With the introduction of Facebook at Work, public relations teams may obtain a new tool to engage employees, recruit them as brand ambassadors, and measure effectiveness of employee communications.
Facebook plans to roll out the business version of its social media network next week in London. Large customers, including the Royal Bank of Scotland and Telenor, have already tested it. Tech writers describe it as an enterprise collaboration and communication product similar to Microsoft’s Yammer and Salesforce’s Chatter. Its difference – and its advantage – is its interface that many employees have already used before and are presumably comfortable with.
Engaging Employees, Recruiting Brand Ambassadors
That familiarity could help corporate communicators more easily motivate employees to adopt the social network, pay greater attention to employee communications, and become more active in their company’s social media efforts. It could also help recruit employees as brand ambassadors.
Facebook says its business version will enable employees to connect, collaborate and keep track of projects within Facebook. “Facebook at Work lets our staff communicate, discuss and solve problems faster and more efficiently in a way that tools, such as email, simply can’t,” Royal Bank of Scotland Directory of Design Kevin Hanley states in a testimonial.
Employees will not be able to share photos of their cats and weekend parties with personal friends and relatives on the network. Because of its security features, it will essentially be separate from the standard Facebook. Users must create new accounts, which will be separate from personal accounts, though they work in a similar fashion.
Based on early reports, it’s not clear if Facebook at Work will be only initially free, free for only smaller companies or if certain aspects of the platform will be free.
The social platform for work features familiar communication tools such as the news feed, groups and a dedicated messenger app. It uses the same algorithm as the consumer-based Facebook, as Engadget explains. The difference is that it’s dedicated to the chatter within your company rather than your friends and the general public. It may also offer sentiment analysis to enable companies to learn how employees feel about work-related topics.
Essential Measurement Capabilities
Facebook at Work may also help make it easier to measure effectiveness of employee communications. Measuring results of internal communications and presenting that information to senior management is critical to retain its influence in the overall corporate hierarchy.
While PR, marketing and social media managers enjoy access to substantial amounts of data and sophisticated data analytics tools, most internal communications professionals still rely on annual employee surveys or ad hoc newsletter surveys, says Katie Paine, CEO of Paine Publishing LLC., in her blog The Measurement Advisor.
Experts like Paine recommend measurement dashboards that integrate internal communications with social media and traditional media.
Internal communicators may be unaware of advanced tools and techniques now available. Yet internal communications is more important than ever to retain desirable talent, to keep the workforce informed, and to boost morale.
“You can’t manage it if you don’t measure it,” Paine says. “So if you want to retain the best and brightest talent and recruit more like them, you need to continuously evaluate what messages have gotten through, and how they impact your employees’ perceptions of the organization’s mission, vision, and values.” Facebook at Work may be another step in that direction.
Bottom Line: Facebook at Work, a business version of the popular network for corporate internal communications, may be a boon for PR and corporate internal commutations staff. It remains to be seen how well the platform will compete against current enterprise collaboration and communication products already on the market. Whatever the outcome, experts agree it’s essential for PR to engage employees and monitor and measure internal communications.
William J. Comcowich founded and served as CEO of CyberAlert LLC, the predecessor of Glean.info. He is currently serving as Interim CEO and member of the Board of Directors. Glean.info provides customized media monitoring, media measurement and analytics solutions across all types of traditional and social media.
