Marketing and Communication Strategies to Successfully Launch the #BeHeard Survey   

Here are some marketing and communication strategies to help you successfully launch the #BeHeard Survey.

Marketing the survey is critical to motivate higher participation rates.  There are three things you can do to get the best results:

  1. Equip Executives and Managers
  2. Introduce the Survey to Employees
  3. Follow up
Let’s go through each step.

Equip Executives and Managers

First things first.  Equip your executives and managers with the survey details before the launch.  It’s important that they are clear on the initiative in case members of their team have questions. It's helpful to work this into an existing meeting. You also want the messaging to be consistent, so we have a few email templates to get you started below. 

Best Practices: 

  • Schedule a follow-up Q&A call or meeting to ensure management is on the same page before details go out to their teams. The email template below serves as great talking points for this discussion. 
    • About the #BeHeard Survey 
    • Purpose of the Survey and Action Plan
    • Survey launch and close date 
  • Attach an overview of the #BeHeard Engagement Survey for more context.

Here's an email template to help you get started:

Dear {Insert Name},

As you know, we are getting ready to launch the #BeHeard employee survey on {Insert Date} and the survey will be open until {Insert Date}.  We’ve talked about how important employee engagement is to the success of {Company’s Name}, and this is a great first step to strengthening our commitment to our employees and building upon our company culture.

Prior to the launch, I wanted to touch base so you know what to expect moving forward in case your team has questions.  We'll be sending out an introductory email to everyone on {Insert Date} to announce the launch. 

It's important that all of our employees understand the reason we are implementing this survey: 

  1. The purpose of the survey is {Insert company’s specific purpose and goals for the survey}.
  2. Our participation goal is {Insert goal percentage}, although we hope to exceed that number.

To ensure that employees feel comfortable providing candid and honest feedback, we need to emphasize the confidentiality of this survey. In the initial email introducing the survey to our employees, we'll include a brief video from Sparck as our trusted survey partner to ensure the anonymity of their responses.  We don't want our employees to be concerned about any repercussions stemming from the survey. 

After the survey closes, we'll review the data and then share the results.  It's incredibly important that our employees, as well as our management teams, feel that their voices have been heard and action will be taken.

We want to make sure you are fully equipped with the information you need prior to the survey introductory email being sent on {Insert Date}.  There will be a special management call on {Insert Date} at {Insert Time} to share more of the survey details and answer any questions that you have. 

Thank you for your leadership as we launch this initiative.  Your time and feedback is so important to the company!

    Back to Top

    Introduce the Survey to Employees

    Once your executives and managers have a clear understanding of the survey and goals, it's time to send out an email to the entire company to introduce the launch of the #BeHeard Survey.  We recommend this comes from the CEO or a member of the executive team.

    The email should include:

    • Company Specific Messaging and Timelines
    • Survey Overview: You can attach this PowerPoint Slide as an overview of the survey.  Make sure you add your logo!
    • Q&A Opportunity: It's highly recommended to offer a company-wide Q&A meeting or call for your employees to ignite more excitement and ensure they understand the "why" behind the survey so they will be more willing to participate. 

    Tip:  Schedule this around existing meetings to capture the largest employee audiences. 

    Here's an email template as an example:

    Dear Team,

    We are proud that our company culture is the foundation of {Company’s Name}.  Our culture is influenced by the effort and perspective that each team member contributes. As our business develops and grows, we want to continue to foster and strengthen our culture so that as we grow, it continues to reflect our collective values, goals, and mission.

    In order to do this we want your voice to be heard. We will be launching an Employee Engagement Survey on {Insert Date}. Here are some highlights: 

    • The purpose of the survey is {insert purpose statement}
    • Attached is an overview of the areas we will be collecting your feedback on
    • It will launch on {Insert Date} and close on {Insert Date}
    • We will share the results of the survey will you and begin to put the survey findings into action.

    Understanding and capturing your feedback is important to us. It allows us to better see the path we are on, the direction we need to go, and how we can ensure we get to the right destination together. Transparency is paramount in both identifying ways to improve our culture and maintaining the best parts of it, so we want to get your candid feedback on how we're doing. We know there is always room for improvement, so we are excited to partner with a company called Sparck to offer an employee survey. Here's a short introductory video:

    Through the #BeHeard Engagement Survey, you can provide your input confidentially and anonymously. Your feedback will guide our action plan to better serve you in ways that are most important to you, but it can only be done with your participation.

    We look forward to hosting on the Q&A session on {Insert Date} at {Insert Time}!  Please let us know if you have any questions in the meantime. We look forward to your participation and sharing the findings with you!

    Back to TopLink to the Introductory Video for Employees

    Follow Up

    Build off of the momentum and send a reminder the week before the survey launches. This email is recommended to come from HR or from the employee's direct manager.  At this time, reiterate four important aspects of this engagement initiative.

    • The purpose of the survey and Action Plan
    • The partnership with Sparck to ensure confidentiality
    • The official survey launch and close date
    • What will happen after the survey - it’s important to emphasize that, the results will be shared and action will be taken.
      Please see an email template below:

      Dear {Team/Name},

      I hope you are having a great day!  I’m excited to officially announce that we will be launching the #BeHeard Engagement Survey next week on {Insert Date}.  As I hope you know, your feedback is very important to this organization.  

      The purpose of this survey is {Insert purpose}. Our goal is to have a {Insert participation goal} participation rate, though we would love to hear from everyone. For those of you who participate, we will {if applicable, insert incentive information for participation OR insert incentive information for departments and teams that reach participation goal}.

      Prior to the survey launch, we wanted to include a brief introductory video again from Sparck about the #BeHeard Survey:

      Sparck is our trusted partners in this survey process to ensure your confidentiality. You will receive an email directly from them when the survey launches, which will take you to an external link to anonymously participate in the survey.  

      Once the survey closes, the executive team will share the results with you and will begin a planning process to incorporate the feedback we receive into our employee engagement initiatives.  

      This is your opportunity to help shape the direction of our internal strategies. We truly value your feedback and want your voice to be heard in a safe and confidential manner.  

      We look forward to sharing this experience with you! 

      Back to TopLink to the Introductory Video for Employees

      #BeHeard Survey Marketing and Communication Best Practices

      1. Whether it’s in a department meeting or with the company overall, make sure you follow up to address any employee questions that may have come up and have one last communication before the launch of the #BeHeard Survey.
      2. Have managers remind their team of the survey launch during their regularly scheduled meetings. 
      3. Promote the survey in other areas outside of this communication strategy. Some examples may be in your newsletter announcement, intranet, communication channels like Slack, flyer boards (if applicable) and more - get creative but high traffic areas are ideal.
      4. Promote the follow up meeting to review the results and address the priority areas and strengths for the organization based on their survey feedback. An Engagement Plan will help you take action by connecting the results and outcomes to your organizational goals.

      Next Steps