Apr 30, 20234 min read

Why Employees Are Your New Brand Ambassadors

Updated: Apr 20

Brand ambassadors increase your brand awareness, boost your sales, and help you create a sense of trust among your consumers.

In this era of video-first social media, if you want to build a positive image for your brand, you should put your money on brand ambassadors. Introducing a brand ambassador strategy in your content marketing can amplify your brand's message to millions across social media platforms.

The Emergence of Employee Brand Ambassadors

Initially, brands sought external options (i.e., influencers) while choosing a brand ambassador. And most of us would do the same if we were to choose a brand ambassador for our brand. But here's the catch: this isn't the most effective way to select a brand ambassador.

Things have changed since the initial days of influencer marketing. It is not effective as it was. Consumers figured out that brands pay to promote their products. Hence, there's a high chance that the ambassadors do not really believe in this product; they are just reading a script.

Hence, in the last few years, brands have started to leverage their employees as brand ambassadors. Because who better than the hands that worked day and night to build the brand?

For example, the CEO of Texas Armoring Corporation, Trent Kimball, sat inside a bulletproof Mercedes Benz SUV while someone rained rounds of AK-47 at its windscreen. Netizens were shocked to see the CEO not flinch during the constant firing. It shows the CEO's confidence in the product, making it look trustworthy to the consumers.

Benefits of Employee Brand Ambassadors

Employees who work for a company can start to promote it on social media and other platforms. This approach of utilizing the in-house team is becoming a popular choice for multiple reasons:

The first reason is authenticity. Ambassadors need to be passionate about the brand they promote. Otherwise, customers will see through the in-authentic promotions. On the other hand, in-house employees are more passionate about the brand than externally hired influencers or ambassadors. So, turning them into brand ambassadors can help build a sense of trust among customers.
The second reason on the list is cost-effectiveness. Hiring influencers or ambassadors can be expensive, whereas training in-house employees to become brand ambassadors will cost little to none.
Thirdly, employees already know the brand's motto, products, and services. So they can easily promote the brand effectively and communicate clearly. However external influencers will need to invest time to study the brand inside-out before they can effectively promote it.
Last but not least, promoting a brand from an employee's personal account can help consumers build a connection with the brand. And when someone shares the content, the brand's reach expands further. How they represent the company's culture can also positively impact its recruitment initiatives and retention efforts.

How to Create an Employee Brand Ambassador Program?

Here are a few steps that will help you create a brand ambassador program:

Identify potential candidates

The first thing you need to do is look out for employees who are passionate about your brand and know it inside out. Here's how you can identify the most passionate amidst all:

People who are enthusiastic about the brand and its mission.
People whose job roles are closely related to branding, like product development, marketing, etc.
People who enjoy an influencer status on social media.

Train and incentivize

After meticulously picking the best, your next step is to train and reward them. Here are the key steps that you should follow:

Create a handbook to outline the brand mission, message, and values. Also, share some guidelines about how to create content and how to engage with the audience.
Train them to create engaging content, build a fan following on social media, and interact with customers.
Offer incentives to those who participate in this program. You could include rewards like goodies, gadgets, gift cards, cash rewards, extra holidays, etc.

Encourage participation

Your final step is to encourage them to participate in this program. Here's everything that can motivate them:

As I said earlier, nothing encourages more than rewards and recognition. Apart from gifts, you can also acknowledge them publicly at company events.
Create a community of ambassadors so they can get together to share ideas and experiences with each other.
Offer constructive feedback on their performance and tell me about the areas they need to improve.

Examples of Employee Brand Ambassador Programs

Salesforce

Salesforce is a prime example of how a brand can leverage its existing employees to hire new ones. The company wanted to grow its sales team, and here's how the CEO crafted the perfect email requesting the employees to get the word out and find like-minded and passionate people.

Starbucks

Starbucks encourages employees to become brand advocates and create content to engage in social media. They refer to their brand advocates as "partners." They also have a separate social media page called Starbucks Partners, where employees post their stories, and they also have social media guidelines from the same.

Adobe

Adobe discovered stats that indicated that brands should train their employees for social media because netizens want brands to interact with customers online instead of maintaining an online presence. Hence, they created the Social Shift Program to offer social media training to the employees.

Image by Abhijit Bhaduri

Incorporating Employee Advocacy Into Content Marketing

Companies should find innovative ways to create relatable and engaging content in this competitive digital landscape. And incorporating employee advocacy into their content marketing plan can help a brand achieve these objectives. Brands can take advantage of their employees' passion for creating content by tapping into that capability.