Turning Your Employees into Brand Evangelists—Here’s How HR Can Lead the Charge

The brand affinity advantage

Think about the brands you admire. If you work in tech, maybe Apple or Google come to mind. In healthcare, perhaps Cleveland Clinic or St. Jude’s. Runners might mention Brooks or Hoka. Guitar players? Fender or PRS. People dream of working at these places not just because of their market cap, but because these brands stand for something. They spark emotion. They reflect identity.

When someone says yes to a job offer, that’s not just a career move—it’s an alignment with a mission, a purpose, a vibe. HR teams spend months crafting job descriptions, curating EVP (employee value proposition) messaging, and refining the hiring experience to attract the right talent. And then—poof!—that energy too often vanishes the minute the onboarding paperwork is signed.

But here’s what the data tells us: You have roughly 44 days to cement a new hire’s decision to stay. When companies get onboarding right, 89% of new hires feel “very engaged” and are 30 times more likely to be satisfied with their jobs, according to BambooHR’s 2023 research. The measurement opportunity here is clear—track your onboarding completion rates, time-to-productivity metrics, early turnover rates within the first six months, and new-hire engagement survey scores. These numbers will tell you whether you’re capitalizing on that initial excitement or watching it fade.

Welcome to the missed opportunity zone

Imagine being that bright-eyed new hire who’s genuinely excited to join. You walk in the door and it’s… quiet. No welcome celebration. No clear picture of where the company is headed. No insider scoop on the exciting product drop happening next week. It’s enough to make even the most brand-loyal employee second-guess their decision.

We see it all the time. Companies invest millions in customer-facing brand work, but neglect to keep their own people in the loop—or worse, inspired. It’s not just a bad internal communications strategy. It’s a branding fail from the inside out.

Because here’s the thing: Your employees want to be proud. They want to tell their friends and family, “That commercial? That’s my company.” They want to talk about new launches and campus expansions and community work. They just need to be given the right tools—and the right environment—to do it.

HR: The untapped branding superpower

If your brand represents who you are, then your employees are the living, breathing embodiment of that identity. They are your most authentic voice in the market. Here’s how HR can lead the charge in turning your workforce into full-on brand evangelists.

Here are six ways to make it happen:

1. Launch internal brand advocacy programs

You don’t need to be Nike to have internal brand ambassadors—although, fun fact, when we worked with Nike, nearly every employee we interviewed talked about their genuine love for the brand. Create structured programs that empower employees to share their work experience, company milestones, and even product content on social platforms.

The business case is compelling: LinkedIn’s 2024 Employee Advocacy Guide shows that the same post receives twice the click-through rate when shared by an employee versus the corporate page, and employees’ networks are roughly 10 times larger than a brand’s follower base. Think of it this way—your employees are giving you access to audiences you could never reach organically.

To capture this opportunity, offer guidance, provide assets, and make it easy for employees to post with confidence. Then recognize those who do. Track your adoption rate (percentage of employees actively sharing), share rate per employee, unique reach via advocacy shares, click-through rates of shared content, UTM-tracked web traffic from advocacy, and job applications attributable to employee shares. These metrics will demonstrate just how powerful employee voices can be for both brand awareness and talent acquisition.

2. Make onboarding a brand moment

First impressions matter, and that 44-day window we mentioned earlier is your golden opportunity. Onboarding isn’t just paperwork—it’s a critical window to win hearts and minds. Use this time to introduce new hires to your cultural pillars, brand mission, and origin stories. Give them a behind-the-scenes look at what makes your company tick. And don’t underestimate the power of some swag—a thoughtfully designed welcome kit can create an Instagrammable moment that instantly turns a new hire into a proud brand rep.

The measurement strategy here builds on what we discussed earlier: monitor onboarding completion rates, time-to-productivity metrics, early turnover rates within the first six months, and new-hire engagement survey scores. When you see these numbers improve, you’ll know your brand-focused onboarding is working.

3. Encourage employee-generated content

People trust people—not logos. That’s exactly why employee-generated content (EGC) is so valuable, with Nielsen’s 2021 Trust in Advertising research showing that roughly 89% of people trust recommendations from people they know, making EGC a more trusted format than most brand-led content.

Encourage your team to share their stories, insights, and daily experiences. Whether it’s a quick TikTok about their workspace setup or a heartfelt LinkedIn post about a team milestone, these moments build credibility and culture from the inside out. HR can help by offering content guidelines, toolkits, and inspiration to get the ball rolling.

To gauge success, measure the volume of EGC posts, engagement rates (likes, comments, shares), click-through rates to brand destinations, and conduct sentiment analysis of responses. These metrics will help you understand not just reach, but the quality of conversations your employees are generating.

4. Connect recognition to brand values

Every recognition moment is an opportunity to reinforce your brand DNA. Reward employees not just for outcomes, but for how they achieve them. Did someone go above and beyond in a way that reflects your core values? Celebrate it. Showcase it. Make brand-aligned behaviors the norm—not the exception.

The impact of getting recognition right is substantial. When recognition is frequent and meaningful, organizations see 9% higher productivity, 22% fewer safety incidents, and 22% less absenteeism, according to 2023 research from Gallup and Workhuman. To track this in your organization, monitor recognition frequency per employee, correlate it with engagement survey scores, and monitor absenteeism data and safety incident reports for improvement.

5. Host culture-driven events that matter

Employee events shouldn’t feel like checkbox activities. Done right, they’re living examples of your brand in action. Whether it’s a milestone celebration, a career development day, or an ERG event, HR can make sure these moments reflect the brand story. These aren’t just “nice to haves”—they’re strategic brand-building opportunities.

The research backs this up: Employees with a strong sense of belonging show a 56% increase in job performance, 50% lower turnover risk, and 75% fewer sick days, according to BetterUp’s 2019 study. To measure your culture-driven events’ impact, track attendance rates, post-event engagement surveys, retention rates among participants, and cross-team collaboration metrics.

6. Infuse brand into the employee lifecycle

From the first day to the last, every touchpoint should be infused with brand. Promotions, internal newsletters, employee awards, alumni programs—they all matter. Think of them as internal marketing campaigns, and use them to build consistency and connection over time.

Employees as your brand’s secret weapon

Here’s the truth: Your employees already have the passion. They already care. Many joined because they believed in your mission. But it’s on you—as a company, as a brand, and yes, as HR leaders—to nurture that energy and help it grow.

When you do, something incredible happens. That excitement spills outward. It attracts top talent. It boosts employee retention. It makes customers take notice. It creates a culture where people don’t just show up for a paycheck—they show up because they believe.

Let’s bring it to life

At BNO, we help brands unlock this kind of internal magic. From strategic employee branding and content development to campaign activation, we work hand-in-hand with HR and marketing teams to build programs that resonate—inside and out.

If you’re ready to turn your employees into your most passionate brand advocates, let’s talk. Visit www.bnoinc.com to learn more, or drop us a line to start a conversation. Your people already love your brand. Let’s help them show it.