Corporate wellness programs utilizing internal digital marketing communications

Abstract

A common problem with occupational wellness programs is that participating employees are already active and healthy. The programs do not reach the target groups needing it the most, reducing the effectiveness of the programs. Through various measures, such as investing in digital marketing communications, it may be possible to increase the participation. The commissioning party of the thesis is Saimaa Stadiumi, a wellbeing campus located in St. Michel. As a service provider they offer corporate wellness programs, as well as expertise in the field. The goal of this thesis was to find the associations between effective internal digital marketing communications and participation in corporate wellness programs. The subject hasn’t been studied broadly; hence, it is relevant and valuable to study. It required empirical qualitative research to uncover professionals’ experiences and knowledge of the phenomenon. Structured and thematic interviews were used to collect data. Seven respondents participated in either one or both interviews. An inductive approach was used to analyse the collected data. Based on the analysis and synthesis of the results, discussion and conclusions were drawn, and reflected to the theoretical framework. The findings derived from three research questions. The first finding was that currently internal digital marketing communications tools used to enhance corporate wellness programs was a scattered picture. Secondly, there were more challenges than solutions when it comes to internal digital marketing communications used to promote the programs. In addition, unpredicted outcomes emerged when it highlighted the importance and irreplaceability of face-to-face communications. The third discovery was that the process of establishing of the programs was complex, and the roles and responsibilities varied based on the phase of implementation. This thesis outlined steps to improve the internal digital communication efforts used to promote the program participation. A further research proposal would be “Can hybrid ways of working enhance occupational wellbeing?” Additionally, a second study will be needed to establish the corporate wellness program process and to further develop the process flow diagram constructed in this thesis.