Employee Advocacy: The Future of Brand Social Media
Why Employee Advocacy Will Matter in 2026
In the olden days, social media platforms were seen as inappropriate for employees at work; they were hidden in Firefox tabs that only came out when the boss wasn’t looking.
Today, things are quite different. Of course, no employer wants their employee doomscrolling all day. But they should want employees who are willing to take part in their company’s social media strategy. In other words, they should be cultivating employee advocacy.
In 2026, employee advocacy should be a key marketing strategy for all companies. Especially in the B2B sector, where 92% of buyers trust employee recommendations over traditional advertising. That brings us to the importance of employee advocacy on LinkedIn.
Employee Advocacy on LinkedIn
In 2026, the LinkedIn algorithm will continue to prioritize expert, authentic content. And what’s more authentic and expert-driven than content coming from your own team?
Furthermore, employees amplify the ever-important trust factor. As we always say at Lauren Perna Communications, “people buy from people, not companies.” So having your people advocate on your behalf is a no-brainer, especially on LinkedIn and especially when you are building a brand.
For all these reasons and more, it’s no surprise that according to The October Update: Algorithm In Sights Report 2025, posts reshared or originated by employees drive 4.3× more engagement than corporate posts. [Source: Just Connecting™ — LinkedIn™ Algorithm InSights 2025” and Richard van der Blom.]
This stat dovetails with another important datapoint from the report: “Company Page visibility now accounts for just 1.6% of all organic impressions on LinkedIn™ — the lowest since tracking began.”
While this might sound dire, it just means that it’s time to start harnessing the power of your employees.
What Is Employee Advocacy?
Employee advocacy is “a strategy where organizations empower their employees to promote the company’s brand, messages, or products.” The strategy is largely executed on social media platforms, enabling companies to harness employees’ authentic voices and growing networks. It’s more than just resharing company content–it’s collaborating with leaders to create their own LinkedIn content to complement the business content.
Employee advocacy can be mistaken for brand advocacy or influencer marketing. Let’s distinguish these other two terms:
In a brand advocacy strategy, user-generated content comes from anyone–not just employees. This can include customers, clients, sponsors, and ambassadors. Structured brand advocacy programs involve strategy from the internal team, although certain sectors may experience unabashed, unstructured advocacy (for example, any New England-based sports team).
Finally, in an influencer marketing campaign, a company hires a person with an extensive social media following and a known presence to promote the company’s product or service. The exchange can either be in goods or money, but the influencer is not an employee, and the campaign is not always born from genuine advocacy.
When content is created from true enthusiasm around the brand, the message resonates much more with your audience. And one of the best ways to build brand advocacy starts with the people who know the brand best–your employees.
What Are the Key Benefits of Employee Advocacy?
An employee advocacy strategy involves a mix of planning, training, and accountability. When done correctly, it truly is a win-win situation with benefits for both employers and employees. Let’s take a look at both.
Employer benefits of employee advocacy:
Enhanced brand awareness and visibility: Employees have 10x the connections as their company has followers on LinkedIn. So when employees share your content, your brand gains more awareness.
Strengthened authority and thought leadership: There is no better way to demonstrate expertise than by promoting the experts themselves. When you consistently build authority, your company has an even more solid foundation to stand on.
Higher social engagement and credibility: Employees are 14 times more likely to share company-provided content than create their own on LinkedIn. And on LinkedIn, when a post shows promise with engagement, the algorithm is more likely to share it widely/ This leads to increased engagement and credibility.
Increased revenue: Another important reason for employee advocacy is financial: companies with an active employee advocacy program see 20% higher revenue growth!
Employee benefits of advocacy:
Growth in their personal brands: When employees share educational and informational content from the company, they are not only growing their personal brand but also their reputation as a thought leader. For many sectors, like the life sciences industry, a personal brand is an important part of your professional presence.
Enhanced company morale and culture: When employees buy into an advocacy program, they feel valued and more engaged. It builds a sense of community and belonging, which leads to a positive company culture.
Career development: With a training-driven employee advocacy program, employees can grow within the company and master new skills. Furthermore, they can learn from their peers and leaders.
Improved retention and talent acquisition: What’s the first thing people do when they want to apply for a job? Research what employees say. When job seekers see the engagement from current employees, they are much more likely to apply.
The benefits of an employee advocacy program are clear, but it really only works when there’s a thoughtful strategy with training, metrics, and accountability. Employee advocacy is much more than just encouraging employees to share company content–it’s about building it into the culture and rewarding those who partake.
How Can You Build a Successful Employee Advocacy Program?
The good news is that there are many employee advocacy platforms that can help build and manage your program. Even standard marketing software programs like Sprout Social have employee advocacy functions. However, for those companies that are hesitant to make such an investment, here is an easy framework to follow:
Identify your objectives for an employee advocacy program.
Set specific goals and clear expectations.
Establish key performance indicators (KPIs) such as reach, engagement, conversions, etc.
Create a structured training program along with standard operating procedures (SOPs).
Identify a few key internal champions to launch the program.
Execute a beta program with internal champions and current company thought leaders.
Track and review KPIs–make adjustments to the program as needed.
Onboard additional employees and encourage authentic participation through rewards and recognition.
What Are Some Examples of Employee Advocacy?
Of course, before you do any of the above, you’ll want to do some competitive research to see what other companies are doing. Below, we share a few examples of companies excelling in their employee advocacy programs:
Merck: A top life sciences company with 3 million followers might not seem like it needs an employee advocacy program, but it’s a core part of their LinkedIn strategy for recruitment and retention.
IQVIA: At LPC, we manage the social content for a division of IQVIA that utilizes several key thought leaders to complement the company's strategy. However, we also see how the larger global organization has built a culture of employee advocacy with many reposts coming from IQVIA stakeholders.
Randstad launched an employee advocacy program with over 2,000 brand ambassadors through gamification. They also gave employees access to approved assets, which helped with engagement.
How Can Lauren Perna Communications Help You with Employee Advocacy?
“The most successful brands on LinkedIn™ don’t rely on Page reach; they design ecosystems where employee activity extends brand stories into new networks.” - Richard van der Blom
In today’s world that values authentic voices and demands social credibility, an employee advocacy program is no longer a nice-to-have. These programs are going to be a critical part of marketing communications strategies across industries and company sizes.
It’s important to remember that you can start small. You don’t need to invest in expensive employee advocacy software. You can reach out to LinkedIn experts like us at Lauren Perna Communications to help you create SOPs and train your team.
