The Road to Disney: Why employees are essential to your social storytelling strategy

Let’s face it, all communicators can use help refining our social media strategy. No one has it all figured out, and the tools at our disposal are always evolving.

Most communicators struggle not with the ‘how’, but the ‘what’. What should your organization be sharing on social media? What do you want the world to know about your organization? Your employees can help you answer these questions when you include them in your brand storytelling. Spotlighting employees can showcase your internal culture and values in action through their experiences, while simultaneously enhancing your employer’s brand to attract future talent.

Ragan and PR Daily caught up with Kate Seegraves, communications manager at the silicon component manufacturer Silfex to ask her a few questions about social media communications. Seegraves will be a speaker at Ragan and PR Daily’s upcoming Social Media Conference being held in person at Disney World, Orlando September 21-23.

[RELATED: Join us Sept. 21-23 in Disney World for our Social Media Conference]

Ahead of her session, read on to learn more about Seegrave’s plans and approach to including employees in her storytelling strategy.

Ragan: To start with, why did you get into communications and if you hadn’t what do you think your career would look like?

Kate Seegraves

Kate Seegraves: I started my career as a reporter for a daily newspaper and gradually found my way into a corporate communications role. In many ways, it felt like a natural extension of where I started: storytelling, helping people make sense of complicated information and providing them with context and critical details are important to helping people understand the world we live in, now more than ever.

Ragan: In your experience, why are social media communications an important part of any organization?

KS: Social media is a useful tool for connecting with internal and external audiences. When you focus on your people and values, it reinforces company culture, promotes engagement, and helps employees feel connected to a bigger purpose and meaning.

Ragan: How can organizations break through the noise to start conversations that cultivate community?

KS: Start with your people. They are the heartbeat of your organization, and their stories, thoughts and experiences are the most authentic part of what we do. Tapping into their voices and sharing their stories resonates with others because the underlying themes — like passion, purpose, commitment and pride of work — are universal.

Ragan: What do you think is next for social media communications? What should organizations be doing now to prepare for tomorrow?

KS: I think audiences are working toward becoming more conscientious consumers of social media, and as a result, communicators will have to adapt thoughtfully and transparently. I’m a mother of three, and I challenge my kids to think critically about the content they’re reading and watching; as these younger generations come to expect more from the organizations they follow, we will have to raise the bar and prove we’re worth their time and attention.

Ragan: At this year’s Social Media Conference, you’re headlining a session on spotlighting employees with social storytelling. Can you give our readers a sneak peek on what they can expect to learn?

KS: Including employees in your storytelling strategy is something I feel strongly about because I have seen it work so well at my company and elsewhere. During the session, I will discuss some best practices to showcase internal culture and people in authentic ways that promote engagement, as well as how social media can be used to extend internal communication.

If you’d like to gain new insights and social media communications strategies, join us at Ragan and PR Daily’s Social Media Conference, where speakers from TikTok, Volkswagen, Intel, Facebook and more will share their ideas and success stories. Register today!