Employee Communication 101 - Think Like a Customer Service Manager

An article recently posted on LinkedIn by David Ward, a risk management advisor, struck a chord with me. 

In the post, Ward pointed out that safety procedures - and therefore safety communications - are too important to be left open to interpretation. 

Ward used some specific examples related to roofing professionals, many of whom spoke English as a second language. (For what it's worth, some of Ward's post was related to a specific OSHA regulation.)

Certainly, there's no room for error in a roofing operation or myriad other occupations that are physically demanding and potentially very dangerous. Proper instruction and clear communication, of course, is vital. 

In one example he shared, Ward put it like this: "In practical terms, this means that an employer must instruct its employees using both a language and vocabulary that the employees can understand."

But I argue, why do we need regulations to specify that employee instruction must be clear and understandable? 

Improved Safety Communications = Better Results

Why don't  we view employee training (which necessarily includes employee manuals and other communications) as critical to the customer service function? 

Because, of course, it is. 

The better your safety communications, the safer your workers, the more productive the team, the better results for customers ... 

Oh, don't get me started. 

Great Examples of Internal Communications

Instead of citing dozens of examples of how not to handle employee communications and training, l'll just say this: Offering clear and understandable communications to employees (AND CUSTOMERS) will position a company heads-and-shoulders above most of the competition. Any company, any industry. I believe communication is THAT important. 

I'm sorry it still needs to be said. 

Rather than offering a lot of bad examples of communication, I'll ask you - do you have any examples of great communication that has helped your company stand apart from the crowd (in a good way)? 

I'm all ears! 
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Feel free to leave a comment here, or Tweet it out. 

What's your newsletter done for you lately?

How many newsletters did you read this week? One from your local winery? bike shop? Did your corporate wellness program send you one? And did you read them?

I'm guessing you received more than you think; you read (at least the headline and possibly first graph of) almost every one. And even if you "just" touched delete on your slick phone screen, you thought - for a brief and shining moment - about the sender.

That's called mindshare. Get enough and you've got a brand. Do it right and you've got a valuable brand. 

But newsletters can do so much more than occupy an atom of your prospect's mind for a moment.

What else can newsletters do? 

Glad you asked.

Well-crafted newsletters can help train and develop employees, get new customers, retain your current clients, and improve your employee satisfaction rates - for a song.

Now I sound crazy, right? Well, give a crazy idea a chance. Done right, newsletters can help you reach your goals.

Regardless of their intended audience, the most effective and cost-effective newsletters are both timely and evergreen. Sound like a tall order? Well, I invite you to stretch with me.

Your newsletter can (and should)...

Be practical and just a tad inspirational. Employee newsletters reinforce (and sometimes replace!) training initiatives and remind everyone on the team that they are part of something bigger than themselves.

Increase sales. Newsletters directed at customers can increase sales, encourage referrals, and deliver coupons. Beyond that, they educate your clients, reduce unnecessary calls, and remind customers why they chose to shop with you in the first place – why they, too, are part of the team. But customer newsletters aren't the only newsletters that should add to your bottom line.  Employee newsletters can also increase sales. How? Have you ever been convinced (or just plain pressured) into buying an extended warranty for a new product, because the salesperson simply wouldn't take "no" for an answer. Maybe that contest was in his company's newsletter. Maybe he wants his name in the next newsletter under the "winners" column. And maybe, just maybe, an underperforming salesperson (or two) will read the list of winners and think, hurumph. I can do better than that.

Newsletters can tell stories, and stories build relationships. Remember newspapers? I bet you read the features, didn't you? The ones with a photo and a headline like, "The Reason I Became a Bottle Washer." Good stories - ones that ooze good news about your brand and have a human interest factor, to boot - are likely to get shared. Go viral, in other words. Another word to say viral advertising is "free" advertising. I bet you see where I'm going with this. Maybe you'll even share it :D

Do you have a newsletter? If you do, is it current? Is it working for you?
If you don't have a newsletter - does your competition?

~Diane Stresing

Related & really interesting
Does anyone read that long copy? Marcia Yudkin settles the long v. short debate.
Do you need a newsletter or a discussion list? One author vs. many contributors - it's your call.
Want a newsletter, but it's just too much work? Get help, get it done.

Employee newsletters not just for employees

Done right, your company newsletter can deliver value to your employees.  But if your company newsletter is just a vehicle to post sales figures, next month's target accounts, and list employee birthdays and anniversaries, you're missing the point and wasting time on your newsletter.

To make your newsletter truly valuable to your employees and create a useful tool for your organization you need to spend a few minutes in deep-think mode.

• What's really important to your employees? 
• What makes them happy? 
• What makes for a bad day at the office? 
• What's your corporate culture?  (I know that word is terribly overused, but it's important!)

Whatever the answers to those questions, you get the idea, right? Your employee newsletter should have a personality. It must be unique because your employees are, and it better sparkle if you expect them to shine.

How can you go from ho-hum-here's-this-month's-newsletter to hey! lemme see that newsletter?!

Maybe you should design it to be read by your employees' family members, even include some content for kids. How 'bout including a tongue-in-cheek humor piece (or photo) by an employee with each issue? Perhaps holding a monthly contest, like offering a prize for the person who finds the most typos in your employee handbook, would keep things interesting. (OK, that last one won't go over big in most companies, but I'd sure give it a shot!)

The bottom line is, done right, newsletters are worth your time. In fact, they can pay off big time.

Related: 
26 Things to Know About Customer Newsletters
Five Reasons Client Newsletters Rock


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Did you bag your employee newsletter because no one was reading it? Or started one, but didn't have time to keep it up? Let me help! I offer a free consultation and brainstorming session for organizations that want to find the best way to say what they need to say, to employees and other important people. Call me ... we can get your message to those people!

