With Great Brand Culture Comes Great Employee Advocacy

With Great Brand Culture Comes Great Employee Advocacy


During a visit to the NASA space centre in 1962, U.S. President John F. Kennedy noticed a janitor carrying a broom. He interrupted his tour, walked over to the man and said, “Hi, I’m Jack Kennedy. What are you doing?” “Well, Mr. President,” the janitor responded, “I’m helping put a man on the moon.” 

To most people, this janitor was just cleaning the building. But in the more mythic, larger story unfolding around him, he was helping to make history.

That a janitor is so well-aligned with the mission and vision of NASA is the result of a great brand culture.

What is a brand culture?


The e-book Telling Your Brand Story from Zoho Academy states:

Your brand’s story is much more than your “company bio.” It’s everything from the colors on your website to your packaging materials to the way your employees answer the phone and banter with your customers on social media. It includes your origins, your goals, your inspiration, your challenges, your target audience and their experiences with your company. It’s even the stuff you don’t have control over, including how your prospects and customers perceive what you do and interpret what you say. In short, it’s the sum total of who you are, all you do, and everything people believe about you based on the signals you send.

When your brand story is consistent and has been owned by every stakeholder of your company, it creates a solid brand culture.

Zappos is a good example of a brand that is very proud of its culture. Even the interview and hiring process at Zappos are designed to learn about the candidate's compatibility to fit in Zappo's organizational culture (50% weightage).

If a candidate is hired by Zappos, they can expect to spend their first three to four weeks manning phones in their call center learning how to respond to customer needs. This, in a way, is an introduction to the soul of the business. Upon completion of their time in the call center, Zappos employees are offered $3,000 to leave the company. If you haven't become a Zappos insider, committed to the goals and the culture, the company really prefers that you leave. Take the money, though, and you can never come back.

What happens when your employees are aligned with your brand culture?


They tell your story to the world.








When your employees share your story widely, it gives your brand a word of mouth boost, which is better than any form of marketing. [A report from Pew Research Centre found that word of mouth was the top point of influence for buyers.]

Let's do some quick math. I'll try to calculate the organic reach of your social media post with some assumptions. Say your brand has 300K fans on facebook while you have 200 employees who are active on social media and can share positively about your brand from their profile.

When you post from your brand page, your organic reach is this:
300,000 X 6.4% (average organic reach of an FB post) = 19,200 impressions

When your employees post about you:
200 advocates X 338 friends each (avg. number of friends) X 33% of friends seeing the post = 22,308 impressions

Remember, the average organic reach of a Facebook post is declining every year, so the posts from your brand page are going to fetch you less and less views in coming years.

Employee advocacy will be your positive word-of-mouth marketing that helps create a favorable brand image with larger organic reach. It will also help you fetch the right talent when you have a job opening.

How to convert employees into brand advocates


Sending a memo asking employees to be your brand advocates is a bad idea. Asking someone to write positively about you in public will always prompt a "what's-in-it-for-me?" attitude from the employee. Instead, win over them and trust them to post naturally.

Some employees will already be posting more about your business than others or have a more engaged audience. Identify your top socially active employees and give them the opportunity to build their thought leadership further by including them in your social media strategy.

Here are few actionable tips:

  1. Brand culture: Like how the janitor at NASA, your employees—no matter their department—should own your brand's vision. Cultivate this by re-iterating the vision and goal in meetings, emails to employees, your own social media posts, posters around the office, and through your actions. For example, start office yoga classes if your vision is related to health or fitness. Don't let your folks forget what you're working to achieve.
  2. SWAG: Who doesn't like a cool swag? Give your employees a t-shirt, a coffee mug, or even a cool hat with your logo on it. If they love your swag, there are two advantages: one, they will advocate about it in their social media space, and two, when they wear the swag in public, it's free advertising for you. Plus, swag increases the bonding between companies and employees.
  3. Celebrations: Celebrate days like Employee Appreciation Day, which falls on the first Friday of every March. Make your team members feel important and appreciated.
  4. Indirect campaign: Start a social media campaign with a hashtag and send a mailer inviting employees to participate. For example, "Best Selfie with colleague wins a prize. Use hashtag #(YourBrandName)Fun." You could also have them host a Twitter chat around a topic in your industry or perhaps help them create a longer piece of content like a blog post or video that you can then promote on both the employee’s Twitter account and on your brand account.
  5. Surprises: Surprise and delight your employees by sending them gifts on their birthdays or anniversaries. They might spread the word. Worth a shot!
Once you organically convert your employees into brand advocates, they will begin posting positive things they experience in the workplace—whether morning yoga, team lunch, employee appreciation gifts, or an employee awards function. As they start sharing their experiences with the world, your brand will get the right kind of exposure—and hopefully increased traffic via genuine word-of-mouth marketing.


