Your most important brand advocates are already on the payroll

It’s no surprise that having a transparent set of brand values absorbed by all employees is a good thing, and I’m sure they have the information in a company booklet that’s rotting at the back of a drawer somewhere (or begrudgingly carried in a top pocket). But what I'm talking about is something different. I'm talking about actively engaging and motivating your staff to fall in love with your brand as you would generate loyal, regularly returning consumers.

Just as your consumers are no longer willing to simply accept your branding message from a billboard or TV advertising, and require further stimulation of the senses to be engaged by your brand, your staff should be at the forefront of your attention to ensure they are enthralled by your brand message and not just left to read it from their pocket notes or staff notice board. Don’t tell employees what they should and shouldn’t stand for. Instead, generate an experience that lets them feel the brand message themselves, that lets them understand the importance it has, and inspires within them the responsibility to convey it to your consumers.

Staff buy-in

There’s a wealth of rewards that are waiting for you as soon as your staff have valuable buy-in. Every task that will be achieved today throughout your entire corporation, could be achieved quicker, more efficiently and more enthusiastically. But that’s not to say that they’re aren’t key moments when invigorating branded activity in the workplace is almost essential.

For instance, after redundancies. Or just before the end of year grind as a warm up or motivation. Or how about before the launch of a product? This is a fantastic opportunity to use motivational tactics to gain staff buy-in and deliver essential educational information regarding your latest product.

But what do you do? If you're launching a new product, all employees could be given a chance to be the first to test and report back on the new product. Create internal brand ambassadors for your latest product by getting them to hold internal office focus groups on the product and gain initial feedback from colleagues. This will also give you invaluable insight in your up and coming marketing strategy and communicate the message that everyone’s opinions matter.

Launching a new make-up product? Each employee could be sent a personalised top-secret envelope with a particular product in it from your make-up range along with hints and tips, about various products being handed out, branded and detective themed. Employees must use the detective themed clues to determine which product is being worn by whom and submit their answers to win a prize. If this really is the first time employees have been able to get their hands on the new product, they should be asking around to see who was sent the new product for the rest of the day!

And what about if you just need to invigorate staff and build a sense of community? You could invite staff to sign up to a mighty weeklong challenge. Those who sign up are given your key product and a camera (even better if the product is a camera). Each day, staff could be sent a text message on their way home from work asking them to do something incredibly random in a public space, potentially inviting attention (and therefore explanation to passers by – we’re starting the word of mouth with strangers here). And the staff member must ask someone to take a picture which is then put on the staff notice board with all the others the following day.

The staff notice board also carries positive branding messages, as does each of the activities staff performed in the street. Generate buzz in the office, get people talking about it. Send emails about your activity, make people feel like they are part of a community of supporters for the brand.

Testing staff knowledge? Get together a great prize for your staff based on how they answer key questions. Better still, turn your office into a University Challenge studio for one day. And how about you film and edit it to make a viral on video networking sites so that the world can see vital key product information Q&As presented in an entertaining and engaging manner?

Provided you have the imagination, there are endless possibilities for your firm to invigorate staff, increase morale and generate word of mouth through brand advocacy. You just have to realise that the most important brand advocates are already on the payroll.

Sally Durcan is director of alternative marketing agency Hotcow.