Proffreading? Who needs it?

Sometimes the headline just says it all, but when has that ever stopped me?

I recently pointed out a few typos and grammatical errors in a chiropractor's website. A half dozen or so, just on one page. The doctor said, oh, thanks. I'll add that to the list. Seems the professional firm that created and maintains the site had yet to fix a phone number the doctor had pointed out (months earlier) that was also wrong. Phone numbers, you know, are kind of a big deal, even when they're wrong "just" because a couple of digits are transposed.

Look, it's easy to make mistakes. Everybody does it. Good news: it's pretty easy to fix 'em too.

Here's the bad news: while just about everyone makes typing errors and grammar mistakes, most people don't correct them.

That's why proofreading is not going out of style, folks. If you don't catch or correct your own mistakes, you can still fix 'em by inviting a proofreader or copy editor to make you look good.

Look, I proofread and edit stuff for other people all the time. I even get paid to do it :D but guess what? I make mistakes, too. Catching and correcting them is what sets me apart.


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I can fix you up! Don't send embarrassing errors along with your employee newsletters, contract renewal notices, or other business correspondence. I bet I work faster (and cheaper) than you think. Try me.

Guest Blogger or Ghost Blogger?

Much has been written about the value of blogging. If there's one aspect of online marketing all the 'experts' agree on, it's that blogging has value, and lots of it.

Beyond that, the opinions are like belly buttons. Everybody seems to have one that's just a little bit different from his neighbor's. So, if you want to "prove" that ghost bloggers are the best way to use your marketing dollars, and save your staff's time, you can find plenty of experts who agree with you.

And if you want to argue that having a blog authored by none other than the CEO is the best way to go, well, ditto. You can probably even come up with a study on it.

I take most studies with a grain of salt, and on this subject especially, I listen to my gut. My gut says blogs, like belly buttons and opinions, are unique. (Or at least, they ought to be.)  Meaning you probably know the answer to the question - which is better, guest blogger or ghost blogger? - and even if you don't, you can't go too far wrong... as long as your blog is up to date, on topic, and not too long.

I'm pretty sure that's my cue to stop typing.

The last word -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Need someone to help you meet your blogging goals this year? I can guest or ghost blog on a variety of topics including corporate communications, customer service, marketing, promotions and public relations. Twenty-plus years of experience and a long list of satisfied clients say I can write about almost any industry, but for the record, I've written most often for organizations offering business and legal services, and those involved in the health and medical industries, manufacturing, and  technology. And oh yeah, I know a little bit about hiking and other things to do in Ohio. Need to keep your blog up to date? I can help.

Getting Good Directions

 When I was a freshman in high school, my art teacher inspired me to be a writer. He probably didn't mean to, but that's what happened when he began our class by teaching from the book Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain. It introduced me to the idea that the left- and right-hemispheres of our brains handle different things, or (more accurately) handle things differently.

At first, I was dumbstruck to find that I could draw something that looked remotely realistic. I just followed the book's directions and ta-da! That head actually seemed to fit on that body!

Before we finished with the book, I had learned two important things: I have no artistic talent, and by following the author's directions I could draw better.

I still love good directions, and I think writing them is something of an art. If my words can inspire you to assemble a shelf without dissembling the room where you're working, well, isn't that a beautiful thing? I know things can get ugly when I follow bad directions.

Still developing my artistic side.

Recently, I tried to enter a photography contest. (Guess I'm still developing my artistic side.) I was confused by the entry rules,  requested and got clarification, ultimately deciding the entry process was more trouble than it was worth. Apparently, I wasn't the only one who felt that way: The contest was cancelled due to lack of entries.

Directions matter. Marketing efforts and customer service initiatives can fail because of bad directions. Businesses can be sued because of bad directions. (Think of the poor DIY-er surrounded by the tools and pieces/parts of that shelf assembly. Misleading directions + a hammer = a lawsuit waiting to happen)

Directions seem pretty mundane, I know. Directions don't have to inspire, but they should - at least - direct. The next time you encounter crystal-clear, helpful, easy-to-read directions, I hope you'll think kindly of the person who wrote them. And whenever you find yourself in a nasty spot because of some bad directions, please, put down the hammer.

Question for my freelance/technical writer friends: have you ever gotten a job because you pointed out the inaccuracies in an organization's directions? 

Deadlines

The only deadlines you're allowed to miss are the ones you impose on yourself. Sigh. That's an attempt at an eloquent excuse - I've let myself slide on updating my website. Blog posts are easier to manage.

What to look for in the (coming soon) new, improved site: a special rate for employee newsletters in 2010! Know anyone who can benefit from sending a uniform message to all his (or her) employees? Know a business that desperately needs to get all its workers on the same page? Send 'em my way!

Top Ten Signs You Need a Copywriter

10. Your website still has a "coming soon" message on the home page.  (Or on any page - "coming soon" tells the visitor "goodbye")


 9.  Your employees don't know what's going on...and it's costing you money. (A short, simple employee newsletter can increase productivity, reduce accident rates, and improve morale and retention rates.)


 8.  You found a typo...in your contract. (Better you than your client's lawyer!


 7.  You rely on the cable/radio/newspaper salesperson to write your ad copy, or...

 6.  ...you do it yourself.


 5.  You lernt all the English you needed in high school.

 4.  Your products are very unique - and you see nothing wrong with saying so. (Don't get it? see #5 again.)


 3.  You're shipping a panda overseas, or doing something else noteworthy.

 2.  You're shipping a panda overseas, but you don't have time to write a press release about it.

.....And the number-one reason that you need a copywriter....


 1.  You're reading this.   --------------------------------------------------(written by a copywriter)


Contact this copywriter to discuss your needs.