Give them reasons to promote your business on their own time.
 

For a military unit to be effective, it must operate as a team. Everyone from the general to the private has a responsibility to perform if there is to be a successful outcome. No one stops to consider who is being paid what. Everyone knows that if even one person drops the ball, it can not only affect the mission but could cost lives as well.

Chances are no one will die if someone makes a mistake in pricing a product to a customer in the private sector. However, the economic life of the business and the employee can be at risk during tough economic times. That’s why marketing with your employees is a very important, and often overlooked, aspect of running a successful business. The economic viability of the business is truly a team effort.
 

Start by being honest

Many business owners are resistant to sharing company information with employees. This is an error in my opinion. How can your employees work to improve their sales and performance if there is no measurement for evaluation? Employees need a goal or objective to get behind. Otherwise showing up for work is just a day-to-day monotony. Nothing changes. Let your employees know where your company is and where you want to go.

Weddings and funerals

Some years ago a study showed that the average number of people that attend weddings and funerals is 250. That’s the sphere of influence most of us have. These are friends, relatives and casual acquaintances that we accumulate as we live our lives. Each of your employees knows 250 people, or to put it another way, each of your employees knows 250 potential customers. Is there any incentive for your employees to bring their friends and neighbors into your business? If not, then you need to change that.

There are 168 hours in a week. Your employees spend 40 or less with you, and 40 hours or so sleeping. That leaves 88 hours spent in the real world, which can include talking to friends, relatives and acquaintances about where they work and what kind of a business you run. Do you want them talking positively about your business during that time?

Every one of my employees got their own business cards. And I gave them an incentive to pass them out. Each employee received points for each customer they brought in who made a purchase. The higher the purchase the more points the employee got. The employee could then redeem those points for things like time off work with pay, concert tickets, gift certificates, cash payment or additional discounts on store merchandise.

I wanted them to take ownership in their job and to take pride in asking their friends and neighbors to do business with them. Think about it. If you sell a couple of more widgits, that employee doesn’t see an extra dime. With no incentives, they will work just hard enough not to get fired.

But if they take ownership in their job and make the effort to promote your business on their own time, they should certainly receive some type of reward. Isn’t that what you as a business owner do when you’re not working? Multiply each employee by 250 and see what kind of potential business you might be missing. Marketing with employees works.

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