    Zoho Desk Resources

    • Desk Community Learning Series


    • Digest


    • Functions


    • Meetups


    • Kbase


    • Resources


    • Glossary


    • Desk Marketplace


    • MVP Corner


    • Word of the Day


      • Sticky Posts

      • 10 simple e-commerce marketing tips to boost sales

        Congratulations! You've finally set up that e-commerce store you've been thinking about for a long time. Hopefully it wasn't too difficult. Even if it was, the effort will be totally worth it when you start seeing some orders come through. Now that the store is live, let's take a look at some marketing tips you can apply for sales growth. 1. Avoid cart abandonment If you've ever shopped online, you might have added a product to the cart but then decided not to purchase it. This is known as cart abandonment.
      • Marketing in a post COVID-19 world!

        Consumers across countries are increasingly spending more time on a wide variety of digital activities, right from online grocery shopping, to video conferencing, to tele-medicine. There is a good chance that you performed one or more of the following activities during this lockdown, thanks to COVID 19: Cooked a meal Made a TikTok Video Signed up for a remote learning session Consulted a doctor online (or ordered medicines online) Shopped for groceries online A study by Hunter, a food and beverage
      • Inbound Marketing 101: The Foundational Blocks of Inbound Marketing Strategy

        According to a behaviour survey, 68% of the buyers use sources such as blogs to evaluate the product even before considering it. Before buying a product, we do a lot of research to learn more about the product through communities, blogs, social media,
      • How Zylker doubled their webinar registrations!

        Webinars are good educational resources to gather qualified leads for your product. But what if your visitors are dropping off from your webinar landing page without signing up? What more could you do to convert visitors into registrants? This is the
      • The ideology behind why features tell, but benefits sell

        Do you think there's any truth to this? Do features only tell, and benefits sell?  Well, let's see why we should focus on benefits rather than features as the great marketing wizards, David Ogilvy and Steve Jobs proved to be the best examples leveraging

      Zoho CRM Plus Resources

        Zoho Books Resources


          Zoho Subscriptions Resources

            Zoho Projects Resources


              Zoho Sprints Resources


                Zoho Orchestly Resources


                  Zoho Creator Resources


                    Zoho WorkDrive Resources



                      Zoho Campaigns Resources

                        Zoho CRM Resources

                        • CRM Community Learning Series

                          CRM Community Learning Series


                        • Tips

                          Tips

                        • Functions

                          Functions

                        • Meetups

                          Meetups

                        • Kbase

                          Kbase

                        • Resources

                          Resources

                        • Digest

                          Digest

                        • CRM Marketplace

                          CRM Marketplace

                        • MVP Corner

                          MVP Corner




                          Zoho Writer Writer

                          Get Started. Write Away!

                          Writer is a powerful online word processor, designed for collaborative work.

                            Zoho CRM コンテンツ






                              ご検討中の方

                                • Recent Topics

                                • Security Policies

                                  To protect against cyber threats and attacks, organizations need to set up security policies for their employees' accounts. Security policies are rules and regulations for every individual or group using the organization's assets and resources. Enabling
                                • Zoho CRM functions editor is not in the programming language deluge

                                  I am trying to write a function for a button. I helped someone before in deluge and I'm using this new editor I'm not familiar with - I guess it is new. Why is the default code statically typed? The editor will not let me create a variable without a type.
                                • "Age in Days" calculation in Advanced Analytics

                                  Hi Can someone advise how this is calculated? I am getting values on this report which I cannot understand. Thank you
                                • Automatically set quotes to "lost" if deal is set to lost

                                  Hi, Is there a way to automate that if a deal (opportunity) is lost the related quotes are also set to lost? Thanks!
                                • Subdomain

                                  How can i make subdomain in my zoho website
                                • A/R Aging Details shows wrong aging days

                                  In the A/R Summary Report all of the invoices are in the right aging buckets. When I run the A/R Aging Details report I get aged dates of +300 days when they should be in the 0-90 day range.
                                • Global Choice List share ownership

                                  I have created several forms that use one or more Global Choice Lists. These lists have been published to Org. I would like to allow one or more admins to edit the choices in these lists. Any help appreciated. Geoff
                                • Domain Transfer

                                  I have a Godaddy domain, how i can transfer it to Zoha? and how i can move my website to Zoho server? With my best wishes.
                                • Project Templates & Reminders

