When a company is looking for ways to brand itself outwardly to consumers or prospective employees, it should first look inward. I believe persuasive branding starts internally by ensuring your culture aligns with your external brand promise. In our current world of hyper-connectivity, diminished institutional trust, rising time famine, increasing competition, modernity acceleration and shifting workforce demographics, the internal and external get intertwined. This includes the employee experience that is now tightly woven with the consumer brand.
There is a growing appreciation for organizations with purpose and deeply held values. Consumers and candidates are looking for companies they can trust and that affirm their desire to make a difference in the world. Many companies are stepping up to prove to customers and employees that they stand for something. Leading businesses, including the company I work for, focus on ethics and reputation excellence, social impact, continuous improvement, diversity and inclusion and wellness (a holistic quality of life).
To engage your workforce to brand from the inside out, I suggest the following three tips:
Make culture and mission your North Star.
It can propel you within your industry and unlock the potential of each and every employee. An energized, clear purpose builds meaning into everyday work and guides both large and small decisions. Your mission captures and unites your team toward the bold, hopeful goal of the broader landscape in which you operate.
Amplify the employee and customer experience.
Know your employee, know your customer. Successful companies invest in collecting and using data to learn insights about those they serve internally and externally. This knowledge is about more than demographics. For example, just as Nike exists to serve the inner athlete within us all, our company serves to free our communities to worry less and live more. Knowing what your employees and communities care about ensures you are able to focus actions inside and out on what matters most, aligned with your value system.
Activate your advocates.
When your mission drives the culture and infuses behaviors and rituals that link at their core to the strategy, employees become believers. They can clearly and simply envision their role in enabling the company’s success, and they become enthusiastic advocates — authentically communicating the brand to amplify the customer experience. In turn, the customer has a remarkable experience and becomes an advocate within the community.
Culture is a living and breathing thing; it requires patient listening, thoughtful communicating and active nurturing. Aligning the customer and employee experience to authentically deliver the brand promise is not just an HR or marketing initiative. Truly internalizing and living company values and creating a performance culture is something that everyone within an organization must take part in.
Even so, leaders have a critical responsibility in setting the tone and embodying values. If we can create inspiring workplaces, our employees’ passion will be ignited, and they will become true brand advocates. They will help spread the word to customers and talent that this is a place to purchase from, join or stay with, which in turn fuels your company vision.
