Effective Communication Strategies for a Successful Program Launch

Introduction

Launching Hone Membership? Effective communication is your secret weapon to maximize the impact of your learning investment. An effective communication plan ensures that your new training partner and training offerings are visible, well-received, well-understood, and ultimately successful in achieving your training goals. 

The Hone platform has critical communication features built-in to support the launch of Hone Membership. Here are a few key ways the platform automatically helps:

Click here for the PDF of all communications for Hone Membership. 

Custom internal communications can help further enhance employee awareness and engagement with Membership by being more specific to your organization’s goals and your employees preferences and expectations. If you’d like to incorporate custom communications into your launch strategy, consider some of the strategies we have highlighted below: 

General Tips

• Recommended timeline: ​​Give yourself enough time to cultivate awareness—at least three to four weeks lead time before launching any specific programs within the platform. 
• Draft a thorough communication plan: A documented communication plan helps to ensure that communication is strategic and coordinated with all relevant stakeholders. See the Appendix of this article for an example! 
• Multi-Channel Approach: Use multiple channels to expand your reach and reinforce information: intranet, newsletters, HRIS, Slack threads, Teams chat, etc.
• Coordinated Announcements: Use consistent messaging across all channels to prevent miscommunication and to drive home your key messages. Think of this like a new product launch! 
• Reinforce, reinforce, reinforce! In marketing, the Rule of 7 asserts that a potential customer needs to encounter a brand's message at least seven times before making a purchase decision. In this case, the customer is your employees, the marketing message is all about Membership, and the purchase decision is signing up for a Hone class!
• Enable your village: Engage HRBPs, executive sponsors, and other stakeholders to help you spread the word and reinforce your messaging.

Pre-Launch 

Understand Your Internal Audience & Key Stakeholders

Consider what is important to each of your audiences as you begin to craft your communication plan so you can tailor your messaging accordingly: 

Craft Your Key Messages 

Taking some time to craft key messages for your launch of Hone ensures that your announcement resonates with your teams in a way that garners excitement, sets expectations, and serves your goals. 

1. Create an Engaging Program Title

Come up with a fun or catchy title for your launch or for specific programs to hook your audience! Some great examples from Hone customers include:

• “HoneGrown” at Hone
• “Hone In at Bitly”
• “Bloom” at Greenhouse

While brainstorming your title, consider these tips to make it stand out:

• Reflect Company Brand or Culture: Choose words or phrases that resonate with your organization's name, values, and culture to create a sense of familiarity and connection.
• Be Creative and Playful: Don’t be afraid to have fun with your title. A playful approach can make the training feel more inviting and engaging.
• Keep It Short and Sweet: A concise title is easier to remember and share. Aim for a few impactful words that convey the essence of your program.

2. Align with Organizational Goals and Share The “Why”

Ensure that your messaging clearly articulates how Hone Membership overall or your specific curated Membership programs support broader company objectives and strategic goals. This helps underscore the value of the training and its direct relevance to the business, while also explaining the purpose and importance of the training in the context of the company's vision and values.

"Our partnership with Hone is designed to spark creativity and innovative thinking, aligning perfectly with our goal to lead the market in cutting-edge solutions."

"This Leadership Essentials program is designed to improve leadership skills across all levels, supporting our goal of building a strong, capable leadership pipeline."

3. Highlight Individual Benefits of the Training

Detail the personal and professional benefits that participants can expect from their engagement. Make it clear how the training will help them in their roles and with their unique career goals.

Personal Development: "Participating in live classes with Hone will enhance your soft skill capabilities, in areas like communication, and collaboration, making you a more effective team member."

Career Growth: "Completing this program in Membership will position you as an aspiring manager within the company and make you eligible for promotion into a leadership role” 

Skill Enhancement: "You'll gain advanced skills in coaching that will help you lead and develop your team more effectively."

4. Link to internal engagement scores or feedback requests

If applicable, demonstrate that offering Membership is a direct response to employee feedback or engagement survey results around employee development. This shows employees that their input is valued and acted upon in your organization. Be specific about how the training addresses the feedback:

"Feedback from our annual review highlighted a desire for more professional development opportunities. Our partnership with Hone is designed to meet this need by offering top live, virtual training year-round at times that work for you” 

"Our recent engagement survey indicated a need for better time management skills. This program will provide you with the tools to manage your workload more effectively to reduce overworking and burnout."

5. Address potential concerns and questions
Anticipate and address any concerns or questions employees might have. Provide clear answers and reassure them of the value of having Hone Membership access.

Q: "Will this require a lot of time outside of my regular responsibilities?”

A: “The majority of Hone classes are only an hour in length and they are scheduled at all times throughout the day/week so you have the flexibility to fit Hone into your work schedule at the times that work best for you”

Launch Day Activities

Assess which communication channels have the highest engagement within your organization—whether it’s Slack, email, intranet, or virtual meetings. Center the majority of your communication and promotions in these channels as they will get the most natural visibility and attention. 

Sample Channels 

By strategically utilizing these channels, you can maximize visibility, engagement, and enthusiasm for your training program launch, setting the stage for a successful rollout and ongoing participation.

Post-Launch Follow-Up

You can maintain momentum after your initial launch with intentional follow-up comms. Trickling communication through different channels at relevant times can help keep the program visible and drive usage and engagement. Here are a few opportunities to engage in additional communication: 

• Craft specific communications to onboard and welcome participants to specific Membership programs or classes that you have curated for them in the platform. 
• Focus on continuous engagement strategies such as sharing progress updates, celebrating program completions, soliciting participant feedback, or spotlighting powerful testimonials. 
• Send out post-session or post-program emails that encourage participants to continue to explore Hone Membership by signing up for additional classes of interest or checking out an upcoming Masterclass. 
• Share Learner Guides and Toolkits in relevant places across the organization such as your LMS or intranet so learners can access them easily in their regular flow of work. 

By incorporating these additional post-launch communications, you ensure that Hone Membership and your programs remain top of mind and can help to drive relevance and application in your organization. 

Conclusion

Effective communication and careful planning are essential for successfully launching a new live virtual training program internally. By understanding your audience, crafting clear messages, and regularly engaging with employees, you can enhance the visibility, understanding, and excitement for your new L&D offerings.  

Additional Resources

• Click here for ideas to create buzz and value for your program. 
• Click here for email and messaging templates. 
• Join our monthly live Learning Leader Office Hours. 

Appendix: Sample Communication Plan