Everything is Marketing — Even Internal Comms
When Internet Brands (the parent company of WebMD) hit the switch to share an internal return-to-office video, they probably didn’t imagine it would go viral.
But it did. Oh, did it ever.
Across the internet, eager fingers have clattered across keyboards, picking apart every scene, every word, every gesture. (OK, we did the same.)
The 2½-minute video probably received more rounds of reviews and edits after its release than during the process of its creation. We’re pretty sure this came as an unwelcome surprise to the execs at Internet Brands and the team who created the video. (We feel for you guys.)
After all, it’s “only an internal video.” Employees at companies have come to expect a little clumsiness, sometimes even cheesiness, from these kinds of internal communications.
Engaging, inspiring scripts are typically reserved for communications that directly impact ROI — that is, marketing.
But here’s our two cents — all communications are marketing communications.
Any internal video may become an external video. In this age of likes, shares, links and leaks, the phrase, “for internal distribution only” no longer has power. Because all it takes is one public link, one screenshot or one click to expand your audience from current employees to the world at large.
For some, this is the stuff of nightmares. We like to think of it as an enormous opportunity.
Because the moment you start treating your internal communications like marketing communications, you elevate the caliber of your work and amplify your impact. Here’s how.
Give the best to your employees — and watch them return the favor.
You’ve probably heard the age-old wisdom, “date your spouse.” We believe you should be constantly wooing your employees, too — whether they’ve worked for you for 20 weeks or 20 years. They deserve communications that are engaging and inspiring. This doesn’t mean you need to break the bank — the best internal comms stories are strong enough to make up for a lower production value.
It pays (literally) to know your audience.
Employees also deserve communications informed by a deep knowledge of their needs, opinions and responsibilities. Marketers go to great lengths to understand their audience — and internal communicators can benefit from similar strategies.
When you do the work to know who you’re speaking to, you greatly improve your chances for your communications to land.
Employees won’t be left asking themselves, “What’s in it for me?” because you’ll have told them. And when they understand the benefit, they’re more likely to do what you’re asking — adopt that new process, align their actions with that new business strategy, even, dare we say, if it means coming into the office a few days a week. You’ll spend less time (and less money) trying to inspire new behavior. And your employees will be happier, which leads to less turnover (also less money).
As the corporate folks like to say, it’s a win-win.
An external mindset can help prevent external crises.
While it’s important to take a walk in your employees’ shoes when writing internal comms, you should also ask yourself, “How would an external audience respond to this?” If the answer is, “Poorly,” it may be worth rethinking your approach. Because while you may not choose to share your internal communications as-is with your external audiences, they might slip through the net of your internal network anyway. If you’ve prepared for this outcome, you can prevent an all-hands-on-deck PR crisis. In fact, you can give outsiders a flattering inside glimpse into your company culture. You’ll also be creating communications that serve more than one purpose.
Multipurpose stories give you more bang for your buck.
It takes less work to transform high-quality internal communications into comms that are suitable to be shared externally. A well-written internal announcement can easily become an external blog post. An internal PowerPoint presentation can evolve into an external LinkedIn carousel. The list goes on. This approach not only saves you time and money, it ensures alignment between your internal communications and marketing teams. And this is important because…
Internal comms = external comms = recruitment comms.
Employees want to work for companies who are who they say they are. Customers want the same.
Alignment in voice, tone and strategy between your internal and external communications helps ensure that you’re walking the talk, both behind closed doors and in the open forum of the internet. Besides decreasing turnover and earning loyal customers, this combination of honesty and transparency is a solid recruitment strategy.
Prospective employees are comparing your website with your reviews on Glassdoor, comments on forums like Reddit, and the scuttlebutt they’re hearing from the mouths of current and former employees.
When your company looks and feels the same everywhere that potential employees are looking, the next phrase they search for will be “open positions.”
Everything is Marketing — Even Internal Comms
When Internet Brands (the parent company of WebMD) hit the switch to share an internal return-to-office video, they probably didn’t imagine it would go viral.
But it did. Oh, did it ever.
Across the internet, eager fingers have clattered across keyboards, picking apart every scene, every word, every gesture. (OK, we did the same.)
The 2½-minute video probably received more rounds of reviews and edits after its release than during the process of its creation. We’re pretty sure this came as an unwelcome surprise to the execs at Internet Brands and the team who created the video. (We feel for you guys.)
After all, it’s “only an internal video.” Employees at companies have come to expect a little clumsiness, sometimes even cheesiness, from these kinds of internal communications.
Engaging, inspiring scripts are typically reserved for communications that directly impact ROI — that is, marketing.
But here’s our two cents — all communications are marketing communications.
Any internal video may become an external video. In this age of likes, shares, links and leaks, the phrase, “for internal distribution only” no longer has power. Because all it takes is one public link, one screenshot or one click to expand your audience from current employees to the world at large.
For some, this is the stuff of nightmares. We like to think of it as an enormous opportunity.
Because the moment you start treating your internal communications like marketing communications, you elevate the caliber of your work and amplify your impact. Here’s how.
Give the best to your employees — and watch them return the favor.
You’ve probably heard the age-old wisdom, “date your spouse.” We believe you should be constantly wooing your employees, too — whether they’ve worked for you for 20 weeks or 20 years. They deserve communications that are engaging and inspiring. This doesn’t mean you need to break the bank — the best internal comms stories are strong enough to make up for a lower production value.
It pays (literally) to know your audience.
Employees also deserve communications informed by a deep knowledge of their needs, opinions and responsibilities. Marketers go to great lengths to understand their audience — and internal communicators can benefit from similar strategies.
When you do the work to know who you’re speaking to, you greatly improve your chances for your communications to land.
Employees won’t be left asking themselves, “What’s in it for me?” because you’ll have told them. And when they understand the benefit, they’re more likely to do what you’re asking — adopt that new process, align their actions with that new business strategy, even, dare we say, if it means coming into the office a few days a week. You’ll spend less time (and less money) trying to inspire new behavior. And your employees will be happier, which leads to less turnover (also less money).
As the corporate folks like to say, it’s a win-win.
An external mindset can help prevent external crises.
While it’s important to take a walk in your employees’ shoes when writing internal comms, you should also ask yourself, “How would an external audience respond to this?” If the answer is, “Poorly,” it may be worth rethinking your approach. Because while you may not choose to share your internal communications as-is with your external audiences, they might slip through the net of your internal network anyway. If you’ve prepared for this outcome, you can prevent an all-hands-on-deck PR crisis. In fact, you can give outsiders a flattering inside glimpse into your company culture. You’ll also be creating communications that serve more than one purpose.
Multipurpose stories give you more bang for your buck.
It takes less work to transform high-quality internal communications into comms that are suitable to be shared externally. A well-written internal announcement can easily become an external blog post. An internal PowerPoint presentation can evolve into an external LinkedIn carousel. The list goes on. This approach not only saves you time and money, it ensures alignment between your internal communications and marketing teams. And this is important because…
Internal comms = external comms = recruitment comms.
Employees want to work for companies who are who they say they are. Customers want the same.
Alignment in voice, tone and strategy between your internal and external communications helps ensure that you’re walking the talk, both behind closed doors and in the open forum of the internet. Besides decreasing turnover and earning loyal customers, this combination of honesty and transparency is a solid recruitment strategy.
Prospective employees are comparing your website with your reviews on Glassdoor, comments on forums like Reddit, and the scuttlebutt they’re hearing from the mouths of current and former employees.
When your company looks and feels the same everywhere that potential employees are looking, the next phrase they search for will be “open positions.”
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