Most people think that the MasterCard in their wallet comes from MasterCard. But actually, banks issue cards. MasterCard wants to change its culture and public perception from one of a financial services company to the tech firm it really is.  Changing market perception is tough but they’ve simplified the process with a roadmap other companies, big and small can follow.

They started with a social media strategy using a main Twitter account, a couple of others for specific topics and services, a content site, a blog and a newsroom where they track the mentions that help them determine what content to develop. This strategy has taken them from an audience of 30 million per month just 18 months ago to 40 million per week today.

Next, they’ve turned to their 7,500-person workforce to help reinforce their message and armed them with common sense guidelines and real-world examples of employees using social to advocate the brand. They’ve backed up their plan with frequent education and playbooks for all of the major social platforms.

Consider the value of turning your employees into brand advocates? It just might be priceless.

Quote of the week:
“Brands speak in sales language; advocates speak in the language customers can relate to and, thus, will always be more trustworthy.” ~C.C. Chapman