So many companies still see their brand as an external resource that show’s potential customers who they are, they fail to realise that it is the window company culture is often seen through.  Just because you have your brand messaging pinned to staff room walls, corridors, job descriptions and work spaces, doesn’t mean your staff are connected.

 

And what happens when staff aren’t connected to your brand?  Your brand promise starts to fail – its not delivered consistently, customers become confused, and your brand starts to buckle under the negative impressions it leaves behind after each poor transaction.

 

So how do you ensure your staff are connected?

Your staff are your companies best and most valuable brand ambassadors, through their delivery of products, service and interactions with everyone they come into contact with.  Of course your thorough talent search and on-boarding processes has ensured you have the right fit, however it doesn’t stop there, how do you really ensure your staff are connected, stay connected?

Here are our top 5 tips to authentically ensure your employees are aligned to your brand –

1.  Brand Audit –  This allows you to evaluate your brand from the perspective of your employees (and customers).  And when we say employees, we mean from the top down.  With good questioning you will find out what the brand means to your employees, what they think the business is trying to do, who the business is trying to be and connect with, and what value it holds to them.
2. Re-define, tell your story and share – your business story is no good written down and filed, it needs to be shared often with every employee (top down). Articulate it in a way that resonates with your team and use it as a foundation/measure to everything you do – meetings, projects, prospects, on-boarding new staff.
3. Get your staff involved –  This is not solely a marketing role! no one likes to be told what they are going to align themselves with, so why not get them involved from the get go.  Build the magic of ownership and brand pride from within.  A brand co-created by all staff will truly reflect the cultural essense of that business for all to see.
4. Attract the right talent – People are your most important ambassadors, so to ensure you get the right talent on board HR and Management need to be signing from the same page.  Your talent search needs to use messaging that aligns with your brand to ensure your are pulling the right strings of future talent.
5. Enable your staff to thrive – Staff can’t thrive if they don’t have what they need to support their efforts.  And we are not just talking about technology – What does your environment say about your business? who you are as a company? how you like to interact with each other?  Does it support innovation and creativity or suffocate it?  Budget dosen’t have to be a barrier – ask your staff to come up with creative ways to make your office work better for them.

 

Your brand is everything, so do everything you can to ensure it is loved, lived and shared.  If you are not set up from the inside out to deliver on your business promises then your journey to owning, running and being part of a successful business will be an uphill battle – and no amount of outstanding talent, marketing or PR can help.