Last updated on March 7, 2024 at 10:39 am

So, you’ve invested in a mobile intranet…but now what? Without the right content strategy, your intranet mobile app might fall flat. Make sure you get the most out of your investment in this internal comms channel and use our top tips for maximizing intranet engagement.

What is an Intranet Mobile App?

An intranet mobile app is a powerful communications tool that brings the functionality of an employee intranet—an internal network for communication and resource sharing–to mobile devices.

Unlike old-school intranets that are accessed solely through web browsers on desktop computers, an intranet mobile app enables employees to access important company resources, communicate with colleagues, and stay up-to-date on the latest news and announcements directly from their smartphones or tablets. Many mobile-first intranets still have desktop access, but they are designed to also be optimized for mobile.

What Are the Benefits of a Mobile Intranet?

Implementing an intranet mobile app offers a wide range of benefits compared to traditional intranets.

• Mobile Access. A mobile intranet allows employees to stay connected and informed on-the-go. With the prevalence of remote work, travel, and flexible schedules, providing mobile access ensures that employees can access critical information and collaborate with their teams no matter where they are.
• Equity for Frontline Workers. One of the significant advantages of an intranet mobile app is its ability to give all employees the same access to information. In traditional intranets, frontline employees often face challenges accessing information due to limited computer access or being blocked by a VPN. A mobile intranet levels the playing field, ensuring everyone has easy access without sacrificing security.
• Familiarity of Using Apps for Communication. In the digital age, people have grown accustomed to using apps for various tasks in their personal lives. By providing a mobile intranet app, employees are more likely to adopt and use the tool regularly. This familiarity fosters a positive user experience, leading to higher engagement and adoption rates among employees.
• 24/7 Access to Essential Resources. In our personal lives, we’re used to having access to any information whenever we want. Until we get to work. You can give employees the resources and easy access they want by investing in mobile-first channels.

6 Tips for Boosting Intranet Mobile App Engagement

We’re all familiar with that awful feeling when you pour a lot of work and resources into an intranet and then…crickets. To really get your employees engaged on your intranet mobile app, we’re going to have to get creative about: 1) Getting them on the intranet platform in the first place and 2) Getting them to keep coming back.

Get Employees On Your Mobile Intranet App

How do you drive adoption to any communication channel? You share the why, follow change management best practices, and include employee feedback in your strategy.

But why is it that even when you do all those things, sometimes intranets struggle? The truth is, you need to go above and beyond to get people on the channel. Here are three adoption driving tips:

1. Intranet roadshow. There’s something powerful about visiting all the locations in your company in person when you pitch a new tool. Being there in person, you can show them what the hype is about and, more importantly, actually get them registered on the platform. Even the most straightforward tools have a slight learning curve, especially for employees who are less tech savvy, so this can overcome a big adoption barrier.
2. Adoption contests. Whether or not your managers get involved is going to make or break any initiative. So, why not make them part of it? Incentivize your managers to get their teams using the app by creating a contest. Based on the size of your company, you can break this into locations or divisions or even team by team. And then reward the managers who get the highest percentage of their team on the intranet after a set period of time. BONUS: Keep this contest running over time to drive use of the tool.
3. Find intranet champions. At every company, there are leaders (not necessarily managers) who other employees look up to and trust. They’re an amazing resource for any change. Find these individuals in your company and talk to them candidly about why the intranet is important and your goal to make it a tool that truly benefits employees. Get them bought in and then let them help you spread the word.

Make Your Intranet “Sticky”

The second key to high intranet engagement is to make it worthwhile once your employees log in. Here’s how:

4. Employee-Generated Content. People like hearing from their peers. And the act of empowering employees to share their stories makes employees feel valued, which improves engagement too.
5. Gamification and Rewards. Implement gamification elements on your intranet app to make the employee experience more fun and rewarding. Create challenges, quizzes, surveys, or interactive activities that encourage employees to participate actively. Offer rewards or recognition for completing tasks, achieving milestones, or providing valuable contributions to keep employees coming back.
6. Employee-first content strategy. Sometimes, internal communications can come across as being solely about the company’s “agenda” and not being guided by what employees actually want or need. Shifting your focus to think of the employees first can make a big difference—even if you’re communicating a change or a directive from the top. When employees can actually find the information they want to see or need for their jobs, and when that communication is being served to them in a format they asked for, engagement will increase.

Benefits of theEMPLOYEEapp’s Intranet

When it comes to maximizing engagement and creating a seamless employee experience, our intranet is a powerful tool. With a wide range of features and a user-friendly interface, our intranet solution is designed to maximize employee engagement. Here are some key benefits that set our intranet mobile app apart:

• Within your employee app and intranet, you can customize the look and feel to reflect your brand identity.
• Our intranet enables you to share real-time updates, breaking news, and critical announcements instantly—with robust targeting.
• We understand that your organization may already be using various tools and systems. That’s why theEMPLOYEEapp’s intranet is designed to seamlessly integrate with your existing systems, such as HR software and survey tools.
• Our intranet comes equipped with robust security measures and data encryption to safeguard your information without making the login process hard for your teams.

Intranets play a pivotal role in modern internal communications, especially in a mobile-first and remote work-oriented world. If you’re looking to select a modern social intranet tool for your organization, we hope you consider our solution.

About the Author

Sydney Lauro is the Demand Generation Manager for theEMPLOYEEapp. Prior to joining the team at theEMPLOYEEapp, Sydney worked in internal communications for Chipotle Mexican Grill. She uses her internal comms expertise and passion for improving communication and the employee experience to create content and share best practices to help other communications professionals.

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