• by Stacey Williams , May 13, 2015

There are many great ways to involve employees in  your social media strategy. Of course one of the best is to ask them to share company content with their networks, since every employee share, like and tweet will be coming from a trusted source about your brand.  

Here are six ideas to get employees to share relevant content.

Achievements and awards - Public acknowledgement of achievements is great shareable content for employees. Reaching project or company milestones, especially when they lead to industry awards, is good for morale and the bottom line.  Since most awards are publicly announced anyway, it's easy to link to the announcement while acknowledging the team.

Events - Create content about employees at trade show booths and conferences to share on your networks. With the success of Meerkat and Periscope, it's easier than ever to share your events in real time. Of course, a great photo will also do the job on any social network.  You can also ask employees to share content about events you sponsor.

Charity - If your employees do volunteer work as part of a company initiative, take group photos before they leave the office. You can also take photos at the event — but be careful with this one. Volunteerism and donations should be used to help others, not as a social sharing opportunity that showcases those in need.

Sales and Discounts - This one works really well for businesses that sell tangible products — and it can also help drive company newsletter sign-ups.  For example: your restaurant is giving away free ice cream this Saturday or your retail store is having a 20% discount. Ask employees to share this information with their networks. People love to share this type of news.

Contests - Like sales and discounts, contests offer a way to create shareable content while building newsletter sign-ups. And, contests are one of the best ways for employees to actively engage with their networks about the company. Good contest examples include trivia games, single entry contests, product sweepstakes and giveaways, and blog contests.

Sneak Peeks - Encourage employees to ask their networks to test-drive new products. For example, if you're launching a new app, ask for early feedback on the project.  Using this example, sneak peeks are a great way to quickly build your community, too, by asking participants to provide their contact information and opt in for your newsletter.