Are you looking for a way to connect with your customers, humanize your brand and engage your audience?
And many other. Employee content marketing might just be what you need to fulfill all of these needs. People purchase from people, not brands and logos. Employee generated content is often used to accomplish this.
This is an example of video marketing. 54% of customers said they would like to see more videos from brands, more than any other content.
Source Hubspot
Video increases conversion rates by 80% on landing pages, and 90% of customers believe video helps them make informed buying decisions.
Video gives your company an human face.
This is why employee content marketing has become so vital. Content marketing can take many forms. However, it breaks down the logo to create face-to-face interactions with your audience.
We'll be explaining why it's important to connect with your audience online, and highlighting some ways you can make it work for you company.
Quick Takeaways:
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Content marketing for employees can include user-generated content, interviews and quotes, podcasts, etc. Your goal is to make your employees the face of your company, and to encourage them to interact with your audience.
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Brands aren't trusted by people. People are more inclined to interact with people from your company online than they are with your brand's official pages.
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Choose an employee content marketing strategy that is right for you. Find employees who reflect your values and target audience segments, and then experiment with new tactics.
Here's a quick video by Carla Johnson to get you started:
What is Employee Content Marketing?
Employee generated content marketing, at its most basic level, is content that your employees create and share. It does not include your brand. For the greatest impact, you might share employee-created material from a specific page. Then ask employees to share it on their own pages.
HubSpot has, for instance, a page called HubSpot Live where users can share content about their team members.
Source: @Hupspotlife – Instagram
There are many ways to market your employee content. These are the top ways that top brands use it.
Webinars and Q&As
Semrush is just one of many companies that understands the importance of making employees the human face for their brand via webinars.
Source: Semrush
Semrush even includes photos of the webinar hosts in their featured photos to make sure they are highlighted. They recognize the importance of virtual events in forming human connections and so prioritize this every step of their journey.
User-Generated Content for Employee Lives
Every employee is unique with their own interests, hobbies, likes and dislikes. HubSpot, a company that shares detailed stories about their employees, helps followers to connect with them on an individual level.
Editorial Blog Categories
You can provide employees with a place for their opinions and op-eds in your blog, just as news media have opinion sections. You can allow them to share their opinions on topics like:
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Industry Changes and What's in Store for the Future
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They have worked in your industry or at your company.
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What they bring the industry and company culture
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Why they are important for your company, and what they hope to achieve
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How they build relationships and connect with customers
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What they do in their day
Narration and Video Hosting
You don't need to hire a video host when your company already has a large team of employees who will be your public face. They already fit your brand's culture.
Salesforce has both their team members and their guests featured on their YouTube channel. Their header photo looks almost like a cast list from NBC and reflects their diverse audience.
Source: YouTube
You could also encourage employees to share content marketing material from your brand with their audiences.
As you would do for an influencer, analyze your employees' social media profiles and focus on their followers. Reach out to the people who have the most followers that best reflect your target audience.
Why bother with employee content marketing?
You may not have noticed that most top brands use employee content marketing strategies – or even complete strategies – to reach their customers.
Are you sure they would put in so much effort if it didn’t yield results? Nope. Here are the reasons they are dedicated to this cause and why you should too.
People don't trust brands, but they do trust people
96% of consumers do not trust advertisements. This is a sign that your B2B buyers do not trust brand content. Ask your buyers what they want, and they will likely give you more detail.
36% of buyers believe vendors have no influence on their final decisions, while 44% say vendors are somewhat influential.
Consider this your hint.
They don't want your brand to speak for them. They want to hear from humans, like customers and employees. Although employees may be emotionally attached to your brand and might even prefer it over shouting from a logo, it is still better than nothing.
Employer Content Marketing can Attract better Job Applicants
Employers who invest in employer branding are three-times more likely to hire high quality employees than those who don't.
Marketing to customers is not enough. You must also market to your future employees with employee content. Here's a sign that you are struggling to attract applicants who share your company's values.
Many top companies have career pages on Instagram. This is how Whole Foods communicates its culture and seeks to attract the right employees for their brand.
