Industry:
Retail
Number of employees:
381
Number of locations:
3
Platform features:
Employee discounts, employee communications, employee recognition
The challenge
In February 2018, the team at Missguided launched “Wanna,” an employee engagement platform for head office employees. One year after the launch, the team’s challenge was to make the Wanna brand even more memorable and relevant, continuing to drive awareness and engagement.
Initial research from colleagues suggested they wanted more communication, delivered in a simple, timely format. The team decided to use Wanna as an internal communications channel, with the aim of becoming the main way to communicate with employees.
The team collaborated with their colleagues from the various departments that work on building the external Missguided brand to glean advice and guidance for building the internal platform. They also involved employees through focus groups and engagement surveys.
The approach
The team knew they already had a strong engagement brand – throughout the year, the platform maintained a cohesive look and feel that could be changed to keep things looking fresh, in the same way that a shop changes its window displays. To switch things up, the platform showcased “hero stories” and images on the top of the homepage.
To provide employees with the instant communication they were craving, the team made use of their engagement hub’s blog functionality, sharing news and stories as they happened. Preview images, along with snappy headlines brought the story to life, making employees want to click and read more. The team found that blog posts were not only a more instant way of communicating, but also that they took less time than laying out a traditional newsletter or creating an eye-catching email.
To boost engagement even further, Missguided’s social media team was brought in to consult and give advice on increasing traffic and engagement, mimicking tactics the team uses to drive customers to Missguided's website and social channels. This led to the introduction of weekly giveaways, with the idea that staff had to visit Wanna to enter.
Entering the competitions was always easy – for example, for Freebie Friday, employees simply clicked a button on the homepage to be entered into a prize draw. A summer-themed puzzle had to be solved as part of the Summer Shizzle giveaway, and an Easter-themed Bunny-Go-Seek challenge provided clues as to where employees could find a bunny in the office and exchange it for a prize. Only those reading Wanna knew what was happening with these competitions, so awareness and participation rates soon increased. The team also introduced booking portals to the platform for training sessions or engagement activities, such as a Charlotte Tilbury makeup masterclass.
The team created branded posters, which they displayed around the office to drive key messages or a call to action, in order to encourage awareness of and traffic to Wanna. These posters have communicated the launch of Missguided’s Wellbeing program and a discount and savings campaign.
The results
In May 2019 alone, there were 7,074 logins to Wanna at Missguided – this is equal to 97% of head office employees. When compared to the same period in 2018, this shows a 126% increase in traffic.
Wanna is now the main internal communication channel at Missguided, replacing the need to send multiple emails. Readership of blog posts has increased, and the use of blogging means communication can be instant, without having to save news until the publication of a weekly newsletter. Within a 12-month period, the team has seen a 787% increase in readership of its internal blog.
Feedback from the team’s most recent employee survey showed Missguided that 92% of staff care about the company, 86% are proud to work for Missguided, 79% are usually happy and positive at work and 80% would recommend Missguided as a good place to work.
