The potential of digital internal corporate communication goes beyond just allowing employees to read the news on their phones instead of posters. It is a retention, engagement, and community-building tool with a significant impact on company culture. But how can we harness these great opportunities? How can we make internal communication not only effective but also really fun?
Modern internal communication is not only achieved through a technological solution but also by keeping in mind the changing needs and habits of content consumption. Social media is now a part of most employees' lives. They access information, and entertainment content and have made it an important part of their social lives.
Having your internal communication platform is the perfect way to give your workplace community a new lease of life. Colleagues can get to know each other better, share experiences, and be better informed about company events. It promotes engagement and involvement, and communication is an important part of the company culture.
If the technical background is there, i.e. you have the right platform to reach employees, you can start producing content! Let's see how.
Producing content in the digital age is both child's play and a major challenge. We have easy-to-use, super-technical capabilities, but we have to capture and sustain attention in the face of huge noise.
Social media information flows have turned content consumption to a speed and density that is almost impossible to keep up with without a good strategy.
The challenge in the corporate internal communications arena is the same: to capture the attention of the employee. We want them to pick up their phone, notice a notification of new company content, and open it with interest, rather than scrolling through a social platform. And that's a complex task.
First, it is worth appointing a team or even just one person to professionally manage the delivery of internal corporate content to employees in an effective and entertaining way. And if that person or team plans, produces, schedules, publishes, and feedbacks content, you've essentially got your own little internal communications newsroom up and running within the company.
A well-constructed corporate ambassador/ambassador program is a super springboard for developing a successful communication strategy. Download our ambassador e-book here to learn more.
It is worth producing content in a form that is consumed by workers in their everyday lives. The integration of creative multimedia content, i.e. not only text, but also formats such as images, video, podcasts, animation, gifs, etc., into corporate internal communication is now inevitable, but worthwhile.
The impact of a management briefing, for example, is completely different if it comes in an email or if it is a podcast from the boss himself. A video compilation of a team building, in which colleagues can see themselves in action, is more interesting than a few sentences on the intranet.
There are several benefits to incorporating storytelling techniques into internal communication content production. A more permanent and effective delivery of the message is one. It is easier to remember things when the details are woven together in a twisting story. In addition, a good story also has an impact on emotions, which can be a very powerful bond with the "audience".
It can be funny, touching, thought-provoking, fascinating, inspiring, instructive, etc., but the point is that the story should present characters and situations that arouse curiosity and that people can relate to. Stories like these bring new impulses to work relationships and events, as well as to our everyday lives.
In every company, there are many such stories (e.g. innovations, milestones, successes) and many exciting characters (employees, managers, partners). Storytelling can provide an extra that is often missing in everyday work situations, so it is worth exploiting its potential.
We have the platform, we have our small editorial team, and we have the main directions and goals, let's get to the concrete content!
Almost every company has a tradition of introducing new entrants, and this can be easily taken to a new level by introducing a new colleague in a video or podcast. Equally, interesting content can be created about existing employees. It is often the case that two employees hardly know each other - it is enough if they work on two different floors.
Look for more personal, individual stories, not focused on career paths. Where this is done, it tends to become a self-generating process, with one piece of content following another. The colleague concerned must be willing to share details of their life, and also to show others a previously unknown side of them, so it is best to highlight a particular skill, pride, or hobby (sport, music, etc.).
Listen to the Connect podcast, in which our guests talk about making corporate podcasts (The podcast is only available in Hungarian!)
The Christmas, Easter and festive seasons are all good themes and can be well-planned in terms of content production. Everyone has their customs, recipes, funny or touching family stories related to a particular holiday. These are also rewarding topics on a corporate internal communication platform.
You can also collect interesting facts from the world at large related to dates and holidays, plan greetings for the name-day of the month, or 'X years working for us' anniversaries. These are both thoughtful gestures and activating content.
Download our internal communication content calendar for 2024 here!
Corporate events provide great topics in the run-up to the event, and even more so afterward with lots of pictures, videos, and stories. But offering leisure activities and locations outside the workplace is also a perfect valid content for an internal communication platform.
Gamification, i.e. initiatives that gamify workplace performance and results, team quizzes or various competitions that can include more personal elements (children's drawing contests, pet photos, Halloween pumpkin carving, Easter egg painting, etc.) can also be good content.
Easy-to-consume, entertaining internal content is generally popular and can be a good way to motivate employees. They also play a major role in building community and increasing engagement. However, there is a healthy balance to be struck in ensuring that professional topics are relevant to internal communication. There can be important industry news, and career successes (whether related to the individual, team, or company), and of course, these should not be forgotten.
The content production process should not be without feedback. After all, digital platforms make it easy to track how many people prefer to view content, what content they prefer to watch, and what proportion of information reaches employees. This provides a great benchmark for what types of content should be enhanced or improved.
Make a strategy, here's help! Download our e-book here for comprehensive guidance on planning your internal communication content!
