Choosing employee communications software? Read this guide first

Does your workday feel like a game of information hide-and-seek?

Maybe you’re fielding questions like “where do I find the new WFH policy?” or “does that update live on the intranet, in an email, or in Teams?” Your intranet might be technically “up to date,” but the content is three weeks old and irrelevant to 90% of your team.

 If your employee comms environment looks like this, you’re not alone:

• One tool for chat – maybe Slack for marketing and Teams for IT
• One tool for email – say, Gmail or Outlook
• A legacy intranet for “official” news – that most of your employees probably ignore
• And maybe digital signage for your office that runs on its own isolated island

Your organization likely adopted these tools in a piecemeal fashion over the last decade. And these days, it just can’t keep up with the way you and your team are working. (Who would have expected a hybrid workplace 10 years ago?)

It’s a scattered approach that slows down projects and creates version-control nightmares. And, worse, it makes people feel disconnected, isolated, and constantly out of the loop.

You know you need to fix this. But trying to find new internal communications app opens up a real can of worms. The market is flooded with options. How do you choose the right platform with the right features? 

We want to help you cut through all that noise. So we just published the ultimate buyer’s guide to employee communications software.

Your practical guide to choosing the right employee comms software

Let’s make one thing clear: this isn’t just a sales pitch dressed up as a resource. It’s a comprehensive, step-by-step framework to help you find the perfect platform for your organization’s unique needs. You’ll be able to build alignment and make an informed, confident decision.

Here are five major topics we cover in the guide:

#1: The (often-overlooked) signs that it’s time to switch

Diagnose your woes with your current internal communications app beyond just things like “email fatigue.” 

Think about that feeling of always being behind, of not having the information you need to succeed, is a primary driver of burnout. And that’s not just a buzzword – it’s a real budget line item that shows up as increased hiring costs, lost productivity, and a drain on your best talent.

We’ll show you how to spot the subtle, qualitative signs. We also help you quantify the hidden costs to both productivity and your bottom line.

#2: A framework to distinguish must-haves from nice-to-haves

Stop guessing at what your business actually needs in an employee communications software platform. 

Does your team really need AI-powered emoji suggestions? Or do they just need a single, reliable, mobile-friendly source for the safety manual and the holiday schedule? 

We give you a clear methodology to map platform features directly to your core business goals and employee personas. You’ll also build a custom filter to see what’s truly essential for your frontline workers vs. your remote-first engineers, so you don’t end up paying for a dozen features you’ll never use.

#3: A simple strategy for getting stakeholders’ buy-in (and turning them into champions)

Your internal stakeholders have questions:

• Leadership is asking, “what’s the total cost of ownership?”
• IT is asking, “does this open new security vulnerabilities?”
• HR is asking, “how will this prove engagement is improving?”

Learn how to build a business case that speaks the right language to each department. 

We provide specific talking points, ROI metrics, and focused arguments to help you show the value for each stakeholder’s specific goals. You’ll be able to show how it’s a security simplification for IT, a talent retention tool for HR, a provable engagement booster for Internal Comms, and a productivity multiplier for Finance.

#4: A comprehensive checklist for evaluating vendors

Don’t just watch platform demos; score them to see which tool comes out on top. We give you a true vendor scorecard to help you compare your options fairly and objectively. 

You’ll also get a list of tough questions to ask before you sign a contract. You’ll be able to gather all the info you need on support models, product roadmaps, and data security policies. 

#5: A realistic overview of what to expect during migration

The fear of a painful, disruptive migration is the number one reason companies stick with bad employee communications software. 

We demystify the process, from data transfer to launch day. You’ll be able to plan a clear, phased approach that shifts the focus from deployment (flipping the switch) to adoption (getting your people to actually use and love the tool).

Grab your roadmap to better communication

Stop trying to manage a modern, dynamic workforce with a patchwork of outdated tools. You deserve better – and the rest of your organization does, too. It’s time to find a single, unified solution that actually supports your team where they are.

Imagine a workplace where…

• …a new hire on day one logs into one portal and has immediate access to their onboarding resources, their team structure, and the company directory.
• …a frontline manager can instantly push a critical safety alert to digital signs, mobile apps, and every desktop – so every employee actually sees it.
• …an HR leader can finally get their hands on analytics on which communications are being read, by whom, and on which channels.

That’s what a true communications platform delivers. Read the employee communications software buying guide to make sure you choose a true partner, not just a vendor who ghosts you the day after deployment.

Get the ultimate buyer’s guide to employee communications software