                                  I am getting projects all set up to work for our company and am running into a problem that I'm hoping is easily fixable. I have created a project template and within that project, there are reminders set on certain tasks. When I create a project from
                                • Kaizen #126 - Circuits in Zoho CRM - Part 1

                                  Hello everyone! Welcome back to another week of Kaizen! Today, we will discuss an exciting topic—Circuits in Zoho CRM. For starters, we will discuss what Circuits are, how beneficial they are for businesses, different views of a Circuit, and the different
                                • Create customized SLAs for your customer base with support plans

                                  Managing customer expectations, prioritizing critical issues, and resolving customer inquiries on time is quite a juggle. Without a clear timelines or defined priorities, a support team may struggle with delays in response, SLA violations, and pending
                                • Zoho Flow or Schedules

                                  I have a process where we text our leads 7 times over a 14 day with different content for each text. I created one flow in Zoho Flow to do this, but wondering if there is a more efficient way to accomplish this via Schedules. It goes on for 6 more times
                                • Free webinar: Zoho Sign 2024 wrap-up - Everything that is new and has changed

                                  Hello, Are you looking up to catch up on all the updates made to Zoho Sign in 2024? Or are you still figuring out how you can use Zoho Sign better to get business paperwork done more efficiently? If so, we invite you to join us this Thursday, December
                                • How to Customize Task Creation to Send a Custom Alert Using JavaScript in Zoho CRM?

                                  Hello Zoho CRM Community, I’m looking to customize Zoho CRM to send a custom alert whenever a task is created. I understand that Zoho CRM supports client scripts using JavaScript, and I would like to leverage this feature to implement the alert functionality.
                                • Workflow - Execute Based on Date

                                  Hello, I have trouble understanding the documentation for Execute Based on Date or Date Time Field's Value. I want to send an email every time I have a Case opened for more than three days with its status unchanged. I set : This rule will be executed 3 days after [date].  Condition : Status is [New]. Instant Action : Send an email notification. However, I'm not sure I follow this part of the documentation: "For all the records matching the rule criteria, rule will be triggered either monthly or yearly
                                • Can we set a BCC address as default to show while sending emails?

                                  Two things inside ZohoCRM are annoying me because it's a repeated work. First one is that I always need to click manually to add the BCC field while sending an email to a lead. Can we set a default address so when I click to send a new email the BCC address
                                • Make collecting payments from your customers in Bigin easier with payment links

                                  Greetings, Efficient payment collection is crucial for business success. Bigin already helps your businesses manage and sell products effectively, but we can further enhance this by making payment collection easier. This integrated payment feature lets
                                • Inbox Preference - Saved replies based on message repsonse with specific word

                                  Hi There, Can one create a workflow where the Save Reply will be generic for all messages that contains a specific word, various channels,. The saved reply should contain a link for download etc. that is a response to the word entered in the message contained
                                • Basic Price List Functionality Still Missing

                                  I am having a problem with the most simple imaginable pricing scenario - you buy cheap, add profit, then sell high. Or in less simplistic terms: business buys a product at a given cost, then adds predetermined percentage markup, and finally sells that
                                • How do I hire employees????

                                  Hi! I own a bookkeeping company, where a few of my clients use Zoho Books as their accounting platform . I started utilizing Zoho Practice to work on the books of my Zoho clients, some have Zoho One and some have Zoho Books plans. I just hired an employee,
                                • Automate data upload process like reports

                                  I'll start with the end in mind.  I want to basically keep certain creator tables updated with data that are in a sql database/tables in our office (employees, active jobs, employee positions) so I can reference that data and not have to duplicate it by hand every time someone adds a new job or employee in the office desktop software.  Here are some thoughts I had about how to do this, but am unsure as to whether any of them are actually possible and how to go about it from there: Is there any way
                                • Greylisted, try again after some time

                                  Can you check my ip, i send to duyna@vietlinkjsc.vn but have an error; my ip is 112.213.94.12 Here is log: 2018-01-09 09:40:29 H=mx.zoho.com [204.141.32.121] SMTP error from remote mail server after RCPT TO:<duyna@vietlinkjsc.vn>: 451 4.7.1 Greylisted, try again after some time 2018-01-09 09:40:32 H=mx2.zoho.com [204.141.33.55] SMTP error from remote mail server after RCPT TO:<duyna@vietlinkjsc.vn>: 451 4.7.1 Greylisted, try again after some time 2018-01-09 09:40:32 duyna@vietlinkjsc.vn R=lookuphost
                                • Emails linked to Deal

