are you ready to make your employees the stars of your business?

@AndreaTEdwards

/AndreaTEdwards

/AndreaTEdwards www.thedigitalconversationalist.com

The Digital Conversationalist


Are you ready to make your employees the stars

of your business?

Let’s get into the how…

@AndreaTEdwards

Influencers are curious beasts

@AndreaTEdwards

How has the customer changed?

“There are no secrets. The networked market knows more than companies do about their

own products. And whether the news is good or bad, they

tell everyone.”

The Cluetrain Manifesto

@AndreaTEdwards

We are the change – the people

• We are in the midst of a global conversation and you can’t underestimate its power

• We are discovering and inventing new ways to share relevant knowledge

• We are faster AND smarter than most companies• We are having conversations – open, honest, funny,

straight-forward and sometimes horrible • But they are genuine human voices• Business continues to speak marketing – not human -

and in campaigns• Business sends a brochure, a CTA, PR• The consumer doesn’t care • Employee advocacy and social selling = unleashing the

humans of business

@AndreaTEdwards

Consumers are 92% of the way through the sales cycles before we even come

to a brand. We are learning and deciding outside the brand

Source: Nielsen

For B2B it’s 65-90% Source: Forrester

Photo: Courtesy of Shutterstock

Image: Courtesy of Shutterstock

Photo: Courtesy of Shutterstock

Whatever the reality - it’s getting SO noisy… and it’s not all good!

@AndreaTEdwards

What is content marketing?

Content marketing is about creating conversations with customers, partners and influencers

To achieve that, it’s about creating content so good, it earns the right to exist in your customers

world, where they are

Our goal today, is to build so much loyalty with our customers – because we are consistently

delivering value to them – that they want to buy from us to reward us for our efforts

@AndreaTEdwards

6 levels of content marketing

• Level 1 – What is it?• Level 2 – We have a blog & social pages• Level 3 – We have a blog & external contributors• Level 4 – We ask employees to share content – but it’s

marketing• Level 5 – We help employees – nearly all of them –

create content in their own voice and then feature their insights on our site, demonstrating their expertise as a way to incorporate their personal brands with our corporate brand

• Level 6 – We have moved beyond our business and now incorporate the entire ecosystem of our company – employees, customers, partners, influencers, associations, and so on

Inspiration: OP|EN for BUSINESS!

@AndreaTEdwards

Content Marketing is fundamentally about business transformation

It’s not something the marketing team ‘does’

Everyone must be on board and it starts at the top

@AndreaTEdwards

15% of people trust recommendations from brands

84% trust recommendations from people they know

Source: Gartner

This is why employees are critical

@AndreaTEdwards

The average employee

Has 500 connections500 x 500 = 250K

5,000 x 500 = 2.5 millionDays, weeks, years

@AndreaTEdwards

@AndreaTEdwards

Let’s take a look at roles

Social CEO – all senior executivesSales – only 15% social

Customer service/feedback – feed it to the heart of your business

HR – employee engagement, recruit the best

Marketing/comms – enabling content, but can be so much more

@AndreaTEdwards

What employee advocacy requires

1. Culture2. Guidelines3. Employee brand first 4. A Platform 5. Effective measurement 6. Champions 7. 1-2-1 Coaching


@AndreaTEdwards

Benefits to business?

• Engaged/valued employees• Retain & recruit the best • Agile business• Connected to ideas• Customer loyalty• Industry leadership• Competitive advantage


@AndreaTEdwards

Because let’s face it

“If your employees aren’t your biggest fans, you’ve got problems WAY bigger than social media”Jay Baer


@AndreaTEdwards

8 practical steps

1. Define a content strategy2. Define your audiences3. Build a content hub4. It’s all about GREAT content5. Build a great team6. Invest in tools to simplify7. Find engaged employees8. Reward/celebrate

@AndreaTEdwards

True success is big picture

1. Siloes down2. Partnership 3. Train & trust4. Leaders on board5. Culture change


@AndreaTEdwards

Your goal now is to make your employees the stars of your

businessAre you ready to do that?

@AndreaTEdwards

/AndreaTEdwards

/AndreaTEdwards www.thedigitalconversationalist.com



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