What do people think of your company online? Are you open and innovative? Or do you appear insular and uncreative? 

Communication is central to portraying your company culture to prospective employees, customers, and collaborators. For some companies, posting about work socials or key meetings online may not feel natural. But it might be a key strategy to implement with a wealth of benefits.  

For our clients at Hey Me, we take showcasing a positive company culture seriously and incorporate it into our holistic communications approach. Having a negative work culture or image can be damaging on several levels. Not only can it reduce productivity and long-term engagement, but the discontent it can foster will impact employee development and retention. Negative perceptions of your company culture and values may turn potential clients and customers away due to the lack of aligned values. Plus, the lack of a cultural fit and a negative work environment may put great candidates off from joining your company. Ultimately, a bad work culture benefits no one.  

Our team have a breadth of experience when it comes to marketing, PR and communications, across the industries we work in, from tourism to transport, and we’ve learnt how vital successfully communicating company culture is. In this blog, we share our top tips on how to communicate your culture effectively and make a meaningful impact on your audience: 

Start internally 

Before you start strategising your next LinkedIn post, take a step back and assess your current company culture.  This is a fantastic chance to start a dialogue within your team and get to the core of your staff’s perspectives.  

A hostile work environment can impact employees’ physical and mental health and should be avoided at all costs. We have a set of toolkits and tutorials based on engaging your employees successfully which you can find out more about here. 

Once you and your team are content with the culture and value system that’s established, you are ready to incorporate this into both your internal and external communications strategy.  

Showcase your personality  

Shining a spotlight onto the people behind the scenes is a crucial way for prospective clients or employees to gauge your company culture.   

People want to see beyond the logo so give them a clear insight inside of your brand. Often the quirkier the better, as you’ll stand out in a heavily saturated online landscape and drive people’s curiosity to learn more about your company.  

At Hey Me, our experience has taught us that people love people-focused stories. So that is even more reason to spotlight your team through comms. Avoid only talking about their role within your company and give your audience an insight into their personality and life outside of work.  

Format wise this varies from company to company and sector to sector, but blog posts or videos are a great way to spotlight your fantastic team. 

Company perks 

Particularly important for attracting prospective employees, show off what your company will give them, from work socials to morning coffee. Social media is a great way to share content like this. Adding in more light-hearted posts such as this will ensure your feed stays interesting and full of diverse content.  

You should also make this clear on your website’s career page, allowing you to be upfront in the hiring process about what you offer, whether that is hybrid working or mental health support.  

Local community 

What do you and your team bring to the local community? This could be employment opportunities, economic investment, and community initiatives. For instance, you could post about your latest team social at a local independent venue. This creates an online conversation, and highlights your investment in small, local business on top of the fun side of your company.  

Our team are proud to give back to our local community through our sponsorship and support of the York Volleyball Club which we discussed in a blog from last year.  Amy, our founder and managing director, described the importance of clubs like this, “community clubs are just that. They help bring communities together for something that is social and has a shared ethos or understanding.” This important note goes beyond local sports clubs and applies to however you and your team get involved in the community.  

Philanthropy and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) 

Showcasing charity work, donations and volunteering is another key method of sharing your company culture. 

Many companies allow their employees to set aside some work hours to dedicate to volunteering, a great way to make a tangible difference. Wherever you’re located there will be charities in need of support. There are also many ways to help online remotely, for instance, for over a year our Communications Executive Amelia has volunteered remotely with Refugee Action York.  

Another great example, in this case, is our client, 3Squared, who sponsor a local charity in Sheffield, Sheffield Rainbow Laces, which supports LGBTQ+ inclusion in sports. Advocating for charities and important issues shows that your company care for the local community.  

Interestingly, more and more job seekers are looking at the values and ethics of companies before they apply, particularly younger generations. Factors such as sustainability are now crucial drivers when it comes to attracting new talent to your organisation. Research from PwC found that 65% of people want to work for a company with a clear social conscience. This trend is also reflected in consumer behaviour, who are far more discerning when it comes to the values and ethics of companies they favour.  

Through your communications, allow your values to speak for themselves. Your marketing, PR and communications can provide you with the perfect platform to showcase your company culture and unlock the associated benefits, showcasing a meaningful company that people want to work for and alongside.  

If you would like support when it comes to communications, with anything from social media to award entries, get in contact with our expert team today via communicate@heyme.co.uk.