Digital and social media is the new frontier for marketing. The UK’s leading B2B communications specialist, IAS, was determined to stay ahead of the game so, in 2009, it developed a digitally focused internal culture using a comms campaign that fully immersed the whole agency in the online world.
First it refocused its business objectives (on digital), then it created a picture of its own cultural idyll by reassessing its core values as a company and establishing new ones (courage, courtesy and learning).
From there it developed an internal comms plan to get the buy-in of the people that would bring this to life and provoke their enthusiasm and commitment to the agency’s rejuvenated brand ethos and goal of becoming the number one in digital.
At its heart was Total Immersion – a user generated virtual network and innovative digital training tool designed to help staff learn about digital communication techniques and integrate them into multi-channel marketing campaigns.
Twelve months on, every employee has bought into the new culture and is ‘living the brand’ and IAS is the most digitally advanced agency around, primarily because it’s not just been talking about the latest social media tools, it’s been using them.
Strategy
To become the UK’s most digitally advanced agency
- To capitalise on the growth potential offered by digital and social media
- To ensure every employee becomes completely immersed in digital and social media
- To create an agency of digital and social media evangelists that can convince a largely sceptical B2B sector that digital and social media is the future
- To reinvent the agency culture and ethos to create a more confident, effective and productive workforce
Objectives
To get every member of staff to understand the importance and relevance of digital and social media in B2B marketing/comms
- To train every member of staff in the different digital and social media communication tools available through Total Immersion and an extensive external training programme
- To make sure every member of staff understands how to utilise digital and social media in a B2B marketing context
- To develop a programme that would engage and appeal to digital natives and digital immigrants
- To ensure every member of staff buys into and understands the rationale behind the new core values and brand ethos
Media
This innovative digital training tool takes the traditional intranet and transforms it into a social media training platform that is engaging for under 25s and accessible for baby boomers (and everyone in between). With a social media feel, Total Immersion provides an online hub for staff to build relationships and share knowledge using the latest social media tools, learning as they go. The platform has been designed to include the full range of social media tools, including forums and blogs, user profiles, links to online resources, RSS feeds, an events board and a multimedia gallery, as well as other applications.
Because content is user generated, IAS had to make sure that staff quickly became active and
immersed in the new social media training tool. The agency created a graphic identity for the site and produced avatar illustrations for each member of staff in advance of the site going live, helping to create an air of excitement and anticipation in the build up to the launch. Once launched, staff were sent e-mail invitations to join the new site and create a profile, which, together with their avatars, gave them an online identity that they could build on over time.
To kick-start activity, Total Immersion was launched with starter topics in the forums and blogs to get users engaged in debate, as well as fun applications. After that, it was up to staff to keep momentum going and generate content. To facilitate the process, IAS launched ongoing promotions and initiatives on the site to keep the concept fresh and maintain a focus for staff training and development.
New themes were introduced every few weeks together with competitions for quality
contributors (prize: Notebook Laptop). For the most prolific contributor throughout the year,
there was an overall prize of a trip to the world’s leading digital expo in New York.
Core values
IAS developed and established robust values that would underpin the desired company culture
and encourage behavioural change across the agency:
– Courage
– Learning
– Courtesy
It was essential that IAS’ internal comms strategy bedded in these values with employees,
got their buy in and made sure they understood the rationale behind them so they could
‘live the brand’.
IAS implemented the ‘Values Game’ to achieve this, an innovative internal comms technique that
turns company values into practical concrete actions and real behavioural change.
It used examples of desired and undesired behaviour, tailored for different departments/
managerial levels, to help all employees thoroughly understand their role in helping the winning cultural formula flourish.
The game identified what was working well and where improvements could be made. The results were then used to feed into the wider internal comms strategy to keep it relevant and effectual, and make sure it was targeting the specific issues the needed focus.
Results
Created an agency full of digital and social media evangelists that are carving out new territory for B2B marketing.
- Developed the most digitally advanced strategic marketing approach in the industry, which makes digital and social media desirable and, importantly, easy to understand for any
B2B brand. - Created and rolled out new standardised processes and methodologies for planning and managing marketing campaigns in the digital age.
- Switched the B2B sector on to digital and social media – every IAS client is active in some way
- All employees have embraced the new core values and brand ethos, which has had a very positive impact on overall effectiveness and productivity in the agency:
– Over £1 million of ‘annualised fees’ won
– 11 per cent revenue growth
– Net profits doubled
– Considerable impact on the pitch win rate – not only is the content of pitches exceptional,
prospects sense the buzz when the IAS team walks in the room
– Very sharp rise in staff confidence, togetherness, sense of belonging and competency
– Award of the Investors In People marque
– Voted Crain’s Manchester Business Best Places to Work 2009 – category: ‘Big’
“Digital is the new frontier for marketing, so introducing Total Immersion last year to encourage staff to develop their skills and knowledge of social media was very popular. Combined with the digital training courses that filled in the skills gaps, we are now the most digitally advanced marketing agency in the B2B sector, developing creative, innovative communications strategies, with digital at the heart of every one.” Rob Morrice, managing director, IAS
