Why Your Internal Comms Strategy Needs a Personalisation Make-Over

(Yes, we mean ditching the “one-size-fits-all” mass email from 2003.)

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You know the scene. You send an all-staff email, hit “Send”, then wait for those glorious sound-effects of a roaring inbox. Instead… tumbleweed and crickets.

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That’s because your internal comms are doing exactly what they’ve always done: broadcasting generic messages to everyone, everywhere, all at once. And in 2025? That just doesn’t cut it anymore.

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1. The Rise of Personalisation in Internal Comms

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Gone are the days when “Dear All” was enough. Today’s workforce expects comms that feel relevant. According to a recent trends report:

• 55% of communication professionals believe hyper-personalisation will be the most impactful trend in the next 5 years (Blink).
• Internal comms teams are increasingly focused on “data-driven, personalised messaging” as a key evolution. (Pebb)
• Companies with two-way communication channels see 56% higher employee satisfaction. (Gitnux)

In short: Your people are saying (quietly or not) “Stop sending me irrelevant stuff.” Personalised comms means better resonance, better engagement, and better outcomes. And your internal comms strategy needs to lead on that charge.

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2. What Personalisation Actually Means (Not Just “Hi John”)

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Let’s be clear: personalisation isn’t just slapping a first name on a subject line and hoping for the best. It’s deeper:

• By role/function: The message for a sales rep is different from the message for a manufacturing line worker.
• By location/time zone: A UK employee vs a US employee may need different context, tone or even channel.
• By device or channel preference: Desk-based team might still use email; frontline/field needs mobile-friendly bursts.
• By interest/behaviour: If someone regularly opens videos, give them a video. If they skip, give them a short infographic.

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For example: Axios reported how one large firm abandoned their mass email model and launched a tailored digest based on department, location & interests, shifting away from 40,000 bespoke annual comms to something far more focused. The result? Better relevance, better engagement, fewer “didn’t know about that” moments.

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3. Why the Generic Model Fails

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Here’s what happens when you stick with “spray-and-pray” comms:

• Employees receive too many messages, most irrelevant. According to Axios HQ, organisations waste time in internal messaging and miscommunication.
• Engagement drops. When people feel that messages don’t apply to them, they tune out.
• Trust erodes. If comms feel generic, bland or obviously “company speak”, the sense of connection weakens.
• You miss the business impact. Personalised comms are better aligned with goals, behaviour change, and culture. According to Gitnux, organisations with effective internal comms programs are 25% more likely to have lower turnover.

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So, if you’re still broadcasting “All Staff - FYI” updates with zero segmentation, you’re not alone. But you’re behind.

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4. How to Give Your Internal Comms a Personalisation Make-Over

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We always advocate a full health check if you really want to look after and future-proof your comms offering. (And please, drop us a line if we can help with that!)

Otherwise, let’s roll up the sleeves. Here’s your step-by-step.

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a) Segment your audiences

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Start simple. Break your internal audience into meaningful groups. For example:

• Desk vs deskless
• Frontline vs back-office
• Region / country
• Job-function (sales, operations, HR, etc.)
  Use data you already have. You don’t need a hundred segments from day one. Three to five will typically make a difference.

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b) Define personas & content preferences

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Ask: What kind of message does this group need? What channel do they prefer? What format? What tone resonates?
Run pulse surveys or focus groups if you can. A report from Gallagher particularly emphasised that collecting insights (via quizzes, polls, behaviour) leads to far more impactful comms.

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c) Tailor the message

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For each segment:

• Write with their language and context.
• Choose the right tone (formal? friendly? cheeky?)
• Pick their favourite channel.
• Use formats they will engage with (video? infographic? chat message?).

Example: A manufacturing floor worker might get a 90-second mobile video recap; a corporate office team may get a short email plus live Q&A.

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d) Use the right channels for each segment

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Everything old is new again. Email is still used by 98% of internal comms teams (Workshop). But that doesn’t mean it’s best for everyone. As per Blink, a mobile-first strategy can matter especially for remote or frontline staff.

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e) Automate where possible (but stay human)

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Personalisation at scale gets tricky, and that’s where tools help. But DON’T let automation drop the human. Tone still matters, and employees will spot a ‘robot’ message a mile off. Forbes warns that AI is a tool, not the final product. And we agree.

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f) Measure, iterate, refine

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Track what happens. For each segment ask: Did they open? Engage? Change behaviour? Use their feedback. Adapt. Then do it again.
Because if you personalise once and stop? You’re right back to generic city.

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5. Real-World Wins

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• Axios reported how a global professional services organisation switched to a tailored digest format (by location, function & interest) instead of mass emails and the engagement lift was significant.
• Similarly, there are reports of frontline-heavy organisations using mobile-first, role-specific messages and seeing major improvements in alignment and feedback loop responsiveness.
• And Gitnux tells us that internal comms teams who segment and personalise consistently report higher trust, higher satisfaction and lower turnover.

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6. “But My Budget is Tight”. Yes, We Heard That

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Feeling the pinch? Good news: you don’t need a Hollywood-budget campaign to start.

• Start with one segment. Test. Learn. Scale.
• Use existing channels/tools you already have; tweak format and tone.
• Repurpose content smartly (same message, different format for different groups).
• Show early wins. They help you justify bigger budgets later.

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7. The Bottom Line

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If your internal comms strategy is still “bombard everyone with the same message”, it’s time for a makeover.
Personalised internal comms = more relevance + more engagement + more business-impact.
And best of all, fewer “why did they send that to me?” groans from your team.

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Want a hand? We’re human, we’re comms people, and we do this for a living. Let’s gear your comms into something relevant, human and actually helpful.

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