Internal marketing: what it is, strategies and advantages

To begin with, not all your company’s actions should be dedicated to the outside, to your customers, it is also important to win over your employees, this is called internal marketing. This will have an impact on the health of your company, in terms of performance and the achievement of the goals you have set. If you want to know more about internal marketing and know strategies to implement it, here we tell you everything, let’s do it!

What is internal marketing?

I’m sure you were well aware of customer-focused marketing, external marketing. But, now, you may be wondering, what is internal marketing? Has it always existed? The answer is, yes, it has always been there. And it is nothing more than the management strategy used by companies to motivate and retain their own staff, transmitting corporate values and identity.

Internal marketing is also sometimes called internal branding. The aim is to get a committed and positive staff that is able to transmit their well-being to the target customer who is interested in the company’s products and/or services.

When customers perceive workers who transmit positive feelings and give them the treatment they demand, they are more likely to make a purchase and become more receptive to the proposals made by the staff.

Therefore, we can say that internal marketing is an indispensable tool to make employees feel valued and satisfied while they are in the company, besides contributing positively to the improvement of communication and satisfaction in terms of customer needs.

The 5 basic elements of internal marketing

Internal marketing is made up of 5 basic elements that are essential for the proper functioning of each stakeholder. These are:

1. Employees

In internal marketing, your employees are your most important customers. It is to them that you must sell your company.

2. The company

This is the product you will sell to your employees, do it through better working conditions, flexibility and conciliation, a good working environment, growth opportunities and greater motivation and integration. A company able to offer this will be able to see how the profitability of its business increases.

3. Sales force

In this case, it is made up of the company’s executives and middle management.

4. Internal communication

Internal communication is the tool you will use to carry out your internal marketing plan. This plan should work both top-down (to communicate policies, objectives and actions to be taken) and bottom-up (to allow employees to express their feedback and opinions in general).

5. Final objective

The ultimate goal of your plan should be to increase the motivation and productivity of your employees and, thus, the profitability of your company.

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Why is internal marketing important for companies?

Many companies believe that internal marketing is not important because it does not provide an economic benefit. However, it is a considerable mistake to believe this, because remember that we have said that a happy team is able to show customers (those who offer the economic benefit) positive emotions and give them the good treatment they expect to receive.

In this sense, internal marketing allows employees to have a clearer vision of the path the company is following, as well as the means by which it intends to achieve its various objectives.

In addition, it is able to offer an attractive image, especially with respect to the entity, which makes them feel proud and confident about the products and/or services they work with.

6 strategies for internal marketing

Internal marketing also aspires to synergy, which is nothing more than the effective combination of resources and elements. Here are some strategies that can be of great help to improve the internal processes of your company, regardless of its size:

1. Know your workers well

This may seem obvious to you, but we know of many companies where their leaders know little or nothing about the people who work under them. Therefore, we want to tell you that it is essential that you know the needs of your employees.

How about parents with children trying to reconcile their family life, young people pursuing their dreams and wanting to grow professionally, and how about those who prioritize their stability?

Can you imagine? For that reason, you must be able to recognize the segmented groups in your company and think of strategies that will connect with them, make internal processes much more efficient and activities are carried out in an optimal way.

2. Define the character of your brand

Employees are the ambassadors of your brand to your customers. The work environment cannot be fully effective if the values of your company are not assumed by your employees as if they were their own.

It is important to transmit the company’s values in order to generate a synergic and coordinated climate. Therefore, it is essential that they are informed in all aspects about the products you offer and the corporate culture.

3. Integrates playful elements

Nowadays, it is a widely used strategy that consists of evaluating the performance of employees through playful parameters. You must be careful that it does not become a game or that your collaborators mistake it for that, it is simply a matter of putting into practice some playful resources to motivate them.

4. Insists on training

You may not know it, but a determining factor to know and measure the performance of your workers is the level of training they have. You must insist a lot on this aspect, since every day the tasks will be more demanding and complex and the market will continue to evolve, so it is convenient to have a prepared team.

Create opportunities for your employees to improve their skills and acquire greater responsibilities, remember that a well-trained staff is the best attraction your company can have.

5. Motivate them with prizes and bonuses

Motivating your team is not only about giving a fair salary or working conditions that most managers consider adequate. The incentives with which you recognize the work of your employees are also important.

You can think about giving them discounts when they purchase company products or any other incentive that you think they will like. To offer the right incentives it is important to carry out the first strategy: know your employees well.

Awards and bonuses make your employees feel special and strengthen the bond they have with the company, favoring talent retention.

6. Development and popularity

It is important that your employees get to know the products you offer to the public very well. Allow them to use them and have access to them, that way, they will be better prepared when it comes to publicizing the benefits they can provide to customers, because they already know them.

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Benefits of internal marketing for companies

You can enjoy multiple benefits when you apply internal marketing in your company, but in the following list we will mention the main advantages of putting it into practice:

Increase employee satisfaction and significantly reduce employee turnover.

Always keep in mind that an employee who feels fulfilled will stay with the company longer, so the costs of hiring and onboarding new employees decrease.

Improves the transmission of the company’s values and messages to end customers.

Internal marketing is useful when it comes to reinforcing the company’s culture, which makes it easier for employees to transmit it to your brand’s consumers.

Increases productivity.

A motivated worker equals improved performance.

Better professional development.

When your employees gain confidence and motivation, they will be able to improve their skills for the benefit of the company in order to contribute more value.

Increased ability to attract new talent.

A good working environment and employees who speak well of your company are the best advertising you can receive to attract the best talent.

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So, are you ready to take your company to the next level? Start by motivating and recognizing your team as your partner in your journey to success.

Do you want to know more about internal marketing and other strategies to grow your company? Subscribe to our blog at TAS Consulting where you will always find new content. Also, in case you need it, our managers are committed to answer your questions and provide advice if you are thinking of carrying out your business idea, just write us through tasconsultoria@tas-sl.es and we will gladly assist you.