Did COVID expose the employee advocacy gap in your employer brand strategy? 

The swift shift to remote work delivered an immediate impact to in-office workplaces. Companies needed to adapt to new digital environments, and employer brand leaders had to shift their employee advocacy plans to align with the changes.

At the recent Talent Brand Summit, Michael Mager, Global Employer Brand Manager at Grammarly, shared how he turned a team of one into a team of many with his strategy around employee advocacy. Mager said that community connection was his underlying message when documenting Grammarly’s in-office to remote journey on the company’s LinkedIn channel. 

According to Sprout Social, people are 16 times more likely to read a post from a friend than one from a brand. Similarly, they are 92 percent more likely to trust recommendations from friends and family over any kind of marketing, according to Nielsen; and they are three times more likely to trust company information shared by an employee than by a CEO, according to Edelman. 

Mager’s content activation expanded #GrammarlyLife with the #WFHChronicles, which included themes like:

• Creative Activities

  • Who didn’t try making fresh-baked bread in 2020?

  • Recreating the company logo with found materials

He also partnered with his workplace experience team to find employee-generated content, capturing work-from-home fashion and matching outfits, tips to support mental health, a virtual art class, and so much more.

Identifying the opportunities to drive trust and amplify on-brand messaging, Mager broke employee advocacy into three components: 

1. Sourcing meaningful stories, or storytelling

2. Motivating the team to participate, or collaboration or engagement

3. Empowering the team to effectively share those stories or promotions

In a poll of the summit attendees, 48 percent responded that of these components, collaboration or getting the team to engage was the biggest challenge. 

“We have found employee advocates to be incredibly effective in amplifying brand messages, applying a layer of personality that our brand voice doesn’t have the freedom to do, said summit attendee Nicole Stephens, VP, Social Media Strategy, Global Employer Brand, DEI & B2B at Wells Fargo.

Later in the session, attendees participated in guided breakout discussions where Dana Hyland George, Director (Global Talent Attraction & Employee Experience at Audible), shared a remote video recording of some of the company’s leaders speaking about flexibility and empathy in future work models, along with a LinkedIn Live and work-from-home playlist. Caitlin Patek (Talent Brand Digital Manager at Red Hat), shared a content theme for work-from-home cribs.

How did you evolve your employee advocacy plan to account for workplace changes caused by COVID, and what tactics have been most successful at getting employees to create with you? Whether your program has evolved or you're just simply looking for help, we have TBAers who can help. To get help with your strategy and so much more, join TBA! By clicking here you can connect with thousands of other practitioners who are navigating the same situations as yourself. 

About our TBA Members: Michael Mager and Leigha Wanczowski.

Leigha Landry Wanczowski has more than 12 years of experience in digital marketing and has helped lead employer brand strategy at global companies that are shaping our world. Moving from PepsiCo’s iconic brands that are synonymous with pop culture, to Labcorp’s leading status supporting diagnostic testing and global clinical research throughout the pandemic, she recently joined UL Inc. to launch their first employer brand function while supporting the company's mission to make the world a safer, more secure and sustainable place to live, work and play.

For Michael, employer branding clicked when he got to combine his love for data, storytelling, and people. Before jumping into the field, he spent four years in content marketing and communications, before shifting his attention to defining and leading Grammarly's employer brand. Nearly three years later, Grammarly's employer brand continues to be a priority as the team grows and evolves faster than ever. Michael loves to talk about everything employer branding, DEI, and mindfulness, so don't hesitate to reach out and connect with him!