Employee Brand Influences: Motivations and Social Media Engagement

摘要

Influencer marketing is a word-of-mouth marketing tactic in which connected social media participants, who have the credibility, following, and motivation to drive positive word-of-mouth to a broader and salient segment of the market, receive incentives or compensation in exchange for posting persuasive messages to their followers. However, influencer marketing campaigns are highly competitive and increasingly expensive partnerships with content creators, bloggers, and celebrities. These influencers are costly to incentivize and challenging to sustain. The ROI is difficult to measure and many consumers turned off by the prospect that their favorite celebrity is being paid or otherwise compensated to say positive things about the brands consumers buy. Thus, marketers may want to consider harnessing the power of their employees who may already be willing and able to endorse or recommend their own company's products and services. These internal brand advocates are natural influencers who already know and maybe even use their company's brands. If employers can identify employees with a strong commitment to their brand and who also have a propensity to position themselves as enthusiastic experts, they may be able to uncover an addition source of credible word-of-mouth.