Source: @wholefoodscareers
Employees have more followers than brand pages
Did you know that employees have 10x more social media followers than the official pages for the companies they work for.
It's not possible to convince everyone with a large following to make their personal page a brand page. If your target audience is similar to yours, you can encourage your employees to share more content.
More engagement is achieved with personal employee accounts than through company pages
Employees have a tendency to have larger audiences and get better engagement than the official company page. This is 8x more.
Furthermore, leads that you get through the social media activity of your employees are seven times more likely to be converted than leads from any other source.
Leaders can get a glimpse into the culture and personality of your employees. It's difficult to emphasize enough how people will buy from people, not brands. It's possible to create a content marketing strategy that will benefit your employees.
The power of employee content marketing can strengthen your brand's culture
It doesn't matter how loud you shout about your corporate culture. If people don't see your team live it, then it's nothing but words on a screen.
People want to see who is behind the words. What does the value actually mean in practice?
71% of consumers prefer to buy from brands that reflect their values. What makes it reasonable to expect B2Bs will prefer something different? Every vendor decision affects their livelihoods and jobs. B2B buyers are more concerned about your values than the consumers who buy skincare products and coffee.
Employer Content Marketing Gives Your Brand A Human Face
It is impossible to ignore the importance that you see human faces staring back at your computer screen.
Logos are not drawings. However, your employees are people. They have families, pets, interests and likes.
Your brand is no longer a logo. It becomes a community of people who share common values through employee content marketing. You can't ignore the importance of people to people marketing, considering that 31% Americans admit they are "almost always" online.
8 Strategies to Encourage Employee Content Marketing & Leverage It
Employee content, like all content marketing, requires a strategy. You should plan carefully who and what should be included. These employees will be the public face for your company so make sure you do this well.
1. Create a group of employees that reflects your brand's audience
Be strategic. It is not enough for any employee to share your brand's content. Here, treat your employees as influencers. Consider these questions:
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Is their audience on social media accurately representative of our target audience?
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Are they living our brand's values?
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Are they able to keep their audience interested and happy with the content they share?
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Do we want them to represent our company publically?
You must ensure that the culture of your company is reflected in the content you produce.
Many companies have two social media pages dedicated to employee content. One is for general employee life, the other for market careers.
Nearly 30k people can see the HubSpot Life Instagram page, which gives them a glimpse into the daily and personal lives of those behind the brand.
Take a look at the Story highlights. They are so personal. This content feels like someone is sharing updates directly with their followers. This content is not official brand content. It feels too real.
3. Ask employees for input on your general content marketing material
Another form of employee content marketing is also possible. You should ensure that key employees who represent your brand's values and target audience are actively involved with your content creation process.
Ask them questions like:
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What are they reading this week
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What are their friends complaining about on social media
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How to make better content than your competition
Make sure you are open to hearing the answers and that they are considered as part of your content strategy. You could even ask employees to be your content marketing liaisons or to provide quotes on certain topics.
4. In your content marketing posts, tag certain employees
Are your employees willing to give input or provide quotes? What pieces of content did they create?
Tag employees when you post new content to social media. Encourage them to share the content with their followers, regardless of whether you think they would like it or if they were involved in its creation.
5. Create a Hashtag for Employee Content Marketing
Customers can use branded hashtags to share photos, videos and links about their brand experiences. You can do the same thing for your employees.
Customers can use the hashtag to search for your logo and find out what it looks like. For user-generated content, you can scan the hashtag to share it on your page.
However, you should make sure that your home is clean before you go this route. Before you can allow UGC to use your space, you need a strong culture.
This is what Semrush does, and the results are amazing:
6. Employers can host webinars or Q&As.
Your brand's values and culture should be reflected in your team. They are the ideal hosts for webinars and Q&As. This is the point at which almost every company that has the budget for webinars has dedicated employees who will host the events and answer any questions.
Brandwatch is a bit more professional than Semrush or HubSpot (compared to casual), but the real focus remains on human employees.
Source: Brandwatch
7. Get Leadership Involved
82% of customers trust companies whose senior leaders are active on social media. T-Mobile's John Legere with weekend chili cookoffs is a good example of how not everyone should be following his lead. However, you should find a strategy that works best for you.
