Enterprise Social Networks significantly improve internal communication and corporate collaboration. To successfully implement and gain adoption for the ESN, companies must follow 4 key phases.
- The project reflection
- The communication and launch of the project to relevant employees
- The daily management of the tool
- The review of results and benefits achieved
We recently discussed the reflection phase on our blog: find the article on the essential reflection step before launching your enterprise social network.
After thoroughly preparing your Enterprise Social Network project, you can now implement it.
PHASE 2: COMMUNICATION AND LAUNCH OF YOUR ENTERPRISE SOCIAL NETWORK
This step is crucial because it involves communicating about the tool beforehand, getting your employees to quickly adopt and engage, to ensure a successful transition to your new tool.
TOOL CUSTOMIZATION AND CONTENT PUBLISHING
Technically implement the solution within your organization with the help of the chosen provider if the solution is complex to set up, or by yourself if it’s something simple and quick. With Incenteev, an easy-to-use SaaS solution, you can create an internal social network tailored to your image in just a few clicks.
Then customize your application with your colors and logo. It is important that your internal network reflects your company’s image.
With a few members of your launch committee, create and organize your first spaces, add your initial content: documents, images, resources, discussions, questionnaires, etc.
It is crucial that the application is not empty at launch, as this can be discouraging for early users who won’t immediately see the possibilities and value the tool offers.
With Incenteev, you can easily customize the Home Page and spaces with your colors, visuals, and logos.
Create a support space on the platform to explain how the tool works (how to fill out one’s profile, how to post messages and find documents, people, and spaces, etc.). Everyone will be able to report any difficulties they encounter using the Enterprise Social Network, ask questions, or suggest improvements.
TRAINING FOR ADMINISTRATORS AND ENGAGEMENT MANAGERS
It is essential that managers quickly adopt your ESN and commit to it. Indeed, they are the ones who will encourage their teams to use the tool. The collaborative platform is a lever for management. It is fundamental that managers embrace and commit to using the tool.
To achieve better manager adoption, you can organize a training and support session. This will be an opportunity to explain the features and their benefits in detail so they can be effective and operational on your ESN right away.
THE LAUNCH COMMUNICATION PLAN
It can be disastrous to directly invite people to join the collaborative platform without informing them of its implementation. They might not fully understand its use and reject the tool. Indeed, a negative first experience often leads to significant difficulty in bringing users back.
Your communication must present the concrete business value for the user and the strategic objectives of the project. Future members must be informed of the project at least 30 days before launch.
For this, plan various communication actions. Here are some ideas; choose what suits your organization, resources, target audience, etc.:
The teasing phase
To generate interest in your new solution, it can be effective to go through a teasing phase with messages and actions that gradually become less mysterious, leading up to the official announcement. Distribute goodies, send emails with messages like “Will you be a key player in our commercial performance? Join us on September 15!” then “Are you ready to become 2.0 collaborators! Come learn more on September 1st at the company restaurant,” etc. This is an effective way to build anticipation and desire, but also to get your employees talking among themselves to think about and investigate the project.
The company LAFARGE effectively used teasing during its ESN project, as Jean-Luc Aubin explains, “During the highly engaging teasing phase, users were already asking to become members of the platform without even knowing what it was. The only evocative slogan was ‘Become a member of the international knowledge-sharing network.’”
The official announcement from the CEO and/or managers
The CEO must send an official email announcing the launch of the ESN project. In this email, they should explain the vision, the reasons for this project, the benefits for the company and for users, and also introduce the platform. Heads of relevant departments can also send an email to their teams to present more specific business uses. This official announcement will reassure employees, generate interest, and demonstrate that the project is well-supported by management. Find an example announcement email here.
For a small team, you can organize a short meeting to make this official announcement.
An in-house poster campaign
Regarding print materials, consider creating attractive flyers, roll-up banners, and posters for your premises.
Launch event activities
Depending on your budget and resources, you can organize events to give more weight to the launch of your Enterprise Social Network. Here are some examples:
- Organize a photo session with a photographer to create great profile pictures that your members can use on their personal pages. It’s also an opportunity to give your employees a nice gift for their other social profiles.
- Distribute goodies branded with your new collaborative tool.
- Gather future users at a launch party event.
- Set up a stand during lunchtime in your company restaurant or near the coffee machine so that everyone can ask questions, get a sneak peek at some platform images, and start discussing it.
With such upfront communication, the launch of your Enterprise Social Network will have much more impact.
At the time of your project launch, if your communication has been effective, members should be able to answer 4 questions:
Why was an ESN implemented? What benefits does this ESN bring me? How to use it? And what is expected of me on the platform?
THE DEPLOYMENT OF THE ENTERPRISE SOCIAL NETWORK
Now deploy your new Internal Social Network to the company’s employees.
Caution: if you are implementing an Enterprise Social Network for a large population, consider an organic deployment. This involves deploying the platform for a few months to a more restricted population to facilitate adoption later on. For example, out of a population of 1500 people, you can simply select 150 individuals to launch your project for 3 months. A launch to a smaller population is often simpler and more effective. Furthermore, satisfied users of the tool will talk about it, and other employees, seeing their colleagues use an effective tool, will themselves become “demanders” of the tool. This way, you create desire and stimulate demand.
Société Générale adopted this approach during the launch of its Internal Social Network in 2013: “we opted for a very pragmatic approach to avoid a ‘blank page’ effect on the internal social network with a pre-launch and viral dissemination. Initially, we sought to develop uses with ‘early adopters,’ creating ‘use cases’ demonstrating the social network’s value.”
Then extend your ESN to the entire initially targeted population. You are then no longer in the position of ‘pushing’ a tool but rather responding to the demand and needs of your teams.
Invite members to join the platform and create their profiles. [ The Incenteev collaborative platform automatically sends its invitations ]. In the following days, ensure that their profiles are well-filled. Your ESN thus also becomes your internal directory.
Facilitate your employees’ access to their new internal network: invite them to download the mobile application or icon on their phones and tablets. On computers, suggest they add the URL to their favorites, set it as their browser’s homepage, or install an icon on their desktop. To access the tool more easily, allow users to create the password they prefer.
And there you have it, your Enterprise Social Network is now launched, and your employees are involved. To maintain this engagement, you will now need to keep the tool active and engaged daily. It is this third phase that we return to in our article: Phase 3 – Keeping Your Enterprise Social Network Alive and Engaged.