Last week, I spoke at the Ragan Communications Conference: Internal Communications for Small Teams. The workshop had an impressive lineup of thought leaders like Shel Holtz and Mark Ragan, along with communicators from around the country who are making impressive strides in their internal comms efforts.
One of my biggest takeaways from this conference was if you have a small internal comms team, you are not alone. In fact, I’ve never met a communicator who thinks their team is over-staffed ?
With global employee engagement rates nearly flat for the last three years, organizations have increased the pressure on communicators to engage their workforce and reduce turnover.
Doing more with less is the new normal, and internal comms is no exception. How can you do even more than you’re already doing?
Communicators have more options than ever when it comes to channels for reaching employees, and the to-do-list can seem never-ending. Choosing a strategic technology partner like Red e App provides you with a way to reach more employees with less effort.
It’s hard to believe that just a few years ago, a printed newsletter mailed to employees’ homes was truly the best way to get company messages out to employees. Internal communications has seen an incredible transformation in the last 20 years.
As a response to these changes, the questions asked by comms professionals have shifted.
- Previously, they asked … How will we reach our employees? How will we communicate to them?
- Now, communicators must ask … What is the best way to reach our employees? How do we get the message out quickly, create a sense of community, and cut through the noise?
To help solve these 2016 problems, Shel Holtz pointed to modern solutions, with mobile technology like Red e App at the top of the list. Here are a few of my favorite sound bytes from Shel’s presentation that will help you make the case for using mobile in your internal comms strategy:
- Technology has fundamentally changed the way we get information; 63%+ of Facebook & Twitter users report getting news updates from these social feeds in lieu of traditional media sources
- Millennials are the dominant population in the workforce now, and their preference leans heavily towards receiving news and updates on a smartphone
- In a recent earnings report, Facebook reported that people are spending 50+ minutes/day on Facebook, Messenger, and Instagram
- Messaging apps have surpassed social networks in popularity; “messengers are the new browsers and bots are the new websites”
The market has changed, employee preferences have changed, and internal comms must make the change too.
Using mobile technology to help distribute your employee messages is aligned with existing consumer behavior. It allows you to meet employees where they are (on their smartphones), which creates a positive experience for employees (they feel heard and understood), and creates more engagement for you (employees actually read your messages).
Looking for more great ideas and trends in internal comms? Shel Holtz hosts a weekly podcast, “For Immediate Release” packed with great ideas to keep your strategy moving forward.