Mailchimp invites their co-founders to the Instagram conversation through fun Zoom video clips. The company's leaders can be seen by followers so that they can feel secure.
You must also treat your employees as content creators and influencers if you want them to be treated like other content creators and influencers.
This could mean many things, depending on who the employee is and what they bring to your content marketing.
Some hosts of webinars, podcasts, or YouTube channels might be eligible for promotions or raises. However, user-generated personal stories might not be eligible for any monetary bonuses or perks. Others can also share special links and discount codes.
It is important to show appreciation to your employees for their contributions to content marketing strategies. They already know what you get and deserve it.
What is your Employee Content Marketing Strategy?
Are you inspired by reading how other companies use employee content marketing in order to increase their bottom line? Or are you overwhelmed?
Do not stress yourself too much. You need to be careful about employee-generated content unless you have years of experience.
Take some time to think about how it could benefit your brand, and most importantly, your audience.
Looking for some ideas on how to create a content strategy that will appeal to your employees? Workshops can help you evaluate your competition and determine where you stand relative to the landscape, so that you can make the right decisions.
Marketing Insider Group's first article was entitled How to Boost Employee Content Marketing & Leverage
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the five marketing concepts?
The following five marketing concepts can be used:
- Branding – A brand is an image that people have for you. It's the first thing people associate with your name. You must create a consistent brand identity across all media.
- Your position is how you present yourself to your market. What does it mean to be who you are and why should people care?
- Message- This is your message's main content. What is your point? What is your point?
- Marketing mix – This is a combination of channels, pricing and promotions that enables you to reach your target audience.
- How do you measure success?
What are the 4 types of marketing?
Marketing is divided into four categories: Traditional Advertising, Direct Mail, Public Relations, and Digital Marketing. Each of these categories has different goals and should only be used for specific purposes. This way, you can use them together to reach your goals.
What is the role of marketing in a business strategy?
Marketing is an integral part of any business strategy. Marketing is key to every business strategy. And without sales, marketing wouldn't matter. Therefore, marketing is crucial to any business strategy.
However, not everyone is aware of the importance and value of marketing. Many people think that marketing is only about spending money on advertising campaigns. Marketing encompasses much more than this. Marketing encompasses everything you do to communicate your company's identity and position in the marketplace.
Ask yourself these questions when you think about your company: What image am i trying to portray? How will my customers see me? How should I present my self to the world?
If you don't have the answers, marketing isn't something you've considered.
What are the seven steps of an internet marketing strategy.
Internet marketing strategies are used for achieving business goals using online media. The seven essential steps of internet marketing include planning, research implementation, monitoring, analysis and optimization. Each step should be repeated regularly to ensure effective internet marketing.
- Planning – This involves identifying your target audience, and creating a plan to reach them. Consider who might purchase your product/service.
- Research helps you understand your customer's needs and interests, so you can determine which products or services best match their expectations. It can also give you valuable insights about consumer behavior and popular trends.
- Implementation involves choosing a platform, such as Facebook, and deciding where to place ads. Once you've chosen your platforms, ensure they're set up correctly. Decide whether to spend money on advertising or pay per-click.
- Monitoring – This allows you to monitor your efforts and determine if they are succeeding. Google Analytics provides analytics tools that allow you to track traffic flows and conversion rates.
- This allows you to compare results to benchmarks or previous performance levels. This step shows you how to improve areas where you are struggling.
- Optimization – Optimizing your site means making changes to increase its efficiency in attracting visitors. You could, for example, add new features to your site or modify how visitors navigate it.
- Evaluation – You can evaluate the progress of your campaign to determine how it's performing. Do you see any areas for improvement? If you don't, then you have probably reached your goal. If there are still problems that need to be addressed, you will need to reevaluate.
Social Media Marketing allows you to promote your company online. It's an excellent tool for spreading brand awareness and generating leads and sales. Here are five ways social media marketing can help boost your business.
- A Facebook Fan Page allows you to interact with customers via Facebook. You can also upload images, videos, or other files.
