How do you use employer branding to attract candidates?

The most important thing is being authentic. There is no point in giving an impression of your workplace externally that is not realistic to the one within the businesses. So start with culture, understand how your employees are feeling, what they value in the business right now, what they would like to see, and so on. Give your employees a voice and a platform (hint - LinkedIn) to talk and actively encourage but don't force it. Creating or defining an EVP takes time.

It is important for candidates to understand the company brand. It is marketing! Show the candidates your company is more than a job, it is a culture and a team and you are a value to be a piece of that puzzle!

Picture this. An employee wholeheartedly believes in a company’s mission + vision + values statements because they are observing these intangibles being modeled from the top down. Culture is infiltrated and the bottom line is impacted due to increased productivity. This employee is not a line-staff or factory worker. They are HR. EVP (employer value proposition) is only compelling when the core message is authentically experienced by key stakeholders. They are the ones who will passionately lead the conversation on why someone would want to work for your company, because, actions speak louder than words, and candidates are sold out to companies who reflect their personal values.

Employer branding is a crucial aspect of attracting top candidates to your organisation.  1. Define your employer brand 2. Develop a strong online presence  3. Leverage employee testimonials 4. Engage with candidates on social media  5. Offer a positive candidate experience 6. Build relationships with universities and industry organisations 7. Foster a strong company culture 8. Highlight employee benefits and perks 9. Leverage employee referrals 10. Monitor & evaluate your employer brand Remember, building a strong employer brand takes time and effort. Consistency, authenticity, and a focus on delivering a positive candidate experience are key to successfully attracting top talent. 

Defining employer value proposition (EVP) is one of the most important things a company can do. You have to get your message out to the market. The best-known beats the best. we know that. How about being the best known and the best and tell your story

Yes, the EVP will serve as the backbone of all Employer Branding. You can have all the Employer Banding capabilities in place, but if you don't have a competitive and unique EVP, you will not enjoy the benefits of EB. Because your EB exists as a way to communicate internally and externally your EVP. If you have a clear idea of what makes your company valuable, competitive, and unique, then it becomes clearer how to communicate it to both candidates and employees in a compelling manner.

Das Alleinstellungsmerkmal und Arbeitgeberversprechen (EVP) ist die Basis Ihres Employer Brands. Nehmen Sie sich Zeit und stellen Sie sicher, dass ausreichend Budget zur Verfügung steht. Wer an diesem Punkt des Employer Brandings Fehler macht, wird keinen Erfolg haben und im schlimmsten Fall mehr Schaden anrichten als Erfolge erzielen. Wofür steht das Unternehmen, warum sollten Kandidaten sich bewerben, warum bleiben Beschäftigte langfristig bei Unternehmen, was unterscheidet das Unternehmen vom Wettbewerb? Um diese Fragen beantworten zu können, sammeln Sie ausreichend Informationen und analysieren Sie den Istzustand sowie die Zukunftspläne und Sollperspektive. Authentizität ist dabei entscheidend.

What candidates need now is job security, they will be asking questions about financials and projects with green lights, purpose driven narrative with clear and sensible projections. Free hats and hoodies just don't cut it in this market. Great branding in this economy is financial stability, business continuity plans and emphasis on employee wellbeing. Benefits should be practical and useful such as health and dental care. Of course, no job will ever be 100% secure, but being able to trust a new employer that you won't be laid off once you've 'fullfilled your primary purpose' shouldn't be too much to ask.

Empowering and training your employees to create their own personal brands, even if not directly related to the company, can help to strengthen your employer brand and get more eyes on your company.

Everyone wants to see real challenges, real concepts real people. They don't just want to see someone from HR just going on about the values and the people. When it comes to technology, people want to see what it's actually like from the teams and what challenges they actually face. Stop with the HR videos and let the team show it from their perspective.

These stories shouldn't always be coming from you. When they come from your employees who are having a good experience then they feel more authentic and real which attracts more people. As a business focus on creating good experiences for your current employees and the future employees will come in themselves.

People don't want to see a video from HR saying here's our "values". People want see real problems, hiring managers coming on lives and candidates being able to ask questions directly before they apply. We have to sort this out, as people are speaking up a lot more, just don't say pizza Friday is a benefit.

The employee voice is critical for communicating employer branding. Here's how to look for clues for credible, authentic representation: 1. Does the company encourage employees to share their opinions? Do the stories all look boilerplate or truly authentic? 2. What are ex-employees saying about the company? This demographic doesn't have any "skin in the game" and may be more open to providing honest feedback about their experiences related to culture.

Employer Branding is gaining traction in the market as a great way to showcase your Organisation/Brand's culture and stores ... BUT the key component, that magic secret sauce that everyone just does not wrap their head around ... and yet it's so simple: keep it authentic!! Ditch the scripted versions of what you think your Organisation is like and let your employees be your voice for EB. Showcase your culture and stories through UGC (or rather "EGC") content ... let your team be your voice, and then stitch those stories together in a beautiful tapestry that showcases what makes your Organisation / Brand as unique and special as it is!

Some companies are already doing this. They showcase their staff performing philanthropic work and fraternizing. It is time many more companies use social media outlets to do so giving us more than a peek into their culture. It would certainly be easier to attract candidates.

