When an organization speaks to its employees, it would be a mistake to think they have to listen. Sure, you can probably make them hear your message, but that’s a bad strategy for getting them to actually listen to what’s being said. Healthy company cultures don’t happen overnight, and they certainly don’t happen by accident. That’s why effective internal communication is so crucial to an organization’s success.
For employees to be truly engaged, you must inform, inspire and motivate them. It starts with a sound strategy that connects business priorities with the topics employees care about most. This connection drives action. Employees are becoming increasingly selective about the communication they pay attention to. If it doesn’t resonate with them, it gets ignored. That’s why internal communications must be audience focused.
Here are some ways you can communicate with your employees to inspire, motivate and drive buy-in.
Think, feel, do
Before writing a single word to your internal audience, ask yourself these three questions:
- What do I want my audience to think?
- What do I want them to feel?
- What do I want them to do?
The first question covers the rational thought process. Make sure your audience fully understands what it is your organization is doing. The second question covers the emotional aspect. If your audience feels personally connected to your initiative, they will be more likely to get behind it. The third question lets your audience know exactly what they can do to help. All three answers to these questions should be clear, concise and realistic.
Get creative
Just because you’re speaking to an internal audience doesn’t mean you can mail it in. The same thought and care you put into communicating with your customers should be applied to your employees. Creativity is your friend. It can make your message more memorable and more meaningful. Tell compelling stories. Create dynamic visuals. Engage with interactivity. Even break out some humor where appropriate. You should feel energized as you create your communications plan and have fun developing ideas to bring it to life. If you’re not inspired, why would your employees be?
Bring the experience
Communication alone will not improve engagement. People often learn better by doing than by hearing alone. Creating experiences both big and small can help your message stick. Events, breakout sessions and team-building exercises all help the information you’re trying to convey become more memorable. These shared moments foster a culture of sharing barriers, solutions, frustrations, goals and successes. By facilitating these peer-to-peer interactions, you’ll reap the benefits of a staff that understand each other a little better. And that empathy goes a long way
Target your audience
When you think about it, the only thing some of your employees have in common with each other is their place of employment. You often have employees that are remote, hybrid, and in-office, as well as multigenerational, multilingual and multicultural. And that’s on top of different personalities and personal preferences. While your core message must be the same, how you deliver that message can differ tonally and visually. You use a variety of tactics and media channels to reach your various customer segments, so too should you be thoughtful and deliberate on how to reach your diverse internal audiences.
Power to the people
Internal communications should never just be from the top down and should not belong to internal communicators alone. Everyone should have the opportunity to get involved. Empower internal influencers to have their voices and opinions heard. Use their words in your communications. Use pictures and videos of them and the spaces where they work. Collect testimonials and user-generated content to share through your internal channels. Give your employees opportunities to become brand ambassadors so they can help build the culture you want to achieve.
Testing, testing
We all believe in data when it comes to communicating with our external audiences. We track, interpret and adjust. You should be doing the same with internal communications. Do your internal emails get good open rates? Do your employees engage with your social posts? There are so many ways you can check the pulse of your work. And knowing you’re not just setting and forgetting gives you the freedom to try different things. Maybe some channels perform better when the messaging is straightforward. Maybe other channels perform better when the messaging is entertaining. The point is, mix it up. Test. Learn. Refine. You might be surprised how quickly you find the right fit.
