassador when they actively promotes your product: whether it be on social media, to her family, or her friends.
Employee Brand Ambassadors are more effective than ads for conversion purposes, as a passionate employee indicates that a brand is doing things right.
Benefits Of An Employee Brand Ambassador Program
A clear benefit of an employee Brand Ambassador program is that it leads to more revenue for your business. . However, that should not be the sole aim of such a program.
Another benefit of running abrand ambassador program is that it would help increase loyalty amongst your employees.
For example, if an employee listed your company as their workplace on a social platform, everything they did on their would be representative of your brand (which is also something you should be wary about)!
Your Employee’s Silence Speaks Volumes
If your employee does nothing about promoting your product, it sends a clear message. It means that your employee is not passionate about your brand and doesn’t believe in the quality of your product.
On the other hand, an employee that actively promotes your product sends a message of passion. In the end, your product will sell because people will want to be part of something that elicits such a reaction.
Steps To Help You Build Your Brand Ambassador Program
1. Develop your brand
It is a fundamental principle that you cannot build something on nothing and expect it to succeed. Before you set about getting brand ambassadors, you have to work on your brand. You need to have a core mission, a credo, and a set of identified values. The main thing is that you should ensure that you build your brand before even considering brand ambassadors.
2. Let your team know about your brand
Let your employees know the ins and outs of your brand. Get them to believe in the quality of your brand without further ado. If you find it hard to make your employees loyal to your brand, it may mean that there is something lacking.
Also consider the general atmosphere of your workplace. Make changes if necessary, for your goal should be to bring your employees on board.
3. Select a lead brand ambassador
Your brand ambassadors need a leader. This leader should be an individual e who already shows the value that you’re trying to emulate amongst your staff..
4. Don’t force anyone to be a brand ambassador
These are people that are going to represent your brand to the outside world. If they perform their work grudgingly, it will easily be spotted by your customers. Therefore it’s imperative to use volunteers.
5. Train your selected ambassadors
The whole business of being a brand ambassador is something that will most likely play out on social media. Yet social media goes beyond registering and sharing posts. You need to give your ambassadors specific training on how to leverage social media to promote your brand.
One company that does this well is Dell, through their Social Media Community and University. With this, they have been able to create vibrant brand ambassadors that know what they are doing on social media.
6. There should be clear-cut goals
You should make sure that there are goals for the ambassador program. This will allow your team to work towards something and provide them with motivation, instead of taking a shot in the dark.
You should also make readily available guidelines for the program, as this will make the program more appealing to other employees.
7. No scripts
You should do your best to avoid scripts when promoting your product. This does not mean that you should not use scripts at all; provide a basic overview of what should be said.
However, make sure that whatever the attendees say or post online is done in their own words. If all your employees mindlessly drone off your scripts, it would unfortunately appear like an ad.
You can make use of an ambassador management system to manage the intricacies of the brand ambassadorship program. If you do not have that, you can simply use Google Docs to organize your activities.
8. Lead by example
It would be hard for you to inspire loyalty for your brand if your employees do not see you promote the brand yourself. . Make sure that this passion is reflected in your action, and the actions of other executives and senior management. With this, the effect is bound to trickle down to other employees.
Your top management does not have to be a part of the brand ambassadorship program. All they need to do is to lead by example, and the rest will fall into place.
9. Measure and give out rewards
You cannot see how effective something can be if it cannot be measured. You need to know if your brand ambassador program is yielding the results that you had intended it to.
One way to measure the effectiveness is to use hashtags. When you search for the hashtag, you should be able to see how many times they have been mentioned and shared by your employees.
Incentivise and give out rewards to employees that have successfully promoted your products. This reward can take various forms: praise, gift cards, group lunches, and so on. Keep in mind, that the gifts have to be light to prevent the whole thing from turning into a cutthroat competition.
Having a vibrant employee brand ambassador program is something that can have a huge effect on the success of your brand. Make sure you use it to full effect.
Do you have a Brand Ambassador Program success story? Let us know in the comments below!