- Twitter – Promote your business on Twitter – Twitter is another great platform to connect with people and share information. Increase visibility by using hashtags
- Upload Videos to YouTube – It is very popular to upload videos because people enjoy them. If they like what is shown, they may click to visit you website.
- Host Live Event – Hosting live events will allow you to meet face to face with potential clients. They will be able to ask questions about the products and services you offer.
- Respond to Customer Reviews – Positive reviews help build trust with your clients and encourage repeat purchases. Respond quickly to any negative comments.
What is the difference in marketing and advertising?
Advertising is a type of communication that promotes products and brands. Advertising is usually accompanied by a clear call for action, such “Buy Now!” You can also click here.
Marketing is, on the contrary, a way to communicate your company’s mission, vision and values to potential clients. Marketing can also help build relationships between current and potential customers.
If you sell shoes online, for example, marketing can be used to tell the story of who you are and what your offer. You could talk about your history, philosophy, and commitment to quality. You might share customer testimonials. You could even organize an event in which you give away shoes for free to encourage people to visit you website.
In short, marketing is about telling stories. Advertising is about selling things.
What budget should I set aside for my first campaign in digital marketing?
It depends on which campaign you are planning to launch. Your first campaign may cost you between $50 and $100.
Advertisement space can be purchased for search engines such Google or Bing. These ads cost approximately $10 per click.
Banner advertisements can be placed on any website. This will help you attract new visitors and bring them back to your site.
You can also hire a freelancer for banner design. The hourly rate for freelancers is typically between $20-30.
Once you have created your ad, it is possible to start tracking your results. There are many tools for tracking analytics that you can download from the internet.
It is also possible to track data manually. A spreadsheet can be used to track data about campaigns. It will allow you to record every metric (such clicks, impressions etc.).
Once you have collected this data, it is possible to determine if your campaign has been successful.
You can always try other methods until you find the one that works.
Statistics
- This allows us to deliver CPCs that are 80% less than average and CTRs 4-5 times higher than average. (marketinginsidergroup.com)
- According to statistics, 60% of online shoppers worldwide actively search for coupons before purchasing from a virtual shop. (influencermarketinghub.com)
- Companies that use personalization are seeing revenue increases ranging from 6-10%. (blog.hubspot.com)
- 81% of brands employ affiliate marketing, and eCommerce sites are particularly good candidates. (blog.hubspot.com)
- A poll earlier this year found that 14% of older Gen Z's had bought an item in the previous six months based on an influencer's recommendation. (influencermarketinghub.com)
External Links
moz.com
- SEO Learning Center – Moz
- [Case study] How we ranked #1 in a high-volume keyword in under 3 months – Moz
youtube.com
hubspot.com
neilpatel.com
How To
Top 10 Affiliate Marketing Strategies for 2022
Affiliate marketing is a popular form of online advertising.
It allows companies promote products without incurring upfront costs. Instead, affiliates earn a commission every time users purchase the advertised goods.
There are two types main affiliate programs: cost-per sale or performance-based. Performance-based means that an affiliate gets paid after a certain number of sales occur. Affiliates get paid a set cost per sale regardless of whether they sell anything.
This article will discuss the top 10 strategies for affiliate marketing in 2022. We will discuss each strategy and show examples of successful campaigns.
#1. #1.
Online retailers are increasingly using brand loyalty programs. They enable customers to accumulate points whenever they shop or visit a website.
These points can be later redeemed for special offers, discounts or rewards.
For example, Amazon's Prime program gives members access to exclusive deals and perks.
Amazon also runs a referral program called Associates. Amazon Associates allows merchants to refer their customers to Amazon. They also receive a portion from the revenue generated by those referrals.
#2. #2.
Social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest are perfect places to advertise products.
Targeting potential buyers can be done by companies via ad networks. Facebook lets advertisers target specific demographics or interests through its ads.
They may also target those who live within walking distance to a store.
Twitter is another platform which allows companies to reach targeted audiences quickly. Companies can share content, ask questions and send tweets.
Instagram is similar in concept to Twitter, as it allows brands to interact directly with consumers. Instagram, however, doesn't allow businesses send direct messages, as opposed to Twitter.
Instead, posts are automatically displayed on followers' feeds.
