The world of marketing is everchanging—and the competition is steeper than ever. In fact, digital marketing experts estimate that most Americans are exposed to between 4,000 to 10,000 ads each day!
From logos on t-shirts, billboards along highways, podcast sponsorships, social media ads, tv commercials and more—we're bombarded with brand messaging and it's becoming harder and harder to have yours stand out and make an impact. That's why brand and employee advocacy are becoming key strategies for many businesses. 
When you're looking for a new product or service, how do you decide which one is right for you? Chances are you do some research, some of which involves looking at online reviews or seeking advice from a friend, family member or colleague.
That's because with so many options and information online—it's comforting, motivating and reassuring to hear from a real person who has first-hand knowledge and experience with a product or service before you make a purchase.
Given the ultimate influence that reviews and recommendations have on purchasing decisions, many companies are leaning into utilizing brand advocates, aka people who are close to or love your brand, to help promote and support their business through word-of-mouth.
Employee advocates are brand advocates who work for your organization (aka the members of your team who actively promote your company).
For example, have you ever shared a job posting from your agency with a friend? Talked highly about your company during a networking event? Mentioned your agency's offerings casually while in a conversation with a friend-of-a-friend? If so, you're an employee advocate already—and that can have powerful outcomes.
According to Hootsuite, "studies show that advocacy from your team can help shorten the sales cycle, attract and develop new business, and recruit top-tier talent. Plus, you can extend your organic reach by 200% and increase profitability by 23%."
Beyond traditional word-of-mouth, social media—more specifically, LinkedIn—is an ideal channel to help you unleash the power of employee advocacy... and it's free!
While your insurance agency likely has a company LinkedIn page, your team members have the ability to help you magnify your agency, share important messages with your clients and reach potential employees on a much larger and more meaningful level.
LinkedIn has a built-in employee advocacy tool called the "recommend to employees" feature which allows businesses to develop pre-created content that employees can personalize and share directly to their personal LinkedIn pages.
(This is different than reposting content because it appears as though you’ve developed and shared the content yourself, rather than shared another user’s content.)
Admin can also evaluate the effectiveness of this tool and it's usage by employees by going to "analytics" and viewing the "employee advocacy" tab.
Social media is essential to most marketing plans—but not until recently have many companies began to utilize the power of their team members' personal social media pages as an active part of their strategy. But, given the potential power of employee advocacy, it's certainly worth considering. Afterall, it's essentially modern-day word-of-mouth. And that's always going to be effective.