What do you want your customers to know about your company? We’ve all been subjected to thundering advertisements and they just don’t ring true anymore. No matter how loud you get, there’s always someone louder. Can you advertise price? Sure, and there’s always someone who’ll undercut you. The only real and lasting expression left to capitalize on and drive sales is the experience you deliver every time a customer comes in contact with your business.
There’s a lot of data telling us that quality content drives search results. When I consult with businesses, I rarely see them taking advantage of this opportunity. Some are doing nothing at all. Some are paying for “search-only” content, which is not fit for human consumption. These are “technical” posts designed with one goal: getting ranked higher in search.
Businesses that publish “search-only” content are missing the big picture and a huge opportunity. Why not create content written by humans for humans and optimize it for search? Well, part of the problem is that vendors can’t really provide that – it’s not scalable. They don’t work within your business, they have no expertise in what you sell, and they aren’t even familiar with your customers or local community.
What’s a business owner to do then – spend all their time creating meaningful blog posts and social media updates? Of course not. However, the power does reside within your organization. Crowdsourcing content is the quickest, most efficient way to deliver QUALITY content to your customers and prospects AND provide authoritative content for search engines.
Employee-generated content is your best source for quality and trustworthiness. After all, your employees live in your business 8+ hours/day and they typically understand what customers need and want to know about the company.
Implementing a process to capture employee-generated content is the ideal strategy to take with your online marketing.
6 Ways Employee-Generated Content is Key to Online Marketing Success
The ONE topic I get asked about more than anything is “What do we post on Social Media?” Companies are continuing to struggle with producing enough relevant content. The quality of your content matters most and the best source for quality is your employees.
1. Personal Stories
Tell me a fact and I’ll learn. Tell me a truth and I’ll believe. But tell me a story and it will live in my heart forever.
Stories have emotional resonance with customers and they vastly increase both the employee’s and your company’s likability. Employees’ stories of how they chose this career, what they like most about their job, what they do when they’re not at work, and of course, how they serve customers, help humanize your brand and leave a lasting impact.
2. Cutting-Edge Expertise for Your Customers
As we move more into leveraging online platforms as sales engines, salespeople (and their bosses) are realizing that they must become ‘teachers’. When you blast somebody you just met (online or offline) with sales-speak, it’s off-putting.
Customers are searching for trustworthy answers to their questions. Upon first interactions, coming from a “Solve Don’t Sell” mindset puts prospects’ minds at rest and fosters future sales.
3. Evidence of a Great Customer Experience
What constitutes great customer experience is how your business is talked about online. Customers share with each other their opinions and feedback through places like Yelp, Google and Facebook.
As a business, it’s really hard to seem credible when you attempt to tell people how great you are. That’s where employees’ experiences come into play. They interact closely with your customers everyday and the evidence of a truly great customer experience lies in capturing those moments. Indeed, they are part of your business’ intangible assets.
4. Trust
When it comes to obtaining reliable information, customers trust those that are most like themselves. That’s why social media and online ratings sites have such an impact on consumer buying decisions.
In a study asking respondents who they trust most, the data clearly shows that CEOs are considered less trustworthy than their employees. Why? Because employees are “people like yourself.”
5. Employees are the Beta Testers
Whether you’re a brand new business or you’ve been around a while, as times goes on, there will always be new products and processes within your company. Employees serve as “beta testers” to work out the flaws in everyday conditions, thereby learning even more about what they sell and sharing that with customers.
In auto retail, there’s a practice of giving employees “demo” cars to drive, test and derive opinions from their experience. Employees can be recruited to share their opinions by providing feedback through quality content.
6. Advocacy
Employees are your brand advocates. They publicly support your business both online and offline. Their personal brand may also be intertwined within the company brand.
Of course this all has to start with a culture that welcomes employees as social media superstars and brand ambassadors.
Employees are key to online marketing success. However, employee-generated content is not a piece of cake to put into action. Its rewards are vast and anything worthwhile takes time to build.
If your business continues to struggle with publishing relevant, engaging content on your website or social media, we’re here to help. Click –> here and we’ll be in touch.