Pinterest is yet another social network that allows businesses to connect with customers. These connections include sharing images, asking questions, or answering customer inquiries.
#3. #3. Offer special discounts to influencers
Influencer marketing is a powerful tool for growing brand awareness. Brands can partner with influencers to offer them incentives for posting promotional material about their products.
This partnership often involves giving influencers free products to review or test out.
These partnerships go beyond product reviews. Influencers could also become brand ambassadors.
Brands may hire influencers to host giveaways or answer questions.
#4. 4. Create video ads
Video ads are becoming increasingly popular. Video ads have become increasingly popular since the advent of smartphones and tablets.
Advertisers may use video ads as a way to get attention and persuade viewers of their products to click on the links.
YouTube is a major website where advertisers may place video advertisements. YouTube allows advertisers to upload up to 60 seconds of video.
Google AdWords is another option for placing video ads. Google uses keywords to match ads to relevant searches.
#5. Run Mobile Campaigns
Mobile apps are becoming increasingly popular. Mobile apps can be used to download and watch movies, browse books, listen to music, and even play games.
People spend hours reading books, playing video games, listening or watching movies on their smartphones.
Businesses should consider using mobile apps to drive traffic to their websites.
Apps can be downloaded to smart devices such as iPhones and iPads, Android phones and tablets.
App stores are available for Apple iOS, Google Play, Windows Phone, Blackberry OS, and Kindle Fire.
#6. Integrate shopping carts into websites
For selling physical goods, shopping carts can be a very effective way to do so.
Customers can add items directly to their shopping cart.
Online shopping carts are gaining popularity. Many online retailers, such as eBay, allow customers to create accounts and browse product lists.
Amazon and other online retailers have integrated shopping carts to their websites. Customers can order the items they desire and make payment right away.
#7. Launch New Product Lines
The best way to attract new customers is with product lines
A press release is usually sent out when a company announces the launch of a new product line.
This release could include information about the new line's pricing and availability.
Once the launch is completed, the company can market the product.
#8. Develop Cross-Channel Marketing Programs
Cross-channel advertising refers to marketing efforts in multiple channels.
Cross-channel marketing can include, for instance, sending emails to subscribers via email, promoting products on social media, and running banner advertising on search engines.
To increase their exposure, some companies use multiple channels.
Some companies also sell products in brick and mortar stores. In addition, they also sell products online.
Some companies may use both channels simultaneously in an effort to increase sales.
#9. #9.
Companies can use data analytics to enhance their business operations and maximize their profits. Data analytics involves the analysis of data collected from multiple sources in order to discover patterns and trends.
Analytics can detect problems, assess current practices and predict future needs.
Analytics tools can be used to collect data from many sources such as web servers, databases, applications, and other websites.
These tools allow companies to gain insight into their customers and their behaviour.
#10. #10.
Every business needs to be satisfied with their customers. Satisfied customers are more likely to return for more services.
A satisfied customer is also more likely to recommend your products to others.
Satisfied clients are less likely than others to complain about poor service.
For all businesses, customer satisfaction is a key goal.
It is possible to do this by providing outstanding customer support.
Employees should respond promptly to customer inquiries and solve problems effectively.
Offer quick shipping options so customers don’t have to wait too much before receiving their orders.
Also, make sure your website is easy to navigate.
Your site must load quickly and provide clear instructions.
Remember that not all customers will be the same.
Some customers might need extra assistance, while others won't require much effort.
Therefore, you should tailor your customer support policies to suit individual needs.
Doing this ensures that everyone receives excellent service.
If you want to learn how to create an affiliate marketing campaign, check out this guide.
We've covered everything that you need to know about affiliate marketing.
Now that you are familiar with how to launch an effective affiliate campaign, it is time to build relationships and establish trust with other bloggers.
This will give you experience and credibility.
Then you can use this knowledge to increase your earnings
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By: Michael Brenner
Title: How to Boost Employee Content Marketing and Leverage It
Sourced From: marketinginsidergroup.com/content-marketing/how-to-boost-employee-content-marketing-and-leverage-it/
Published Date: Tue, 04 Oct 2022 14:00:04 +0000