Communication is essential in any type of organised activity, being one of the essential factors for it to function and develop properly. Any human activity is developed through communication and the companies themselves, as their radius of action, has become more complex and diversified, they have understood that it constitutes one of the most important elements for their own development.

In the digital age, in which social channels allow interactions at a previously unknown speed, communication in the company acquires a much more important importance.

In companies, the positive effects of communication are evident: it improves the competitiveness of the organisation, as well as the way in which it can adapt to the changes that occur in its environment, in order to achieve the objectives that have been achieved. initially proposed. At the same time, the existence of effective communication in the company, encourages employee motivation, as well as commitment and involvement in corporate tasks, creating an inclusive work environment.

Within the communication in the company, we can distinguish between: internal and external. However, the organisational and individual challenges that it presents, especially in established companies, are multiple. The road to achieve that the attempts to innovate the business model turn into results, is full of stones. We are here to help you achieve it. Contact us today!

Internal communication

It is the one that occurs within the company, among the members that are part of it, both through the formal channels established for it (internal meetings, email, intranet, corporate social networks), and through the different social networks and personal relationships between its members. Although, in many cases, it is not given the importance it deserves, it is vital to encourage the participation and commitment of the people who are part of the organisation. It is important to strengthen an internal corporate identity, in which all the members of the company feel identified with the brand, before being able to launch a consistent corporate image to customers.

The flow of this internal communication in the company is considered downward when it starts from the highest hierarchy levels to the lowest. This type of communication has always been present, but turning the communication into something unidirectional, without waiting for an answer, can be an error with irreparable consequences in the medium term.

That is why upstream communication is spreading in organisations, emerging from employees, as an effective method for their superiors to know their complaints, ideas or suggestions, as well as the different success stories that occur in the activity of the organisation. With the current technological improvements, the implementation of systems that allow optimisation of internal communication has greatly reduced its cost, so that any organisation that really wants to improve its internal relations should consider integrating internal social networks into its systems that help to channel different messages.

Regarding external communication

Its importance is in the capacity that the company has to project and reinforce its image within the different interest groups of the organisation (potential clients, citizenship, public administration), making known the projects or activities to the people to whom They really want to address, in some way, their interaction with the brand. It is a vital strategic tool for the company to position itself in the market, but it should no longer be limited to the advertising message itself, but should be built based on integral communication, based both on the agility of response to opinions and mentions positive external, as in the sensitivity and empathy before the different brand crises that may occur in specific cases.

It is becoming increasingly essential to develop an external communication plan, which takes into account, as fundamental aspects, the definition of the corporate identity itself, the image that is perceived within the market about the company and the ideal image, that which is we would like to transmit.

The implementation of new internal and external communication systems will inevitably require actions aimed at the renewal of the business culture: the improvement of communication in the company requires a direct involvement of all people who develop their professional activity in it. These should be channelled by combining internal face-to-face training in the different departments, with the development of concrete processes and activities, through an e-learning methodology, of digital training pills that help to boost and energize this process.

The two types of communication: internal communication and external communication

Internal communication

As the name implies, it is about the communication that takes place between the members of a company. Despite its unquestionable importance, it is often neglected greatly, degrading to a point that is then very difficult to trace.

It is common to meet organisations where the communication distance between the board and employees is huge, since from the top it has not been possible to effectively convey the mission, values ​​and objectives of the company.

The result of this inoperative communication is the lack of commitment of many employees who, not feeling identified with the place where they work, choose to move to another site or decide to stay, but yielding well below their means. For internal communication within the company to really work, we must work in two lines of action:

• Formal communication. It would be the creation and maintenance of some channels: intranet, email, newsletters, newsletters on paper etc. that serve to effectively communicate relevant information of an official nature.
• Informal communication. Equally or more important than the previous one, it is about day-to-day communication between colleagues, hierarchical superiors and subordinates. Especially those employees who, due to their position within the company, act as leaders, must master the art of communicating with others with assertiveness and empathy, either because they have innate abilities or because they have perfected their skills with adequate training.

In general, the internal communication of the company (both formal and informal) should be characterised by being clear, simple and articulated in an easily understandable language.

External communication

External communication is one that is aimed at: potential and actual customers, opinion groups and the public and society in general. Normally, this type of communication is related to commercial messages intended to publicize a particular product or service. But in reality, it is much more than that… Through an efficient external communication, the company can transmit a good brand image, that society in general associates with a series of positive values ​​such as: equal opportunities or ecology. On the other hand, a good campaign in social networks, especially those of a more professional nature such as LinkedIN, will help us position our company as an ideal place to work, what is known as employer branding, and in this way we will have better opportunities to have the most qualified and most talented staff.

Regarding the channels to exploit this external communication, today they have multiplied, by coexisting the traditional ones such as public relations or advertising in traditional media (television, radio, written press), with the entire online universe: websites, blogs, social networks, internet advertising, etc.

Bear in mind that here at Applied Innovation we have a team of professionals with a unique combination of leadership and experience to prepare your people to adapt to change.