                                  Hello everyone, I’d like to ask a question to see if someone can help me out. We are requesting availability from suppliers by sending emails directly from the Opportunity. These emails we send are logged within the Opportunity; however, when we receive
                                • How to transfer all my mails from Zoho to Gmail or Office 365

                                  is there any option to move my emails from zoho to gmail or office 365. i would like to export more than 25k emails from zoho to office 365 or gmail. can anyone help me to guide properly. this will help me to access my emails easily i have both account and can easily  do it with office 365 or gmail. i want two options. direct from zoho to office 365  or exported eml files from zoho to gmail. please suggest me both if possible 
                                • Inquiry Regarding Image Display Issue in Campaign Duplication

                                  We are currently using Zoho Campaigns for email distribution to our clients. I would like to inquire about an issue we encountered. When duplicating a previously created and sent campaign from the "All Campaigns" section, the images used in the header
                                • New integrations for Bigin: Zoho Sign, SalesIQ, and Marketing Automation

                                  Greetings, We're excited to share new integrations that make Bigin more powerful and useful for your business! Zoho Sign for Bigin Zoho Sign now integrates seamlessly with Bigin, enabling you to sign, send, and manage contracts or agreements without leaving
                                • Add multiple users to a task

                                  When I´m assigning a task it is almost always related to more than one person. Practical situation: When a client request some improvement the related department opens the task with the situation and people related to it as the client itself, the salesman
                                • What is Attendee Status 0 and 1?

                                  Hi there, I recently stumbled upon the API to get the attendee list and in the return value, there is a parameter called "status", and 0 supposed to mean not_attending, and 1 means attending. I cannot find this representation anywhere in the attendee
                                • ZOHO BackStage

                                  How to get list of events, using ZOHO BackStage APIs. Is it possible OR not?
                                • How to Customize Task Creation to Send a Custom Alert Using JavaScript in Zoho CRM?

                                  Hello Zoho CRM Community, I’m looking to customize Zoho CRM to send a custom alert whenever a task is created. I understand that Zoho CRM supports client scripts using JavaScript, and I would like to leverage this feature to implement the alert functionality.
                                • Zoho Meeting iOS app update - Join breakout rooms, access polls, paste links and join sessions, in session host controls

                                  Hello, everyone! In the latest iOS version(v1.7) of the Zoho Meeting app, we have brought in support for the following features: Polls in meeting session Join Breakout rooms Paste link in join meeting screen Foreign time zone in the meeting details screen.
                                • Calculate hours between 2 date/time fields

                                  Hi, Does anyone know if it is possible to get the number of hours between 2 date/time fields in a zoho crm custom function? Thanks, Michael
                                • External ID validation.

                                  I added an external ID field as below in one of my custom modules: When creating records via the API using some value (eg: 762115b2-097e-43b2-bdba-f3924a5371a6) for this field, it works without any problem. I can create and even see the records on the
                                • CRM x WorkDrive: File storage for new CRM signups is now powered by WorkDrive

                                  Availability Editions: All DCs: All Release plan: Released for new signups in all DCs. It will be enabled for existing users in a phased manner in the upcoming months. Help documentation: Documents in Zoho CRM Manage folders in Documents tab Manage files
                                • Create a button that executes a customized function

                                  Hello, I have created a summary view in which I combine the data from my items table and suppliers table. I would like to know if there is the possibility of adding a button somewhere in the view to be able to execute a function when clicked on it. I
                                • Custom field doesn't fill when converting sales order to invoice

                                  Hi, When I convert a Sales Order to an Invoice one of the custom fields on a product line names "Subsidie" does not seem to fill in automatically. I manually have to select the product again by clicking on the product name in the order line en re-select
                                • Can I use ZOHO calendar to schedule a Youtube video that is already in my youtube account, but listed as private or unlisted?

                                  I am creating Youtube videos and shorts and then uploading them to our Channel so others can view and approve. Once approved I would like to just schedule them over the next few days within Zoho. So far it looks like I have to re-upload the video to Zoho
                                • How to Display a Logo Image on a Public Form?

                                  I would like to display a logo image in the header of a form. To achieve this, I added an Add Notes field to the form. The code below works perfectly for Zoho users accessing the form. However, when the form is made public, the image does not load properly:
                                • Advice for my first project in Zoho

                                  Hello, how can I design and implement a customized ERP and CRM system using Zoho to automate and manage core business functions, including customer relationship management, property inventory, sales tracking, and financial processes. This is one of my
                                • Associate Email API Internal Error

                                  I am trying to associate an already existing email within a function using the Related Emails API. To provide more context, I also have admin permissions and have ensured that the fields are correct and that I have admin permissions when associating the
                                • Next Page