Why HR Is The New Marketing. Is HR the new Marketing? These effective companies are actually activating employees as a new marketing channel to achieve both HR and marketing objectives. Asking (or forcing) your employees to share product content on their social media channels is just as dangerous as asking them to share (or guilting them into sharing) what a great place your company is to work. The opportunity to activate employees to achieve marketing and HR objectives starts by creating content they naturally want to share. And many of the employees who don’t write articles voluntarily share the content with their social connections. Because you can create massive momentum when we combine the needs of our customers, our employees, and our company based on THEIR own distinct interests: Companies want more loyal customers and talented employees. But where’s the customer? But you have to create content your employees want to share. The trick is to explain what’s in it for them: creating or sharing content can help them build more connections, establish relationships with other leaders in your industry and grow their personal brand so they can achieve happiness in their careers.
In a world of infinite media choices, the best way to reach new buyers and new talent might be right under your nose. Your own employees represent the greatest opportunity to create meaningful marketing and to develop Human Resources programs that increase sales, while also finding and retaining top talent. Is HR the new Marketing?
In the battle for new talent, HR departments have been forced to expand their role from hiring and firing, overseeing personnel systems and processes, and handling benefit management to include leadership development and training, employer branding, and diversity initiatives.
HR has been forced to adopt strategies that look, well, very much like marketing. These days, HR develops campaigns to grow employer awareness, to build the employer brand as a “great place to work,” and to retain top talent. All traditional marketing objectives.
While many in HR have embraced these traditional marketing skills, the most effective companies are moving beyond HR simply applying marketing techniques to a whole new opportunity. These effective companies are actually activating employees as a new marketing channel to achieve both HR and marketing objectives.
One of the biggest obstacles to achieving the potential of employees as a new marketing channel is the perception of marketing as advertising.
Asking (or forcing) your employees to share product content on their social media channels is just as dangerous as asking them to share (or guilting them into sharing) what a great place your company is to work.
Consumers are increasingly ignoring and blocking advertising messages, with some research even suggesting that promotional messages from brands can have the opposite of their intended effect. These misguided efforts can actually cause sales to decline!
While some employees may authentically share their excitement and passion for the products they work on, the projects they are engaged in, and the company they work for, (and we should celebrate that,) this is not a sustainable strategy for getting new customer or talent.
Content marketing has emerged as one of the hottest trends in marketing. Marketers are learning to think and act like publishers to create entertaining, interesting, or helpful content that consumers actually want to read and share (vs. promotional ads). And this approach allows a brand to reach, engage, convert and retain new customers.
The opportunity to activate employees to achieve marketing and HR objectives starts by creating content they naturally want to share.
As the first VP of Content Marketing at SAP, I learned to tap into the power of my fellow employees to create a marketing program that delivered massive ROI. The…
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