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Communicating for Success
By Wendy Marx

 

How many times have you heard the expression, “People are our most important asset?” I bet so often it has about as much impact as an automated phone greeting. The fact is that while most companies believe that statement, most are notoriously bad about acting on it when it comes to employee communications. 

Let’s face it. Most companies just aren’t good communicators. They don’t communicate enough. And they forget Communications Rule Number 1: Communication to be effective must be a two-way street with input flowing from employees to management as well as in the other direction. One of the secrets of a well-run company is a successful communications program. Effective business communicators know that upbeat, passionate, productive employees are also well-informed employees. Here are some surefire ways to instill new life into your employee communications:

  • Plan. Develop a communications plan that is tied to your company strategy. Do your employees know how their jobs connect with your strategy? Do they have all the information they need to act as “ambassadors” for your company when they interact with friends, family and neighbors?

  • Communicate. Communicate. Communicate….Positively. You can’t communicate enough to your employees how important they are to your overall success. Develop formal and informal ways of recognizing your employees from a simple “job well done note” to “employee of the month” awards to recognition ceremonies.

  • Ask for feedback. Don’t just assume that because you are communicating that your message is being heard. Find out from you employees what is their preferred form of communication. Do they want monthly meetings? Email messages? Bulletin board notes? One-on-one sessions?

  • Encourage employee involvement. As management guru Steven Covey said, “No involvement, no commitment.” As part of your communication strategy, encourage your employees to solve company problems. General Electric is famous for its “Workout” program, town meeting-style sessions where teams of employees recommend solutions that management has to respond to. Create meaningful ways to get your employees involved in solving company problems.

  • Communicate thoroughly. Don’t just communicate the “what” of a company initiative and expect employees to march lockstep towards implementing it. To get their buy-in, also explain the “why” behind the program. 

  • Don’t over communicate. As anyone with a nagging spouse knows, you can communicate so often that eventually the message is tuned out. For example, you don’t want to email your employees multiple times with the same messages or badger them with a message that’s communicated in so many places and ways that it becomes offensive. In communication as in everything else we do, less sometimes can be more.

Wendy Marx is president of Marx Communications, a public relations and marketing communications firm that helps B2B companies and individuals build their brands through innovative promotional strategies. For more information, wendy@marxcommunications.com or (203) 445-2850.

 

Make That Newsletter Work For You
By Martin Arnold

Business owners and managers are finding that newsletters are becoming an important part of their efforts to communicate to key audiences. One reason is the advent of new technologies that enables newsletters to be published attractively, inexpensively and quickly.

All you need to begin is to go to a search engine and ask “how do I publish a newsletter.” There, you will find a wealth of information along with templates and format suggestions that will get you started. Easy, right?

Not so fast! Even before you do that Internet search there are elements to consider that you won’t find on line.

For example, what will be the goals of your newsletter and, just as important, how will you measure its effectiveness? 

Who will be responsible for its contents with authority for seeing that deadlines are met?

Do you believe that once you begin a newsletter that you will be able to sustain it in the face of a dynamic business climate?

No one can answer these questions for you, but we recommend that you ask and answer them before you commit valuable time and resources. Once you do you though you are on the right track to beginning a successful publication.

Ready to proceed? Here are some “must dos.”

  • Develop a publication schedule and stick to it.

  • Give the person responsible for the newsletter training in writing, proofreading and design.

  • Benchmark! Find newsletters that you like and determine what makes them successful.

  • Develop a schedule of story ideas in advance that will get you through the first few issues. 

  • Assign the story ideas to those responsible for writing and insist that deadlines be met.

  • Make sure you have an effective way to distribute your newsletter, either by e-mail, handout or by mail to the home.

  • Choose an appropriate printing method.

  • For some newsletters it works well to have an editorial board to suggest ideas and make improvements.

  • Make sure your articles are informative. People want news they can use.

  • Keep articles concise and avoid purchasing generic content.

  • Find a name for your newsletter that is memorable.

Newsletters are terrific tools for keeping in touch with employees, customers the community and other important publics. But there is much to consider before you begin actual publication. A false start, inconsistency, or a newsletter that does not seem to have a purpose sends an unintended message to your audience: that you don’t care enough about communicating with them to spend some time and money to do so effectively.

Martin Arnold is principal of PR Services, a public relations and marketing communications firm located in Trumbull, Connecticut. For more information, mharnold@sbcglobal.net or (203) 452-7971.

 

Engaging Employees in the Sales and Marketing Process

By Melissa Wall

Q. How many of your company’s employees are in sales and marketing?
A. The answer should be “all of them.”

Even if an employee does not have direct sales responsibility, there is no question that everything he or she does impacts a customer in one way or another. Yet many companies do not make the most of their unofficial sales force – their employees. 

When informed and engaged, employees become your ambassadors–at–large. They can create a positive or negative image. Former employees can be particularly vocal depending on their personal experience.

So how do you make sure your employees are engaged and well–informed? Here are some of the tried and true methods of communication:

  • Employee meetings where management presents information about the company, its products, its goals and successes and provides an opportunity to ask questions

  • Informal lunches with employees from different areas to cross–educate and break down barriers

  • Inside training programs that explain how an employee impacts sales or future sales by what they do or don’t do

  • Rewarding employees for suggestions to improve processes and for their customer and employee referrals

  • Holding customer events and making make sure employees from non–traditional sales areas participate

  • Circulating information via email, newsletters and the company Intranet about deals won, new products and services, and other news

Don’t overly rely on technology for employee communication. Technology is a wonderful tool and it has made our business lives simpler in many ways but I wonder if we are losing the personal touch with all the various constituents in the sales process, including the employees. I’m struck by how many companies today have no, or very little, direct human interaction anywhere in the sales process. 

How does your company keep its employees informed and engaged in the sales and marketing process? 

 

Melissa Wall is the founder and owner of Marketing With Distinction, LLC, a 10–year old B2B marketing consulting firm based in Oxford, CT. She can be reached at 203–888–9995 or melissa@distinctmarketing.com.