From Employees to Evangelists: The Power of Employee Advocacy in SaaS Marketing

In today’s digital age, organic reach for corporate social media pages is dwindling rapidly. Companies are finding it increasingly difficult to capture the attention of their target audience. As a result, businesses are turning to their most powerful asset: their employees. Employee advocacy is a strategy that turns employees into brand advocates by leveraging their social networks and authority. In this blog post, we will explore how SaaS companies can use employee advocacy to grow their business.

What is Employee Advocacy?

Employee advocacy is a social media marketing strategy that leverages employees’ social networks and influence to promote a company’s brand, products, or services. By encouraging employees to share company content on their personal social media accounts, companies can significantly increase their reach and engagement with customers and prospects.

Types of Employee Advocates and Their Characteristics

Why Employee Advocacy Matters

Employee advocacy is becoming increasingly important in today’s digital landscape. Consider these statistics:

• Content shared by employees on social media generates 8 times more engagement than content shared by brand channels.
• Companies with employee advocacy programs experience 26% more growth in year-over-year revenue.
• 92% of customers trust recommendations from people they know, making employee advocacy a highly effective way to build trust with prospects and customers.

Putting Employee Advocacy into Practice

Step 1: Define Your Goals and Strategy

Here are some specific steps and tips for putting employee advocacy into practice for your SaaS company:

Before starting an employee advocacy program, define your goals and strategy. Some questions to consider include:

• What are your main objectives for the program? Is it to increase brand awareness, generate leads, or something else?
• Who is your target audience? Which social media platforms do they use the most?
• What types of content do you want employees to share? Blog posts, case studies, webinars, or something else?
• How will you measure success? Which metrics will you track?

Step 2: Choose the Right Tools

There are several tools available to help you implement an employee advocacy program, including:

• SocialChorus
• Smarp
• GaggleAMP
• Bambu

Consider factors such as ease of use, features, and pricing when choosing a tool.

Step 3: Train and Engage Employees

To get employees excited about your employee advocacy program, train and engage them. Some tips for doing this include:

• Hold a training session to explain the program and its benefits.
• Create a content library with shareable content that employees can access easily.
• Recognize and reward employees who participate in the program.

Step 4: Create Content that Resonates

To encourage employees to share content, create content that resonates with your target audience. Some tips for creating shareable content include:

• Use eye-catching visuals, such as images and videos.
• Keep the content short and to the point.
• Use storytelling to make the content more engaging.
• Use a mix of content types, such as blog posts, case studies, and webinars.

Step 5: Measure and Optimize

To ensure your employee advocacy program is effective, measure and optimize it over time. Some metrics to track include:

• Number of shares
• Click-through rates
• Engagement rates
• Lead generation

Use these metrics to optimize your program and improve its effectiveness over time.

Examples of Employee Advocacy

Several SaaS companies have successfully implemented employee advocacy programs. Here are some examples:

Buffer: Buffer encourages employees to share blog posts, case studies, and webinars on their personal social media accounts. Buffer has seen significant results from their program, including increased social media engagement and website traffic.

Zendesk: Zendesk uses a tool called “Smarp” to help employees share content on their social media accounts. Zendesk’s employee advocacy program has helped them to increase brand awareness and generate leads.

Asana: Asana encourages employees to share content on their personal social media accounts, such as blog posts and webinars. Asana’s employee advocacy program has helped them to expand their digital presence and connect with potential customers.

Trello: Trello uses a tool called “GaggleAMP” to help employees share content on their social media accounts. Trello’s employee advocacy program has helped them to increase website traffic and generate leads.

Employee advocacy is a powerful social media marketing strategy that can help companies increase their reach and engagement with customers and prospects.

By encouraging employees to share content on their personal social media accounts, companies can build trust with their audience and generate more revenue. Any company can implement an effective employee advocacy program with the right tools and strategies.