Best Buy electronics provider announced that an increase in it’s employees’ engagement in one of the stores by as little as one tenth of one percent has resulted in an increase of the company’s annual revenues by more than USD 100,000. That’s a lot. This example worthy of remembrance is a proof that companies which have engaged staff achieve better results than those whose employees only do as much as they have to. What growth are we talking about? Customer evaluation is 10 percent better on average, profitability increases by 22 percent and efficiency by 21 percent.

But experience shows that this is easier said than done. I don’t know what the reason is, but we do have this tendency to be more zelaous about new campaigns intended to attract new customers, than about what we have just next to us. We are far more willing to spend money on content marketing actions targeted at customers than on the most important customer – our employee. Maybe it’s because the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence, and we want to believe that everything is going to work better outside the company and we won’t have to deal with any of our current problems? Here, inside the company, we already know what the limitations are and we see a lot of reasons why it’s not going to work.

Having observed many of these problems and dilemas I decided to write the book “Your First Customer” where I talk to wise people about turning employees into brand ambassadors. Where do you start when you want your staff to support what you do? You can read my book for a good start.

But it’s also worth to realize the 5 elements which are essential for building engagement in your company.

1. Start with respect. Everyone wants to feel they are respected. Be respectful and open. It is a small step and a huge leap at the same time.

2. What makes people trust a company? They need to understand its operations. If your goals and values are not understood, you can not count on being trusted.

3. You need time to build trust. That’s something you can’t achieve in a day. It takes longer. But just like reputation, trust can be lost in an instant.

4. Be honest. It’s not always great. It’s not always just bad. Don’t be afraid of wise transparency.

5. Let your staff know your products and services. Let them be the first to see what they taste and feel like. Seems simple, but is rarely used in practice.

My book has been recommended by Juliett Stott in the “Content Magazine”