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Sure, at times, actions speak for themselves. But sometimes, the right people don’t notice those behind-the-scenes actions career marketers implement successfully. And that – in short, is the answer to the question: Why is internal marketing important?
In this article, I discuss the following:
- Why do people say actions speak for themselves?
- What is internal marketing?
- How to let actions speak for themselves and amplify them through internal marketing
Why do people say actions speak for themselves?
I think it comes back to encouraging people just to work hard and smart. Show us what you can do. And in some instances, that works. For example, when event planners design and implement a fantastic event. Those actions are highly visible to anyone who is attending the event.
But what if the powers that be aren’t in attendance? How will those actions speak for themselves? They won’t unless some random people offer feedback about the event to the decision-makers. So as long as the decision-makers see firsthand the action that is supposed to speak for themselves, that strategy works. But when they don’t – which is all too common – other internal marketing strategies need to come to the rescue to make sure the right people know how good of a job the team is doing.
Read next: 16 strategies to improve team communication
What is internal marketing?
Marketing teams focus on external marketing strategies. Getting in front of the right audience, staying in front of them, and moving them through the funnel. It makes sense. After all, that’s what they were hired for. But, if the right people in the company don’t understand the impact – short-term and long-term- that is being driven, it’s hard and maybe impossible to build a successful career in marketing.
So, in essence, internal marketing is a strategy to make sure internal stakeholders understand what is being done, why it’s important, and what’s being done to improve and to keep driving success.
How to let actions speak for themselves and amplify them through internal marketing?
Certainly, I wouldn’t recommend just hyping stuff that isn’t worth hyping. In other words, don’t just put lipstick on a pig. So start with creating a great strategy, implement it, and share relevant highlights when it makes sense.
And some actions actually do speak for themselves. For example, when a brand implements an innovative social media strategy, that’s relatively easy to see for many. And I’ve experienced that before: People see the stepped-up social media content and comment positively. Without even seeing the metrics!
But when you do marketing well, you are marketing to a specific group of people, and in the digital world, that means people outside that group shouldn’t even see the content.
That can be hard to remember for some, and I even had somebody say to me before, “well, they never see the ads, so they must not be running.” Nope. They weren’t seeing the ads because they didn’t fit the targeting.
Consider sharing the highlights with the right people. That could be through strategic Slack messages, quick updates in the hallway, or even more formal updates in meetings.
An internal podcast that people can listen to on their commute, at the gym or in-between meetings is another way to consider.
But even if you don’t get that formal presentation slot, remember that there are other ways to be successful through internal marketing. Just share highlights from time to time in various ways. That could even be a private message or conversation with a leader that includes a short success story.
The key is that not everything needs to be communicated at all times, but the key here is to share something, anything, to keep the internal marketing going and see what influences people’s knowledge of what is being done and why.