Social Media for Internal Communications

Social Media for Internal Communications

Amanda Laird, Communications Specialist

March 18

How to convince your boss social media is a powerful

internal communications tools so you can have more fun at

work

Here’s how it’s going to work:

• What is social media?

• What does social media have to do with work?

• Why and how to use social media for internal communications

• Over to you

But first, why am I qualified to be here?

#1. Two-time Humber grad (Go Hawks!)

#2. Communications Specialist at CNW Group, Canada’s leading newswire

#3. Social Media Enthusiast (i.e. I spend way too much time on the Internet)

#4. Food blogger

#5. This photo was taken at an actual social media conference, so that makes me an expert, right?

These days, we all understand social media.

But what does social media have to do with work?

61% of consumers are going online to research purchasing decisions

Social Media Reality Check, April 2009

36% of consumers depend on social media to help them with purchase decisions

Social Media Reality Check, April 2009

Making the business case for social media

• Listen to customers• Promote new products, news, events, etc.• Position your organization as thought leaders• Build relationships with existing and potential customers• What is the competition up to?• Increase brand awareness• Resolve customer service issues• Build relationships with media, bloggers, influencers• Find out about industry trends and issues• Communicate quickly with stakeholders during a crisis• Reach online audiences• Allow corporate communicators to justify time spent on Facebook

during the work day

Making the business case for internal social media

• Listen to employees • Promote new products, news, events, etc.• Position your organization as thought leaders• Build relationships with employees• Increase internal brand awareness• Resolve customer service issues• Share information about the competition, industry trends and issues• Communicate with employees quickly during a crisis• Allow corporate communicators to justify time spent on Facebook

during the work day

Evolution of Communications (thanks, NATIONAL!)

Companies that use social media achieved year-over-year improvement in employee engagement of 18% compared to 1% in those who didn’t

Aberdeen, 2008

Social Media for Internal Communications

Communication

Collaboration

Connection

Communication

• Use social media inside an organization to foster and facilitate communication between employee, team members and layers of the organization

• Social media can be used for top-down communication (ie podcasts)

• Can be used for peer-to-peer communication (ie microblogging)• Promotes two-way communication between management and

employees (ie blogging)

Communication: Micro-blogging

• Share short messages across the organization without compromising privacy

• Communicate quickly across the organization

• Diffuse the rumour mill

• Keep the pulse of employee perceptions and feelings

• Promote dialogue across all levels of the organization

• Connect employees working in multiple locations on an informal, personal level

Communication: Podcasting

• Listen any time, any where

• Empowers employees to listen on their own terms

• Reach employees not sitting behind a desk all day

• Create an archive that team members can play back again and again if needed

• Using voice “humanizes” the message

• Use video to take your message from 2D to 3D

Communication: Blogs

• Promotes two-way communication• Comments allow employees to

contribute their own ideas, thoughts and opinions

• Quick communication during a crisis (i.e. check the blog for building closures, etc.)

• Allows employees to access information on their terms

• Can be as formal or informal as your corporate culture allows

• Break down silos – have your product managers, your CSR’s, your executives and your mailroom clerk contribute content to the blog

Blogging bonus tip: Do not, ever, ever, ever, never, not once, don’t even think about it, get that thought of your mind, did I mention do NOT ghost write your CEO’s blog.

Collaboration

• Help teams work more effectively and more efficiently• Ensures teams have access to the most accurate and up-to-date

information• When the work day isn’t contained from 9 to 5, social media tools

can help facilitate work across multiple platforms (ie work computer, home computer, handheld)

Collaboration: Wikis

• Collaboration powerhouse

• Allows teams and organizations to work together

• Contribute ideas, content

• Dynamic, therefore always up to date

• Can be installed behind your firewall, protecting proprietary information

Collaboration: Bookmarking

• Accessible from any computer, collaborate with team members across the hall or around the globe

• Organize information, research

• Share with team members

Connection

• The key to employee engagement! • When employees feel connected to your organization, a unified

purpose and each other they will be more engagement and therefore work more effectively

Connection: Internal Networks

• Connects employees to the organization, purpose, each other

• Gives employees a place to talk to each other, air their grievances

• Empowers employees to share ideas about the company, making it a better place to work

Connection: Facebook

Blogging bonus tip: If you do not give your employees a place to talk they will create one on their own.

Ultimately, content is king.

IF YOUR CONTENT IS BORING NO ONE WILL READ IT NO

MATTER HOW SOCIAL YOU MAKE

IT!

The time is now for social media!

• It’s a good way to test the waters – trying out some social media tools internally can warm you up to an external campaign

• Promote facilitated communication, collaboration and connections within an organization

• Employees are using social media anyway; use that to your advantage!

• Social media inside the enterprise is going to be a point of differentiation for employers

• Attract and retain talent• Cost-effective – the greatest investment is time

• This is just the tip of the iceberg, the possibilities are endless!

Amanda Laird

• [email protected]

• www.twitter.com/amandalaird• www.twitter.com/CNWGroup

• amandalaird.wordpress.com • blog.newswire.ca

• LinkedIn: Amanda Laird, CNW Group

• Google: “Amanda Laird, CNW”

Resources

• Start the Dialogue: http://www.national.ca/startthedialogue/• Social Media Reality Check:

http://www.newswire.ca/socialmediarealitycheck/• Enterprise 2.0: http://www.enterprise2dot0.com/• Trafcom News: http://trafcom.typepad.com/ • Beyond the Wire: http://blog.newswire.ca