Recruitment is all about understanding real people and having the right people in your team. Nothing for today's upcoming recruitment professionals says more about you than your social media - especially here on LinkedIn. I'd say never be afraid to be honest. Never be afraid to be authentic to your team's culture. Use humour, emotion and add your own style to promote your particular employer brand and what you stand for. Especially powerful is encouraging your team to post their own takes on what your culture is about. After all - they are living and breathing your interactions, wins, highs and lows every day! Who better to shout about these?

You are only as good as the people you have around you. I am a big believer of testimonials, that helps a candidate to truly understand what it’s like to work for a business, regardless of your role or seniority. As a candidate, you want to be heard and valued.

Encouraging employees at all levels to showcase company culture is key - not only will an intern will have a different view and needs to someone in the C-Suite, but they will have different networks which will diversify your reach. It can be very obvious (and a red flag for potential employees) when all the external comms around culture is coming from HR and/or the executive team and not from 'regular' employees.

Our best ambassadors are our current employees. Select a few who can tell the story of your company culture and daily mission via video. Do it right, you are showcasing your company culture, values, and expectations and trying to entice others to join your team. Being creative with your messages ads value to your job opening and speaks loudly that you are different.

There are quite a few best practices to elevate your brand and attract top talent. One approach is re-introducing your brand. A great way to accomplish that is using employee testimonials, an executive message and creation of a mission statement ( often referred to as a North Star). Sometimes your company may have a new product launch or a new service. I would suggest a Corporate showcase, using fireside chats, company sponsored events and networking opportunities. It offers you a unique way to showcase the company's culture while rebranding it. Employing this in your talent attraction strategy allows candidates to understand the company's value proposition, culture fit and how this differentiates you in the market.

Analysieren Sie die Candidate Journey. Ist die Karrierewebsite wirklich der erste Touch Point, oder gibt es noch andere davor, die den Kandidaten erst verleiten auf die Website zu gehen? Passen Sie die Inhalte der Website und der Anzeigen an Ihre Zielgruppen an. Sind Ihre Wunschkandidaten Mensch die gerne viel und lange Informationen sammeln? Dann stellen Sie entsprechende Informationen zur Verfügung. Oder ist Ihre Zielgruppe überflutet von Jobangeboten und Sie müssen schnell und auffällig überzeugen? Je nach Zielgruppe ist die Wahl der Kommunikation entscheidend. Testimonials sind hilfreich, aber nur sinnvoll, wenn für die Zielgruppe relevant. Einen Software Entwickler wird die Story eines Auszubildenen nicht interessieren.

Agreed. In our office we have people who post daily, we also have people who post once a month, who do you believe gets traction? I always say imagine your social pages as the front windows of your business? Are you showcasing your services? Are you showcasing what makes you different? You need to make sure your profile is active and engaging make sure people know who they are reaching out to!

Employer branding is a continuous effort, demanding consistency and responsiveness. Align and integrate your brand seamlessly across all channels, from your website to social media, ensuring a cohesive candidate experience. Regularly monitor key performance indicators like website traffic, conversion rates, retention, and satisfaction. Actively seek and address feedback from candidates and employees through reviews, ratings, and comments. Swiftly respond to questions and concerns, demonstrating a commitment to professionalism and candidate engagement. By maintaining this consistency and responsiveness, you fortify your employer brand and attract candidates effectively 🌐👥✨

Consider a Talent CRM to help you engage on a consistent basis with past, present and future talent. These platforms are designed to help you share your employer brand through email, text and social campaigns - and track engagement. Look for a Talent CRM that offers automated campaigns to nurture and engage with talent on an ongoing basis without putting any burden on your team and AI to match those leads to your open jobs.

I’ve been recruiting senior software engineering talent and they have always been very hard to attract, especially that mythical “10x” engineer; when you are looking for this kind of talent, there is a lot of research involved to first uncover the prospect and then find out what resonates with this prospect- this is usually by checking out their blog, publications, what kind of clubs, contributions to open source communities like dev.to and GitHub. Then i have a lead that I can approach the prospect with and pitch the ‘evp’ in line with what I know about the prospect from my research- for instance, “you describe yourself as an aspiring Rustecan and my hiring manager is building this product in Rust, would you be open to chatting about it?

An EVP serves as a valuable avenue for showcasing your company culture. In my view, a blend of personal and professional posts creates an optimal representation. Prospective candidates often look for insights into managerial styles, the overall work environment, and Corporate Social Initiatives undertaken by the company. These elements contribute to the assessment of cultural fit, making them crucial considerations for potential hires. I consistently advocate for hiring managers to share glimpses into their personal experiences and express why they find the work environment enjoyable. This approach fosters transparency and aids candidates in forming a comprehensive understanding of the workplace.

Often, companies compare themselves to major competitors when building their EVP. This is not a bad thing: The EVP should be competitive, so you need to know what the competition is doing. However, it also has to be differentiated and unique. And this is where you should look within and not focus on what others are doing. To be Differentiated, you need to create a differentiated experience for employees and to be unique, companies need to create staying power through a unique proposition with a purpose by connecting the employees to the company's mission and vision and helping them feel they belong.