If you feel like employee advocacy is everywhere you look, you’re not the only one.
With the likes of Electronic Arts (EA), Cisco, and Starbucks already leading the charge, it’s no surprise other companies and industries alike are hopping on the bandwagon.
As Ogilvy’s number one influencer trend of 2024, it seems advocacy is here to stay. And while it’s clearly made waves this year, what can we expect of it in the future?
Lucky for you, we caught up with Wiser’s Head of Advocacy, Carrie Gandemer, to find out what she thinks it has in store for us, which areas she sees evolving most, and where she believes it’ll be in a year’s time.
Want some advice on what you can do now to help yourself get there? We thought so.
But you’ll have to read on to find out!
What do you envision for the future of employee advocacy?
I see it as being increasingly centred around authentic employee-driven content that is looking to blend both professional and personal storytelling.
Most people focus on one or the other right now, but I see that developing into a blended approach. Sharing experiences doesn’t come naturally to a lot of people, but as they do become more comfortable with it, the lines separating these two sides of storytelling will blur. Companies will start to really encourage their people to become brand ambassadors in a way that feels genuine to them and aligns with their personal brand.
In terms of that future, what would be most exciting is seeing employee advocacy programmes becoming more and more integrated into overall corporate communication strategies. Companies will look to be positioning their people as thought leaders, but also key voices for the brand out in market, which I think is really exciting.
Which areas of advocacy do you see evolving most?
Without a doubt, the area that needs the most attention is how ROI reporting is conducted for advocacy programmes.
I think the focus will shift to understanding what the direct impact of advocacy is on wider business goals, so things like talent attraction, lead generation, and brand perception in market.
Why that matters is, once you do have that clear view from the data, you'll then be able to start integrating advocacy more closely with broader strategies such as marketing, sales, internal communication etc. within the business.
On top of the data, we’re seeing the rise of AI everywhere at the minute, and that's no different for advocacy. I could definitely see AI being used to help tailor content suggestions, which would be really helpful because it means that employers could start setting content briefs for their employees rather than them having to think up content all the time. It also means that those AI content suggestions would help people share relevant content that really resonates with their networks, too.
Where do you think advocacy will be in a year’s time?
I really like this question. My hope is that advocacy will continue to become more mainstream across companies of all sizes. Once we get there, I’d hope to see those companies start to put structured programmes in place.
At the moment, I think a lot of teams that are dipping their toe into advocacy are kind of throwing plans at the wall and hoping that it sticks. But really, you want to have real structure within the programme. And the reason for that is, from our experience, engagement within advocacy programmes dwindles really quickly without a proper framework.
I think there'll also be a greater emphasis on storytelling and video content specifically, versus the classic written LinkedIn posts. What's exciting about that is if it does happen, the line between external and internal communications will continue to blur.
So you'll see employees sharing not only company news but also continuing to give a glimpse into company culture, company values, the employer brand, and also their journey within the company, which ties everything together.
What can companies do now to start moving towards that?
In terms of what companies can do now, the biggest thing is actually just investing in the training and tools: providing your people with the guard rails that you have internally around content creation, showing them what best practice looks like on social media, and giving them the mechanisms they need to tell really great stories. We always say that with an advocacy programme, you want to build fluency, not dependency. Equip them with the tools and knowledge they need to advocate for you in the long run.
The second thing is looking to create a really supportive environment. The biggest challenge with sharing your experiences is that it’s quite intimidating. It's not something that a lot of people are used to, so you need to look to build a culture internally where sharing is encouraged, supported and it doesn't feel like something they'll get in trouble for. The best way that you can do this is to actively recognise and reward your people who do participate in advocacy.
The third one is quite a big one which is looking to align advocacy with both personal and professional growth. This means that when you’re launching these initiatives internally, tell your people what's in it for them. Tell them why taking part is worth it. Really encourage them to build their personal brands in the market in a way that is going to align with the company’s values and goals.
You can help them do so by developing a really clear strategy, which is kind of a fourth point in itself: defining objectives of the programme, what are the things that we want to achieve by the end of it, and how does this fit into the wider business strategy?
And finally, dip your toe in, look to roll out a pilot programme and iterate on it. Don't feel like you need to do the big global launch the first time. What you actually want to do is test and refine your approach, gather feedback, and look to really feel confident about what you're gonna deliver before you go out for that big global, full scale launch.
If people take anything away from what you’ve said, what should it be?
Invest in the power of your people’s voices.
Excited about employee advocacy yet?
We thought you might be. And lucky for you, we’ve got some other things to say about it.
Find out the six must-haves for your programme kick-off.
And if you have any specific questions for Carrie, feel free to shoot them over by clicking that ‘Get in touch’ button in the top right-hand corner of your screen.
We’ll be waiting.
